Context
FinaMaze B2C is an AI-driven robo-advisor where individual investors build and auto-rebalance diversified portfolios ("Smartfolios"). It runs real money in production, and was recognized as Best AI Robo Investment Provider of the Middle East 2023.
Problem
A retail investment platform demands two things at once: a clear, trustworthy web experience that individual investors can rely on with their money, and a backend that can carry a growing user base reliably enough to run real investments in production. When I joined, the frontend needed a rebuild from the ground up, and the backend needed someone to own it end-to-end.
What I built
- Rebuilt the entire B2C web app solo, with a fresh React architecture using Ant Design for UI, Redux for app state, and React Query for server state and caching.
- Then moved to the backend: fixing production bugs, shipping new features, and progressively taking ownership of the NestJS microservices behind the API gateway on GCP.
- Grew into leading the backend, translating requirements from the CEO into work the team could ship, and running production day to day.
Architecture / technical decisions
- Frontend: React + Ant Design + Redux + React Query, rebuilt from scratch for maintainability and a clean separation of app state and server state.
- Backend: NestJS microservices behind an API gateway, deployed on GCP.
- Clear service boundaries so features and integrations could evolve without coupling the whole system.
- Production ownership: monitoring, incident response, and fixing live bugs under real usage.
Result
A modern, maintainable robo-advisor running real investments in production for individual investors, and a personal arc from rebuilding the frontend alone to owning and leading the backend that powers it.
Lessons learned
Growing across the full stack is what makes you trusted to lead it. Owning both the code and its production behaviour is where real ownership starts.