CEO Today Europe Awards

83 www.ceotodaymagazine.com CEO Today Europe Awards 2017 About Imad Malhas Imad co-founded IrisGuard in 2001, and serves as CEO and Chief Technology Officer. Co-located between IrisGuard’s offices in Jordan and UK headquarters, Imad pioneered the concept of using Iris recognition to secure mass-transit national borders in the UAE and Jordan as well as large scale cross-country registration of millions of UNHCR refugees. In 2008, Imad led IrisGuard’s deployment of the world’s first iris-enabled ATM machines, where customers use only their eyes to access cash withdrawals. In 2013, he spearheaded the development of the EyePay® platform, a unique payment platform for retail transactions, enabling the world’s first iris-enabled POS in 2016 and the integration of EyePay® with Ethereum blockchain in 2017. Married with three children, Imad is the co-inventor on a number of international patents and has been an Endeavor Entrepreneur since 2009. About IrisGuard UK Ltd. IrisGuard is the world’s leading supplier of novel end- to-end iris recognition biometric technology that authenticates identity for secure financial delivery payments and large-scale humanitarian deployments. Driving disruptive and state-of-the-art innovations that provide financial inclusion for vulnerable populations, IrisGuard is an established and trusted solutions provider for international agencies including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the World Food Programme (WFP) andmany national government and non-governmental organisations (NGO’s) around the world. IrisGuard’s pioneering and patented technology is implemented in a number of innovative applications designed to deliver card-less cash withdrawals on ATMs, Blockchain transfers, microfinance, remittances and supermarket food voucher replacements. IrisGuard is the owner of several patents for its innovative technology, is the winner of four International awards (including Frost & Sullivan and an emerging payments award) and has recently been shortlisted in the Seamless payments and LendIt fintech awards across three categories. Imad Malhas and the IrisGuard platforms the united kingdom I consider everyone who works for IrisGuard to be part of the family, I want them to have the same entrepreneurial spirit and passion as me, driving us forward, keeping us as the market leader, enabling the vulnerable and unbanked for many years to come. What exciting developments lie on the horizon for you and the IrisGuard family in the coming years? We see the potential for EyePay® and its integration with either the traditional banking model or the blockchain as a gamechanger for the social welfare and aid sector. There is so much scope for other countries around the world to stretch their funding and/or reduce overheads by ensuring that only those in need are verified and receive aid, in a fast, accurate and dignified manner. We are looking at the use of EyePay® technology to allow remittances and payments from person to person. The iris technology certainly complies with any Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti Money Laundering (AML) banking requirements, so it is now up to us to develop this further. Additionally, we want to overturn the reliance on weak mobile telephone and tablet biometrics by developing a truly secure iris recognition mobile platform. The ability to check a mobile financial payment against a secure database rather than the biometric stored on the device, has the ability to revolutionise mobile payments – and will be applicable to both the unbanked and those with traditional bank accounts. We are in the early stages of developing this on the Android platform, with more news to follow soon. What would be the one thing you would want everyone to remember about iris recognition and IrisGuard in particular? Iris recognition is the safest, most accurate and secure and reliable biometric method, and IrisGuard was the pioneer, effectively writing its history. secure iris recognition on Android Q Q