Pavel Popov
IT & FinTech Advisor · AI Expert
Tashkent, Uzbekistan / Remote
About Me
25 years in IT across Russia and Central Asia. Started as a developer, grew to CIO of major banks. Went all the way from writing code to managing IT strategy at board level.
Founded and built AI practices in several organisations. Was implementing machine learning when it was still called data mining. Today I work with modern LLMs, build speech analytics and automate processes for banks, telecom operators and government organisations across CA.
Independent advisor since 2022. I work at the intersection of strategy and execution — helping not just to design, but to deliver. I know the CA market from the inside: sector-specific regulations, technology landscape, hiring specifics and culture.
Areas of Expertise
IT Strategy
- IT audit & diagnostics
- IT strategy development
- Transformation roadmap
- IT governance
- Vendor management
AI & ML
- Machine Learning scoring
- Speech Analytics (ASR/NLP)
- LLM integrations
- AI agents
- Anti-fraud systems
- AI-driven development
FinTech Delivery
- DWH / BI for banks
- Digital & mobile banking
- RegTech & DWH
- Payment integrations
- Turnkey teams
Work Experience
CIO
АКБ «Туронбанк»
Digital transformation of one of the largest state banks in Uzbekistan. IT hub, AI projects, 60+ person team, $25M+ budget.
CTO
ООО «U-BSSYS»
CTO of an IT company in Central Asia. Speech technologies, AI solutions for banks and telecom operators.
Executive Director
ООО «ПСБ-Лаб»
Built an IT company from scratch (subsidiary of PSB bank). 120-person team, AI practice, import substitution.
Business Development Director
Bell Integrator
Development of digital services for clients with $100M+ revenue. Acquired 2 new clients (top-6 banks), revenue growth of 5B RUB. Team of 100+ people.
Business Development Director
Бэнкс Софт Системс
Development of innovative products: digital banking, AI and anti-fraud systems for major banks. Personal portfolio of 1B+ RUB/year, 50+ projects.
IT Leadership Roles
Крупнейшие IT-интеграторы РФ
17 years at leading IT companies in Russia. Projects for Sberbank, VTB, Gazprombank, Rosbank and other top banks.
Education
until 2005
Specialist — Physics Faculty
Lomonosov Moscow State University
until 2007
Postgraduate Studies
MGUPI
Courses
2024 · Skolkovo
Advanced Negotiations
2017 · HSE
Blockchain for Business
2016 · IT-Expert
PMP, Project Management, ITIL Foundation
2014 · HSE
NLP in Business
Languages
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