Ata Nasseri
Product Manager | FinTech & Consumer Credit | End-to-End Product Ownership, Risk & AI-Native Product Development | FRM
I build at the edge of uncertainty.
Markets, credit, startups, and AI share one truth: the future never arrives with a complete map. Signals are scattered. Risks are connected. The problem is rarely as simple as it first appears.
That is where I create the most value.
I do not wait for perfect information. I make assumptions visible, identify the decisions that matter, and move. I look at the whole system, the user, economics, risk, data, operations, and consequences, then turn ambiguity into a clear product direction and an executable path.
My background crosses consumer credit, financial-market infrastructure, risk management, venture building, and AI-native product development. This allows me to connect worlds that are often managed separately: growth and risk, finance and product, strategy and execution, human judgment and intelligent systems.
To me, product ownership is not moving tickets through a backlog. It is owning the problem end to end: asking the questions others miss, making hard trade-offs, aligning people with different incentives, and staying accountable for the outcome.
In consumer credit, this approach helped turn a fragmented process into one operating model, reduce the setup-to-initial-funding cycle from about six months to three weeks, and contribute to an approximately 23% reduction in defaults among customers progressing to final unit allocation.
In H2Learn, it meant turning an ambiguous ecosystem challenge into product strategy, explainable system architecture, a working prototype, and, when the evidence changed, a simpler and more valuable product direction.
AI is part of how I work, not a substitute for how I think. I use it to explore deeper, build faster, and operate with more leverage, while keeping judgment, evidence, and accountability human.
I am most valuable when the problem matters, the path is unclear, and the cost of a shallow answer is high.
Professional Experience
Product Manager & Solutions Architect | H2Learn
Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences
Amsterdam | February 2026 - Present
- Led and shaped the product design and solution architecture of H2Learn, an explainable, human-in-the-loop platform designed to make knowledge, projects, and collaboration opportunities easier to discover across the hydrogen learning ecosystem.
- The project began with a broad and ambiguous challenge. I turned it into a clear product direction, user journey, data architecture, and working prototype.
- Defined the product vision, scope, and value proposition.
- Built the end-to-end data-to-match logic, translating structured inputs into profile signals, explainable relationships, ranked matches, and network views.
- Designed the onboarding, discovery, network, and admin/governance workflows.
- Worked with the team and stakeholders to test the prototype, identify user and data risks, and turn feedback into prioritised improvements.
- Drove the product's evolution from broad knowledge matchmaking to a simpler, initiative-first map aligned with the partner's immediate need.
- AI is part of how I work, not a substitute for how I think. I used it to explore deeper, accelerate research, documentation, prototyping, and implementation, and build faster—while keeping product judgment, evidence, validation, and accountability human.
- The result was a stakeholder-reviewed functional prototype and a deployable initiative map with a clearer scope, stronger governance, and a more practical path forward.
Founder & Product Lead | AI-Native Venture Building
Solofounders
Rotterdam | January 2025 - Present
- Founded Solofounders as a hands-on venture studio where very small teams use AI to turn complex ideas and market shifts into focused products.
- I currently lead two lean product teams, Airsheet and Gader, across product strategy, architecture, business model, and execution.
- At Airsheet, I recognised that AI was rapidly commoditising generic no-code app building and led an end-to-end pivot from a horizontal platform toward an AI-native operations product for nonprofits. I helped redefine the target segment, value proposition, core workflows, and product architecture, positioning AI as the operating layer for turning organisational data into useful actions. The product is now in pilot through a value-for-feedback model designed to create immediate value for nonprofit partners while validating a repeatable path to scale.
- At Gader, I guide a two-person team building a live, local-first social product for real-world connection. I helped shape its multi-sided business model and product direction: simple micro-events in public places, designed around safety and repeat encounters rather than swiping or endless online interaction. The PWA and Android product are live, with AI designed to support discovery, safety, and repeat connection quietly in the background.
- Together, these ventures reflect how I work: recognising change early, making focused product choices, and helping small teams move from ambiguity to pilot and live products.
Alternative Investments Consultant | Market Risk, Futures & Options
IRIC-CO
The Randstad, Netherlands | September 2022 - August 2024
- Advised companies on hedging commodity-price exposures through exchange-traded futures and options, with a focus on protecting cash flows, liquidity, and financial resilience.
- Mapped underlying commercial exposures and risk objectives to instrument selection, contract maturity, position size, and hedge ratio.
- Directly monitored futures and options positions on the commodity exchange, assessing mark-to-market performance, hedge effectiveness, basis risk, margin requirements, liquidity, and rollover needs.
- Used scenario and sensitivity analysis to evaluate adverse price and volatility movements and recommended adjustments to hedge coverage, position limits, and liquidity requirements.
