Building fintech solutions for banks in the Middle East is like attending a regional wedding: there are too many people involved, no one agrees on the playlist, the food is excellent, and someone’s uncle is going to ask, “Why are we doing this again?”

If you’ve ever tried launching a digital wallet, integrating an onboarding flow, or even just updating a banking app in this region, you’ve probably experienced a moment of quiet reflection, thinking: Surely, there must be a faster way to do this. There isn’t. Not yet at least.

These observations apply not only to Fintech solutions, but most other development builds as well.

Culture is Not a Checkbox

One of the most beautiful things about working in this region are its people. A true melting pot. You’ll find Egyptians debating with Lebanese product owners, while Indian developers negotiate timelines with Saudi project managers—all in a meeting run by a British consultant who just learned how to pronounce “Wasta.”

It’s a cultural buffet. Everyone brings their own flavour, and somewhere in the middle of it, a fintech product is born. Sometimes spicy, sometimes sweet, but always with a surprise ingredient.

But this melting pot also means alignment takes time. Things you thought were “obvious” in one context might be “under review by legal” in another. Communication isn’t just cross-functional—it’s cross-cultural, cross-time zone, and occasionally, cross-your-fingers-and-hope-it-lands.

Inside the Bank—A Series of Negotiations

Banks in the region are modernizing—but many still operate like they’re in the middle of a 90s sitcom: great cast, lovable characters, outdated tech, and everything gets resolved in 30 minutes… except your integration request, which takes six months.

You’ll meet teams with job titles that sound made up. (“Senior Vice President of Strategic Enablement for Customer Happiness and Digital Excellence, MENA West”) You’ll sit in meetings with fifteen people, only two of whom are allowed to speak, and one of whom is always on mute.

And just when you think you’ve gotten the green light to proceed, someone will casually drop: “We just need a final sign-off from Group.” Group, of course, is not a person. Group is a force of nature. Group exists in a parallel dimension where time moves differently.

Market Challenges? Where Do We Begin…

The region is growing fast. Fintech is booming. Every day, there's a new startup pitching seamless, borderless, AI-driven finance solutions that promise to change the game—pending regulatory approval, of course.

Regulators in the region are actually ahead of the curve in many ways. The UAE, Saudi, and Bahrain are actively pushing innovation. But the real challenge is the gap between vision and execution. It’s one thing to attend a conference and nod along to buzzwords like “embedded finance” and “neobank orchestration,” and quite another to implement them into a 20-year-old core banking system held together by Excel macros and hope.

Language, Translations, and the Art of Being Understood

Serving the Middle East means your app has to speak more languages than a Doha airport. And I don’t just mean Arabic and English. I mean understanding how people talk about money.

In some places, “loan” sounds like a trap. In others, “instalment” means empowerment. Your UX copy better be precise, culturally sensitive, and preferably reviewed by three departments and a sheikh with UI feedback.

Even the emojis in your app’s chatbot need diplomatic immunity.

What Should Banks Actually Be Doing?

Here’s the bit where we say something serious.

If you’re a bank, your job isn’t to “become a tech company.” It’s to become better for your customers. That means:

• Making account opening faster than planning a family BBQ.
• Showing fees like you show ingredients at a buffet—clearly and upfront.
• Offering real-time updates that actually happen in real time, not “eventually, when someone clicks refresh.”

Innovation shouldn’t be about chasing trends. It should be about solving real problems in a region where people are juggling remittances, investments, multi-currency accounts, and the occasional NFT.

The Punchline? Build With People in Mind

You can have the best APIs, the most scalable stack, the sleekest app—but if your customers still have to call a hotline to unblock their card, you’re not innovating. You’re decorating.

Middle Eastern banks have a huge opportunity: to lead the world in fintech with heart. To embrace the region’s diversity, culture, and pace—without losing sight of the human being at the other end of the transaction.

So, let’s build systems that respect approval flows and users. Let’s make fintech human. And maybe, just maybe, let’s deliver a product without scheduling three more alignment meetings next week.

Need help navigating this digital odyssey? We’ve seen it all, survived it all, and even laughed through most of it. Reach out at www.its11eleven.com. We’re here to simplify, localize, and humanize fintech—without losing our minds (or our manners).

By Gopal Aswani, Founder of www.its11eleven.com