Season 6 of Cyber Security District podcast is here, and we sit down with Chris Zadeh, a serial entrepreneur, fintech pioneer, and investor with a deep-rooted obsession for security, execution and building at scale. Chris is best known as the founder and former CEO of Open, one of the first cloud-native core banking platforms. Under his leadership, the company scaled to orchestrate more than €100 billion in financial flows, in an environment where downtime, breaches, or failure were simply not an option.
Today, Chris invests in cybersecurity and technology companies, backing founders who are building the next generation of resilient systems.
Meet Chris Zadeh
Chris’ journey into technology and security wasn’t accidental, it was built through years of hands-on experience, curiosity, and learning by doing. From early-stage startups to scaling mission-critical financial infrastructure, one theme remained constant: security was never an afterthought.
“It was a mindset from day one… you have to make it better, you have to make it more secure.”
In the early days, that meant figuring things out in real time, sometimes the hard way. As systems grew more complex and stakes increased, so did the need for robust security practices, dedicated teams and layered architectures.
The Reality of Building Something New
One of the most striking parts of Chris’ journey is just how hard it was to get started. Before landing their first major customer, the team went through:
“744 pitches… before we finally got a signature on a contract.”
It took nearly three years to convince the market, not because the product wasn’t good, but because it was too early.
“We built a car where the rest was still on a horse.”
That gap between innovation and adoption is something many founders underestimate. Even when the solution is clearly better, markets don’t move overnight.
Security as a Foundation
For Chris, building in fintech meant one thing: security had to be foundational. Not layered on later or treated as a checkbox.
“Priority one to 100 is not being hacked… the rest comes after.”
From secure coding practices to multiple layers of encryption and system design that could recover from failure, everything was built with resilience in mind from day one. But perhaps more importantly, security extended beyond technology. It included people, processes and culture, a holistic approach that aligned with the expectations of large financial institutions.
Culture, Discipline and Customer Obsession
If there is one theme that defines Chris’ approach to building companies, it’s relentless execution. At Ophen, this translated into a culture where exceeding expectations wasn’t optional, it was the standard.
“If we say Friday 4pm, Friday 4pm you have it. Not next week.”
That level of discipline extended across the entire organisation, from founders to engineers. Deadlines were met, customers were prioritised and when things went wrong, the team showed up, no matter what it took.
“We get paid by our customers. If we exceed expectations, we will be successful.”
Over time, this culture became a competitive advantage, often more powerful than the product itself.
Why He Still Builds
After exiting and achieving financial freedom, Chris could have stepped away from the business world entirely. But for him, that was never an option.
“I think it’s not healthy… to do nothing. I like the intellectual challenges.”
What continues to drive him is not just financial upside, but the process of building, working with teams, solving hard problems and creating something meaningful.
“It’s always teams… if you bring that together, you can create magic.”
Cybersecurity and AI
Today, Chris is focused on investing in cybersecurity, a space he sees as both critical and rapidly evolving. As systems become more complex and AI reshapes both attack and defence, the stakes are only increasing.
“The threats are changing… with AI, with deepfakes, everything is becoming more complex.”
At the same time, many organisations are still operating with outdated processes and tooling.
“A lot of things are still being done by hand… in Excel sheets.”
For founders, this creates a massive opportunity, particularly for those who can focus deeply and solve one critical problem exceptionally well.
Watch the full episode on YouTube
