Tell us about yourself, your background, and your journey to founding MavenPay.
My name is Chinedu Ochonogor, but everyone calls me Miles. I grew up in Nigeria, where my earliest fascination was with science. I wanted to become an astrophysicist, and throughout my school years, I consistently ranked in the top percentile of my class, earning the best first school-leaving certificate, the best Junior WASSCE, and the best Senior WASSCE in my school.
Everything changed when my mother lost her job shortly after I passed my Senior WASSCE and JAMB in one sitting. That moment forced me to rethink the path I assumed I would follow. I accepted my first job as a blogger at Christ Embassy Yookos and enrolled in a government university, very different from the private-school paths my siblings took. My uncle, Alex Ochonogor, then a finance manager at Eterna Oil Plc, stepped in to fund my studies.
At the University of Port Harcourt, I began studying Electronics and Computer Engineering. That was my first exposure to coding through MATLAB, but it was primarily theoretical. I knew I wanted a deeper education in technology and practical engineering. During that period, my uncle gave me some pivotal advice: there are no shortcuts to success, and the friends one keeps can shape one’s life. Those words stayed with me.
Eventually, I dropped out without informing my family and spent over a year working in property rentals and sales through the support of a friend. I was earning money and learning life skills, but I also felt something was missing. My turning point came during a car business transaction where I met someone who later became a close mentor. When I shared my ambitions to build technology and create something meaningful, he encouraged me to relocate to Dubai to pursue a more structured education. He supported me through that transition, helping me secure a visa, pay my rent, and engage as an independent contractor within his automotive business, where I invested some of my savings and earned additional income through completed deals while I continued my studies.
Once in Dubai, I committed to building the foundation I always wanted. I completed a one-year cybersecurity and software development program at Edoxi Training Institute, followed by a year of full-stack software engineering at Teach Me Code Institute, and later a six-month Cybersecurity Bootcamp at Caltech. The Caltech experience was pivotal: it gave me enterprise-level skills and reshaped my view of security, scalability, and product architecture.
At the same time, I struggled to access basic financial services. Opening accounts, sending money, or registering new offshore businesses came with layers of scrutiny, both for me and for many friends operating legally across G20 countries. That recurring frustration planted the earliest seeds for MavenPay. I realized that if I wanted to solve this problem globally, I needed more profound expertise not just in engineering but also in fintech, compliance, and financial regulation.
That led me to the Harvard Fintech program, where I deepened my knowledge of banking, credit, blockchain, crypto, and emerging financial technologies. During that period, MavenPay expanded its operational foundations, strengthened its compliance framework, and grew into a team of four professionals across finance, engineering, and operations. With combined expertise in cybersecurity, financial management, and product development, we secured our MSB registration and began implementing enterprise-wide cybersecurity systems aligned with FINTRAC and the Bank of Canada’s requirements. As we continue refining our infrastructure and preparing for launch, we are actively hiring to support the next phase of our growth.
To refine our product vision, I enrolled in MIT’s Digital Platforms course as a part of the Chief Product Officer program. It significantly influenced our approach to user understanding, compliance, and the development of a roadmap centered on real human and business needs. Combined with years of hands-on experience in software and cybersecurity projects, these experiences laid the groundwork for MavenPay.
Today, MavenPay is the direct result of that journey, a blend of personal challenges, deep technical training, global fintech insight, and the ambition to build an inclusive, secure, and intelligent financial ecosystem.
What inspired you to take the leap into entrepreneurship?
My entrepreneurial drive came from necessity, mentorship, and repeated real-world friction with financial systems. Navigating restrictive banking processes in different countries, especially as an expat, showed me how deeply the global economic system needed modernization.
I wanted to build a platform that could eliminate these barriers; One that combined engineering discipline, security, AI, and financial accessibility. Entrepreneurship became the only path to creating the type of innovation I wished existed.
Tell us about MavenPay
MavenPay is a global payments and travel concierge platform designed to integrate finance seamlessly into daily life. It is built with an AI-driven infrastructure that automates compliance, enhances security, and provides a personalized banking experience for individuals, businesses, and global professionals.
The name “Maven” represents expertise, professionals, and connoisseurs, which reflects our internal culture of innovation, security, user empathy, and product excellence.
At its core, MavenPay introduces a new category of fintech: an AI-powered global account with integrated loyalty, travel, payments, treasury management, and credit capabilities. We aim to launch multi-currency accounts across G20 countries and the MENA region, enabling instant global payments, blockchain-powered settlement, and personalized financial advice delivered at scale.
As a company, what are your core values?
