Glena Sami

Electronic Product Development:

• Preparing and developing the product, and identifying the external parties involved in its implementation.
• Communicating with external stakeholders related to product setup and ensuring the necessary requirements are fulfilled for each party, such as global payment networks (e.g., MasterCard and UnionPay), processing companies (e.g., Yana and GPS), and vendors supplying cards, ATMs, printers, etc.
• Manage Internal Processes related to each product from technical, finance and operational perspective.
• Setup related terms and conditions for products and arrange the compliance with internal regulatory departments like (AML, Control and audit).
• Prepare product direct and indirect costs and evaluate market study for pricing structures
• Staff training for new product launches for all front officers and backend operation staff.
• Develop banking electronic channels by transforming the traditional banking operation into digital solutions.

Successfully contributed to manage the re-carding process to another processor, build enhanced credit card module integrated with core banking. also, contributed in international payment schema portfolio sale and license downgrade process to decrease cost.

• Manage and supervise all daily operations related to electronic cards, settlement and ATM sections and ensure the process well executed.
• Prepare department’s police and procedures.
• Continuous enhancement and development for the operational process.
• Ensuring the safety and accuracy of implementation.
• Analyze internal and external audit reports for the financial activities of the central operations department and Identifying deviations from the levels of performance in order to investigate and determine their causes, although setting plans and programs to solve them.
• Improving employee’s performance.

Successfully led the end to end setup and operationalization of international payment scheme products (Mastercard, Visa, UnionPay), starting from licensing and product initiation through to full-scale rollout. managed the restructuring of the Operations department, built foundational processes, and delivered scalable infrastructure to support issuing, acquiring, and digital payments in alignment with regulatory and scheme requirements and successfuly managed to process the customer digital onboarding through Mobile application.

• Restructured the Operations function from the ground up, establishing core policies, procedures, and governance frameworks to support issuing and acquiring businesses.
• Spearheaded the licensing and certification process with global card schemes (Mastercard, Visa, UnionPay), including BIN sponsorship, operational readiness, and scheme onboarding.
• Directed the launch and lifecycle management of card issuing programs including UAT phase testing , pilot test and production, activation, inventory control, and customer service integration.
• Led the setup of POS acquiring infrastructure, overseeing merchant onboarding, terminal deployment, configuration, and performance monitoring.
• Managed core operational pillars including payment processing, settlements, reconciliation, transaction monitoring, and chargeback handling across POS, ATM, and e-commerce channels.
• Built and maintained strong relationships with key stakeholders: Central Bank, card schemes, processors, and third-party service providers.
• Collaborated with compliance, risk, and product teams to embed AML/KYC controls, regulatory requirements, and scheme mandates into all operational processes and digitize the onboarding process.
• Oversaw the integration and performance monitoring of the payment gateway, ensuring seamless transaction routing and system reliability.
• Designed and tracked KPIs for both issuing and acquiring channels to optimize performance, identify risk exposures, and drive continuous improvement.
• Implemented end-to-end project governance, ensuring delivery across multiple streams on time, within scope, and in full compliance with both local and international standards.

Successfully established and led the Settlement Department from the ground up in a fast growing fintech environment. Oversaw the full design and implementation of end to end settlement processes, frameworks, and systems to support multi-channel transactions, including card issuing, acquiring and cross-border payments.

• Manage end to end daily settlements across all payment channels (card schemes, banks, , POS, ATMs, and payment gateways).
• Manage the cashflow and the balances in US settlement bank.
• Accounting Module setup for all products.
• Oversee the clearing and reconciliation processes between internal core systems and payment sachems (CBI National Switch, Mastercard, Visa).
• Oversee the clearing and settlement process for our client core banking system.
• Establish seamless payment process for company merchants.
• Manage the cross border transaction related interchange and merchant discount rate.

Established card settlement department from scratch set up all related policy and procedure in alignment with internal and external standard.

• Setup accounting module for both debit cards and ATM acquiring channels on national and international level.
• Manage internal and external settlement process with Mastercard and Central Bank of Iraq.
• Manage and monitor Bank’s Balance and collaterals with card associates to insure covering cardholders expenditure.
• Setup accounting module for issuing and acquiring various products and channels.
• Manage up to 10 ledgers in general trial balance.
• Intermediate account reconciliation management.
• Dispute resolutions management.

Senior Officer recognized for driving success in establishing the Cards and Operations Department and contributing to the successful principal licensing with mastercard international payment scheme across issuing, acquiring, and in-house processing. Played a key role in launching multiple debit, credit, and prepaid card products tailored to different customer segments, positioning the bank among the first to integrate with the Central Bank’s national switch. Led the setup of operational frameworks, GL accounting structures, reconciliation processes, and reporting systems. Oversaw dispute resolution, transaction evaluation, and ongoing compliance with scheme and regulatory requirements.

Motivated and detail-oriented Finance Officer with foundational experience in preparing financial reports, including monthly, quarterly, and annual statements. Assisted in the preparation of balance sheets and income statements, while ensuring accuracy and compliance with Central Bank regulations. Supported the annual external audit process by coordinating with audit firms and providing required financial data and documentation. Contributed to the monitoring of financial operations across multiple branches, maintaining control over inter-branch accounts and supporting internal financial controls. Committed to developing a strong career in financial reporting, regulatory compliance, and audit support.