- Assessed the trade-off between the linear protection of futures and the asymmetric downside protection of options, considering premium cost and residual exposure.
- This work showed how commodity-price shocks, hedge losses, and margin calls can weaken cash flow and debt-servicing capacity, connecting market-risk management with broader credit resilience.
Product Manager – Consumer Credit
Maskan Investment Group (MIG)
Tehran | September 2021 - August 2022
- Owned the end-to-end delivery of a developer-financed, property-secured B2C credit product embedded in off-plan home purchases within a residential business delivering approximately 1,400 units annually.
- Led cross-functional execution across Credit Risk, Sales, Finance, Legal, Construction, Customer Service, and Collections, aligning policies, decision rights, approval gates, handoffs, and exception paths across origination, servicing, and recovery.
- Translated affordability, underwriting, pricing, repayment, and restructuring policies into structured business rules and operational workflows.
- Integrated the credit lifecycle with unit reservation, down payment, construction milestones, property handover, title transfer, and collateral release.
- Used the first 12 months of repayment behaviour as a structured risk-observation period, enabling centralised assessment and enhanced review of higher-risk cases before final unit allocation.
- Outcomes: Reduced the project setup-to-initial-funding cycle from approximately six months to three weeks, an estimated 88% reduction, and contributed to an approximately 23% reduction in defaults among customers progressing to final unit allocation.
Product Manager | Post-Trade & Mutual Fund Registry Infrastructure
Central Securities Depository of Iran
Tehran Province, Iran | April 2019 - August 2021
Led product management for FundReg, a national-scale capital-market infrastructure platform designed to centralize, structure, and safeguard ownership records across a subscription/redemption-based mutual-fund market serving approximately 2 million investors.
The platform addressed a critical market-infrastructure challenge: mutual-fund ownership data was fragmented across software providers, creating operational, legal, supervisory, and systemic risks for the capital market.
- Worked directly with the Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO), including its Risk Committee and Investment Funds Supervision Directorate, to address regulatory requirements throughout the approval process.
- Translated regulatory, legal, and risk requirements into product rules, data controls, and operational workflows.
- Shaped the CSD-based registry model after reviewing international approaches to mutual-fund infrastructure.
- Redesigned the onboarding journey when e-KYC through the national identity-verification system became a regulatory requirement.
- Coordinated the regulator, fund operators, legal and risk stakeholders, and technology teams from product definition through implementation and pilot.
FundReg received regulatory approval and entered the pilot stage. It was designed to provide a trusted central registry, strengthen regulatory oversight, and better protect investor records.
CSDI Representative | Asia Fund Standardization Forum (AFSF)
Central Securities Depository of Iran
Indonesia | September 2018 - August 2019
Represented CSDI in the Asia Fund Standardization Forum, bringing together central securities depositories and financial-market infrastructure institutions from ten Asian markets.
Compared fund-market structures, regulatory approaches, and platform models across participating markets, with a focus on investor registration, subscription, redemption, and settlement.
Used this international benchmark to shape FundReg's CSD-based registry model and personally presented the model to AFSF members, explaining:
- The risks created by fragmented mutual-fund ownership records.
- The rationale for moving to a trusted central registry.
- How the proposed model would support fund operations, regulatory oversight, and investor protection.
- The model became the foundation for FundReg, which later received regulatory approval and entered the pilot stage.
This experience connected international benchmarking with a concrete national-scale product and gave me direct experience representing and presenting a regulated financial-infrastructure model to international stakeholders.
CCP Risk Model Validator & Participant Credit Risk Specialist
Central Securities Depository of Iran
Tehran Province, Iran | April 2018 - March 2019
Worked across two connected areas of financial market infrastructure risk: independent validation of CCP risk methodologies and ongoing counterparty credit-risk management of broker-dealer participants.
- Validated CCP exposure, margin, collateral and stress-testing methodologies through backtesting, sensitivity analysis and scenario-based assessment.
- Managed participant credit limits and monitored daily settlement exposures arising from T+2/T+3 obligations, including limit utilisation, settlement performance and early-warning indicators.
- Conducted periodic and ad-hoc credit reviews of broker-dealers, considering their financial condition, settlement behaviour, customer-related exposures and available credit support.
- Assessed bank guarantees and letters of credit for coverage, validity, maturity and issuer risk, and used the results to support credit-limit recalibration.
- Translated quantitative model outputs and participant-level risk signals into practical recommendations on limits, collateral requirements and risk controls.
- Documented findings and worked with risk, clearing, settlement, technology and regulatory stakeholders to strengthen the CCP/CSD financial risk framework.
