Fintech · SaaS transformation
Smartr365
From outsourced monolith to £50m FinTech platform. No documentation. No tests. No deployment process. Rebuilt from the ground up.
The problem
Smartr365 came to me with a codebase built by an outsourced team. There was no documentation, no automated tests, no deployment process, and no architectural plan. The system was a monolith: brittle, tightly coupled, and completely unfit for the multi-tenant SaaS product the business needed to build.
The company had ambitions to raise serious institutional capital and pass VC due diligence with Legal & General and Experian. The technology as it stood would not survive that scrutiny. Something had to change while the product was still live and the business was still operating.
What I did
I joined as the second employee and built the entire tech function from scratch. Engineered the cloud migration from a single business application to a multi-tenant SaaS architecture using elastic jobs for rapid user base expansion. Directed establishment of DevOps (IaC) and end-to-end SDLC. Scaled a team of 25+ across in-house developers and outsourced vendors in India and Cape Town.
Led the ISO 27001 certification process. Ensured GDPR compliance and passed bank security auditing for system integration. Engaged with funders and stakeholders regarding technical roadmap, costs, and project vision.
The due diligence process with Legal & General, Experian, and Lloyds passed without issues. The business was valued at £50m at the Experian funding round.
None of that happens by accident. It requires the right architecture decisions made early, a team that understands what they are building and why, and leadership that can translate between technical reality and investor expectations without flinching. When the due diligence passed clean, the relief in the room was tangible. That is the feeling this work creates.
"Rees was our second employee and built the tech function from scratch. His ability to create a team from nothing and then lead that team is second to none in those critical, formative stages."
Conor Murphy, CEO, Smartr365
"Rees proved to be a capable, diligent CTO: balancing priorities, solving multiple problems, and working closely with the CEO and L&G. He has integrity and loyalty."
Len Baudert, Business Consultant, Legal & General
"He grew the technical side of the business from himself to a multi-disciplinary team of around 20 people under challenging early-stage conditions. A tenacious problem solver with a strong sense of the importance of teamwork, learning, and development. He worked closely with the business leadership, making the pragmatic day-to-day technology decisions that took the business from seed funding to a Series A investment from a major partner."
Matthew Adams, Founder, Endjin (Technical Mentor)
"His leadership style is the perfect mix of having people learn on their own and providing a firm hand where required. He is brilliant at bringing together the right combination of people and skills to do the right job. He promotes a culture of cross-technology and cross-discipline collaboration where people can decide how to do their best in their own way and as part of a team. Simply put, one of the best leaders I have ever worked with."
Tiaan Tromp, Team Lead, Smartr365
"Inspirational, integrity, analytical, technical and mentor are the keywords that perfectly describe Rees. His ability to communicate and solve complex problems effortlessly is amazing. His leadership and interpersonal skills are spot on."
Saheed Busari PhD, VP Engineering
If this sounds familiar, you already know the next step.
Start the conversation →