Citi UAE
UAE In-Country Services Technology Lead and MENAP Cluster Lead
- Permanent
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Experience 5 - 10 yrs
Job expiry date: 22/11/2026
Job overview
Date posted
08/10/2026
Location
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Salary
AED 30,000 - 40,000 per month
Compensation
Comprehensive package
Experience
5 - 10 yrs
Seniority
Senior & Lead
Qualification
Bachelors degree
Expiration date
22/11/2026
Job description
In-country business heads, product leaders, regulators, internal audit and regional governance committees all deal with this Dubai-based technology executive at Citi, who covers the UAE and the wider MENAP cluster. Delivery spans multiple franchises, including Institutional Clients Group, Treasury and Trade Solutions, Markets, Corporate Banking and Commercial Banking. Global and regional roadmaps have to line up with local priorities, with dependencies across distributed teams, local partners and vendors tracked and cleared. Regulatory engagement is a large part of the work, from the Central Bank of the UAE, DFSA and FSRA to audits, inspections, CCC/RCF forums and Corrective Action Plans. Data onshoring and sovereignty initiatives, local clearing systems, central bank reporting and Arabic UX/UI requirements all sit within the localisation brief. As Business Application Owner for local applications, you are also the senior escalation point for P1/P2 production incidents. Hands-on development experience in Java, Spring Boot, Python, .NET or Go is a real advantage, supporting architecture reviews and faster root-cause analysis. Knowledge of microservices, REST/SOAP APIs, ESB, Kafka, MQ, secure SDLC and OWASP standards is expected. Candidates need 8-10+ years of progressive technology leadership in global banking, proven UAE and MENA regulatory experience, a Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science or a related field and fluent English, with professional Arabic a distinct advantage.
Required skills
Key responsibilities
- Lead multi-franchise technology programs across the UAE and MENAP cluster
- Align global and regional delivery roadmaps with local country priorities
- Track and remediate technical, operational and organisational dependencies across global teams, local partners and vendors
- Establish program governance metrics, KPIs, risk registers and executive steering committees
- Engage local and regional regulators, including the Central Bank of the UAE, DFSA and FSRA
- Drive internal and external technology audits, regulatory inspections, peer reviews and CCC/RCF forums
- Oversee Corrective Action Plans and audit remediation through to verifiable closure
- Coordinate mandatory vulnerability assessments, penetration tests and disaster recovery/business continuity testing
- Advise in-country and cluster business executives, product managers and operations heads on technology strategy
- Translate commercial objectives into prioritised technology demand and actionable backlogs
- Evaluate market trends and technology opportunities that improve client experience and efficiency
- Architect data onshoring and localisation initiatives that meet data privacy and residency regulations
- Ensure platforms meet local clearing, central bank reporting, tax and Arabic UX/UI requirements
- Enforce security, cryptographic and access-control policies across localised adaptations
- Own end-to-end Business Application Ownership for local applications and integration layers
- Triage P1/P2 production incidents as the senior escalation point and coordinate root-cause resolution
- Act as in-country SME for local processing workflows, integration architecture, core banking connectivity and middleware
Experience & skills
- Hold a Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technology or a related discipline
- Bring 8-10+ years of progressive technology leadership in global banking or financial services
- Demonstrate proven experience in UAE and MENA banking environments and regulatory frameworks such as CBUAE, DFSA, FSRA and SAMA
- Show a solid software development background in languages such as Java, Spring Boot, Python, .NET or Go
- Understand microservices, REST/SOAP APIs, ESB, Kafka, MQ and relational and NoSQL databases
- Apply sound knowledge of data protection, encryption, secure SDLC, OWASP standards and disaster recovery
- Build executive-level relationships with business heads, regulators and audit committees
- Manage high-severity incidents and regulatory audits with composure and structure
- Influence cross-functional, distributed teams across multiple geographies
- Speak fluent English, with professional Arabic a distinct advantage