Financial Market Infrastructure (FMI) Product & Risk Specialist
Central Securities Depository of Iran
Tehran Province, Iran | March 2017 - April 2018
Worked on post-trade and financial market infrastructure initiatives across mutual fund operations, central counterparty (CCP) clearing infrastructure, risk management, and cross-border investment models.
Key contributions:
- Contributed to the early development of a CSD-based mutual fund infrastructure platform for organizing and dematerializing subscription/redemption-based fund operations.
- Supported the design of process flows and requirements for mutual fund registry, ownership-record handling, and operational standardization.
- Worked on the CSDI risk management initiative connected to the implementation of central counterparty (CCP) clearing infrastructure.
- Helped analyze CCP-related operational and risk-management requirements, including clearing workflows, risk controls, stakeholder coordination, and infrastructure readiness.
- Participated in the 'Interface Model' project, exploring fund-based structures for indirect foreign investment through third-party jurisdictions.
- Built a strong foundation in regulated financial market infrastructure, connecting CSD operations, CCP infrastructure, post-trade systems, product development, and financial risk management.
Business Development Advisor
Iust Start-up Camp
February 2016 - September 2018
- Coaching business model generation and start-up valuation workshops
- Start-up financing consultant
- Start-up business model development consultant
- At Iran university of science and technology(IUST)
Co-Founder & Asset Manager
Tahlilgaranebazar Group
September 2013 - September 2016
As Co-Founder and Asset Manager at Tahlilgaranebazar Group, I transitioned from economic journalism to hands-on investment strategy, bringing market insights to action. My core responsibilities include:
- Co-founding the firm and serving as Chief Business Development Officer, responsible for driving growth strategies, forming partnerships, and defining the company's market position.
- Working as an Asset Manager and Investment Advisor, managing client portfolios with a focus on capital preservation and long-term value creation.
- Conducting in-depth capital market analysis, interpreting macroeconomic trends, and turning complex data into actionable investment insights.
- Designing client-focused investment strategies based on risk profiles, market conditions, and long-term goals.
- Leveraging my background in economic journalism to communicate investment strategies clearly and build trust with clients and partners.
This role represents the convergence of analytical expertise and strategic leadership, rooted in a deep understanding of financial markets and economic dynamics.
Economic Journalist & Editorial Writer
Khorasan Newspaper
August 2012 - September 2013
As a senior member of the economic editorial team at Khorasan Newspaper—the third most widely read newspaper in Iran—I contributed to the newspaper's core economic content strategy and reporting. My key responsibilities included:
- Serving as a senior editorial writer for the economy section, producing opinion pieces and analytical columns on pressing economic issues.
- Acting as a capital market analyst, delivering data-driven insights and commentary on trends in the Tehran Stock Exchange and related sectors.
- Providing regular analyses of the gold and currency markets, with a focus on accessibility and clarity for the general readership.
- Collaborating with the editorial team to develop innovative topic ideas tailored to public interest and national economic developments.
- Participating in editorial meetings to shape the economic section's direction and ensure alignment with journalistic standards.
- This role refined my expertise in economic journalism, public communication, and market analysis, while deepening my ability to translate complex financial data into accessible narratives.
Business Development Manager
IRIC-CO
February 2011 - January 2013
Co-Founder & CFO
IRIC-CO
February 2010 - February 2011
Editor in Chief
Negareh Magazine
Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan, Iran | January 2010 - August 2010
As the Editor-in-Chief of Negareh Magazine, a monthly publication tailored to high school students, I led the editorial process from concept to publication. My key responsibilities included:
- Developing and presenting article ideas to the editorial board, and guiding the selection of engaging and relevant topics.
- Overseeing graphic design and layout, ensuring visually appealing and cohesive magazine spreads.
- Collaborating with the creative team to conceptualize impactful and content-rich cover designs.
- Actively participating in reader council meetings to gather feedback and insights, and integrating constructive critiques into future issues.
- Facilitating communication between writers, designers, and stakeholders to maintain editorial quality and consistency.
This role honed my skills in creative leadership, content strategy, visual storytelling, and audience engagement.
Chief Business Development Officer
Mojafarin
August 2008 - January 2010
Education
MBA – Entrepreneurship & Business Administration
Iran University of Science and Technology
Ranked 1st in program
BSc – Electrical, Electronics & Communications Engineering
Sadjad University of Technology
Certifications
- Certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM)
- Banking Digitization
- Business Analytics
- Financial Modeling
- Forecasting and Predictive Analytics
- Accredited in Business Valuation (ABV)
Technical & Analytical Skills
Product & Strategic Skills
Languages
- Persian – Native
- English – Professional
- Dutch – Basic Proficiency
Awards & Honors
- Ranked 1st in MBA cohort – IUST
- Top 1% nationwide in MSc Management entrance exam (Iran)