Sami Bouzenad joined SlimPay in 2014. After starting out in business development he made the leap into the technical side of the company, and is now SlimPay’s Solution Expert. Keep reading to find out more about his life at SlimPay, what fascinates him about FinTech and why blockchain is going to be the next big thing!
What fascinates you in the FinTech sector?
I have several professional experiences in the tech world and find it fascinating! I truly think that software is eating the world, and I want to be part of this movement! What is exciting about the finance sector is that it is one of the last industries to be disrupted by the tech wave, mainly due to the sector’s regulations. However, this is now changing and huge potential can be unlocked from this market.
Why SlimPay?
I love payment because whenever your product is related to it you touch the lifeline of the company, have to take into consideration every detail of the business and get access to c-level deciders.
I was already working in the payment sector, for a PSP (payment service provider) enabling thousands of merchant to easily accept card payments, when I saw the opportunity at SlimPay. What appealed to me about SlimPay is its revolutionary approach to the market; here we don’t compete on price, but innovation.
Tell us more about your role as Solution Expert at the company
As one of SlimPay’s solution experts I am in charge of pre-sales activities for our different offices and product innovation. I provide product expertise and look for different ways to improve the product to meet tomorrow’s market needs. My role enables me to liaise with all departments here: sales, R&D, marketing… and requires to keep on the pulse of innovation!
Describe SlimPay’s company culture in one sentence
Take the initiative
How have your job role and tasks evolved since joining SlimPay?
I started at SlimPay in a business development role, working primarily with small and medium sized clients and prospects. Through working closely with the solution experts, and thanks to having a passion for the payments industry, I really developed my technical proficiency and knowledge within the sector enabling me to put myself forward for my current role despite having the typical background of a solution engineer.
What have been some highlights of your SlimPay experience so far?
We really have a great team here at SlimPay, on both a professional and personal level. Last year we took part in the Startup Cup Sailing Competition in La Rochelle. It was the first time I had ever sailed and was a great experience to do it with the team! Our cooking workshop and go-karting outings were also great laughs!
What are going to be the big FinTech trends for 2016?
I am big Blockchain believer! Blockchain is a lot more than cryptocurrency, it has the power to decentralise, and the potential to dramatically change everything from finance to any transaction requiring an intermediary!
There was a lot of investment in 2015, and I think that this year will be when we see the first results with new technologies coming up. We already saw the launch of Ethereum, a decentralised platform for “smart contract”, an application that runs exactly as programmed without any possibility of downtime, censorship, fraud or third party interference. The financial technology space is first in line for with regards to the blockchain revolution, with Ripple and R3 getting a lot of traction.
DSP2 is also set to really shake up the payment industry by introducing and regulating new third party providers centred around accessing banking information and initiating transaction on behalf of a customer, which should really spur innovation within the sector!
Any closing words?
If you’re interested in payment and the subscription economy, check out SlimPay’s new whitepaper: Europeans and the subscription model viewed from a payment perspective.
Thank you Sami!
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