Almond in a Nutshell
Financial barriers continue to impact quality of life for people globally. After spending years working to overcome these barriers, we founded Almond to create a more inclusive world. Together, we’re making smarter, simpler financial technology accessible to all.
What We Value
Adam Swartzbaugh
Co-Founder & CEO
Almond reflects the life experiences, aspirations and global vision of Founder & CEO Adam Swartzbaugh. Adam brings his unique perspective as an accomplished scholar, founder of an admired philanthropic organization, and as a former US Army Special Forces Officer. Adam earned his Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in International Relations at Brown University. He holds several Masters Degrees, including a Master of Arts (M.A.) from Brown in Development Studies, a Masters in Business Administration (M.B.A.) as a Legatum Fellow and Tillman Scholar at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and a Masters in Public Administration (M.P.A.) as a Center for Public Leadership Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Yunus Sevimli
Co-Founder & CTO
Yunus brings a background in engineering and technology startups as Almond co-founder. He has previously led multiple engineering and R&D teams focused on medtech development, initiated key industry partnerships, and successfully raised capital. Yunus has also developed culturally-informed technical approaches to poverty alleviation in Southeast Asia and shared findings across international forums. Yunus earned both his Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and Masters of Science (M.S.) in Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. He went on to earn his Masters of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Chief Marketing Officer
Howard Davidson
20 years defining and executing marketing and communications strategy that support consistent business growth and enhances brand equity, and awareness for startup and enterprise brands.
Chief Financial Officer
Hayden Brink
Nearly a decade of finance, financial modeling, CFO services, management consulting, investment banking venture capital and startup expertise. CAFCA, University of Denver
VP of Global Strategy & Partnerships
Christina Luah
15+ years of experience in financial services, championing transformational initiatives from incubation to launch; instrumental in business development and building globally scalable programs, and products from sales to implementation based on synthesized analysis.
Credit Product Lead
Tali Shalaby
3 years of international development and non-profit experience. Columbia University
Senior Software Engineer
Ali Haider
10+ years as a full-stack developer using enterprise financial and identity management applications. Security, authorization, and standards expertise. Lead developer for European bank app.
Chief Compliance Officer
Jeff Kern
10+ years of regulatory compliance and security leadership experience at cutting edge financial services companies including Google, Coinbase and bitFlyer.
Head of Law and Public Policy
Mohammad Hamdy
15 years of international regulation, trade, and investment law and policy. LL.M. & S.J.D, Harvard Law School
Director of Software Engineering
Diego Paris
14+ years of experience working on software development. Expertise in leading high- performance and multi-disciplinary teams to deliver valuable products in a fast-paced environment. Was recognized by hot-topics as one of the Top 100 Emerging Engineering Leaders of the world.
Director of Partnerships, SE Asia
Roger Samuel
Nearly 2 decades of partnership building and management with prominent last-mile technologies, IT/Networking, Telecom and Fintech organizations in the APAC region. CA State University, National University of Singapore
Credit Partnership Lead
Tina Manalac
Nearly 5 years of partnership cultivation in Southeast Asia, with expertise in sales, operations, and community outreach.
HR Manager
Betania Vazquez-Guzman
10+ years of overseeing recruiting, interviewing, and hiring of new staff, developing company culture, policies, procedures and maintaining employee records, and choosing appropriate platforms.
Assessment Scientist
Rhys Lewis, Ph.D
13 years of experience building psychometric assessments to predict behavior, including loan repayment. Ph.D. in Industrial & Organizational Psychology. Western University
Software Engineer
Rajitha Rajasooriya
Computer engineering graduate with 4+ years as a full-stack engineer. Proficient in developing front-end and back-end apps. Experienced as a lead developer and main contact point engineer. Skilled in team leadership and coordination. Passionate about staying updated with the latest technologies. Committed to driving innovation and delivering high-quality solutions.
Project Management Lead
Sahib Kogar
10+ years of project management, multi-disciplinary technology startup experience, and research and strategic planning, with a background in engineering and heavy industry. University of Michigan
Credit Partnership Lead – Africa
Henry Oster Onyemah
14 years+ of expertise in credit management skills in the financial inclusion space. Vast experience in micro-financing as trainer, facilitator, and author. B.A in Business Studies from the University of South Wales (UK), MBA in Financial Management from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Nigeria. Certified Expert in Microfinance (CEM) from Frankfurt School of finance and Management, Germany.