MavenPay is built on:
- Security-first thinking
- Customer-centric design
- Professionalism and transparency
- Cultural sensitivity and global accessibility
- Product innovation grounded in real user needs
These values shape every decision we make, from product architecture to compliance, and guide how we build long-term relationships with customers, partners, and regulators.
What are the platform’s key features?
MavenPay integrates financial access, loyalty, and intelligent automation into a single ecosystem. Key features include:
- Digital onboarding with zero account-opening or minimum balance fees
- Multi-currency accounts across G20 and MENA countries
- Cross-border settlements powered by Coinbase’s Base L2 blockchain to reduce fees and help companies boost profitability.
- Mass payouts to more than 180 countries
- Instant settlements for creators, affiliates, travel agencies, and payroll
- Support for AED, GBP, USD, HKD, CNY, EUR, NZD, AUD, INR, USDC, and over 100+ cryptocurrencies
- Crypto yield, sending, receiving, and borrowing functionality launching in 2026
- AI-powered financial advisory using reinforcement learning
- Treasury management tools to lock in favourable FX rates
- Concierge Merits loyalty program with airline, hotel, shopping, and credit card points
- A travel concierge assistant to book flights, hotels, and lounges using loyalty points
Everything is designed to feel like a personalized concierge experience layered on top of global financial infrastructure.
What is one of the biggest frustrations expats face after relocating to the UAE, and how does MavenPay help?
One of the biggest challenges for expats is simply opening a bank account. Many pay consultants or accountants to navigate the process, and even then, accounts often come with high maintenance and international payment fees. Additionally, many local accounts are AED-only, creating expensive barriers for anyone who needs to send money home or make mass payouts.
MavenPay eliminates these barriers through:
- Digital onboarding
- No minimum balance or account-opening fees
- Multi-currency accounts
- Instant cross-border settlements
- Up to 70% savings on international payment fees
- Local accounts across multiple regions
- Mass payouts for businesses, creators, and enterprises
- Integrated crypto capabilities
We designed MavenPay specifically for expats and global citizens who live and work across borders.
How is your app unique in the marketplace?
The uniqueness of MavenPay lies in its integration. Most fintech apps are fragmented. Personal accounts in one place, business accounts elsewhere, crypto on separate platforms, loyalty points scattered, and travel services disconnected. Many platforms in the UAE also impose strict transaction limits, lack global coverage, or avoid crypto entirely due to compliance challenges.
MavenPay brings everything together:
One app.
One experience.
One intelligent global account.
Payments, credit, travel, loyalty, treasury, FX savings, and crypto all operate within a single AI-powered infrastructure.
How are you revolutionizing cross-border payments?
Our innovation comes from:
- Base L2 blockchain for instant settlement
- Automated compliance using AI-native infrastructure
- Multi-currency local accounts spanning G20 and MENA markets
- A credit risk engine built on reinforcement learning
- Treasury and FX intelligence that dynamically delivers better rates
- A seamless bridge between fiat and crypto
Cross-border payments become faster, more affordable, and more transparent. For businesses, creators, and expats, this means meaningful savings and real-time access to funds.
What are your plans for the year ahead?
Our focus for the coming year includes:
- Completing core infrastructure development
- Strengthening banking and institutional partnerships
- Expanding our engineering and operations team
- Building and testing our AI financial concierge
- Preparing for the launch of multi-currency accounts and cross-border settlement rails
- Reinforcing compliance frameworks for upcoming licensing initiatives
- Scaling strategic collaborations across the UAE, Canada, and additional G20 markets
We are deeply focused on precision, resilience, and regulatory alignment ahead of our 2026 launch.
What is your vision for MavenPay over the next five years?
Within five years, MavenPay aims to become a truly global bank with:
- DFSA Category II license application in Dubai
- Expand locally into Europe, India, and other G20 Countries by 2028–2036.
- AI Reinforcement learning modules for global compliance
- Full brokerage capabilities for stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds
- Credit and lending infrastructure powered by intelligent risk engines
- Accounts receivable automation for businesses
- A global travel concierge that books hotels, flights, lounges, and dining through loyalty points
- An advanced AI advisory system enabling personalized financial guidance at scale
- Open our B2B APIs for SMEs, other financial institutions, and developers for business integrations, payment gateways, and payment terminals
Our long-term goal is to become a truly global bank, offering personalized financial assistance and 24/7 access to your funds, accommodating long-term wealth planning and accumulation tools through private client services and treasury management tailored to expats and global teams.
Where can readers find out more?
Readers can subscribe to our newsletter or join the MavenPay waitlist for early access, exclusive updates, and free premium global transaction benefits, for up to one year after our 2026 launch.
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