Driven by his desire to restore insurance to its original purpose of providing mutual aid to those who need it most but can afford it least, Michele founded Democrance in 2015.

Prior to that, Michele worked in strategy and distribution at global insurance powerhouses AXA and MetLife in France, Egypt and the UAE. He is a frequent speaker at microinsurance, entrepreneurship and social innovation events, as well as a frequent contributor to publications in the Middle East and wider region.

On top of his position as CEO of Democrance, Michele sits on the Board of Directors at the Microinsurance Network, a non-profit member association of microinsurance experts, including donor organizations, multilateral agencies, insurance and social protection providers, policymakers and academics.

Italian by birth, Michele holds a Master’s degree in Management/Grande Ecole from ESCP Europe in Paris and an MSc in Economics from Turin University. He is also a graduate of Carlos III University in Madrid and City University in London.

Alberto looks after operations, products and the customer success functions in the business.

Educated at ICAI School of Engineering and EOI Business School in Spain, he started his career at PwC as a management consultant before relocating to Johannesburg where he worked at the Trade and Investment arm of the Government of Spain (ICEX) and helped small and medium-sized tech companies expand their operations into Sub-Saharan African markets.

Seeking new adventures, he relocated to Dubai as the CEO of a newly born B2C startup and soon after tried to (unsuccessfully) disrupt the petrol station market by launching an award-winning on-demand fuel service.

In 2016, he bumped into Michele while having a coffee at the accelerator where they both happened to be working. The connection between Michele’s vision and Alberto’s prior experience in Africa was immediate. The rest is history.

As founder of a boutique software development company, Tauri-Tec, Damian has built cutting-edge software for a diverse range of clients throughout his career. These include the United Nations, the UK government, a Nigerian electricity operator and a variety of startups in e-government, fintech and media.

Damian holds a PhD in Parallel Programming from the University of Kent and a BSc in Physics from King’s College London.

He is fluent in English, German and Polish.

Medea Nocentini is Senior Partner at Global Ventures and a Board Member at Democrance. She is also Founder of Companies Creating Change (C3), a UAE-based social enterprise helping impact-driven entrepreneurs in MENA to unlock their growth potential and maximize their positive impact on the community.

Before joining Global Ventures, Medea served as Chief Strategy Officer at the AW Rostamani Group, an international and diversified family group, as well as Senior Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Development at OSN, a leading Pay TV platform in the MENA region. Earlier in her career, she spent several years at Booz Allen Hamilton developing strategies for TMT, consumer and public sector’s clients across Europe, the United States and the Middle East.

She holds an MBA from Columbia Business School (New York, USA), an MSc in Mechanical Engineering from Politecnico di Torino (Italy) and an Engineering Diploma from Ecole Centrale Paris (France).

Zeeshan is the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) at Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Ventures (Wa’ed Ventures) and a Board Member at Democrance.
In his current role at Wa’ed Ventures, Zeeshan leads strategic decision-making for venture capital investments, managing a substantial $500 million fund from seed to growth stage. He brings 15+ years of expertise in Venture Capital and as part of this role he serves on the Boards of various companies, spanning technology, energy, education, Artificial Intelligence and robotics.
He holds a MBA in Finance from University of Wales, a Certified Private Equity Specialist (CPES) designation from the International Academy of Business and Financial Management, and a CIFE in Islamic Finance from the Academy for International Modern Studies (AIMS) UK. Zeeshan’s commitment to professional development is evident in his affiliation with the GCC Board Directors Institute (GCC BDI) as a Member and his role as a Judge and Mentor at in several platforms in entrepreneurial eco-system.
He joined Democrance Board on Q4 2023.

Anupam is an Independent Board Member at Democrance. He brings over three decades of international experience in Life, Health and P&C insurance. He was previously Managing Director & Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he led the Asia-Pacific Insurance Practice. He was formerly Partner and Head of APAC Insurance at Oliver Wyman, and Partner, UK Financial Services at McKinsey & Company. In executive capacity, he was a member of the Group Executive Committee at Aviva Plc, a listed multinational insurer, serving as Group strategy & development director; and Managing Director, Asia-Pacific. He has served on several Boards in Asia, UK, and Middle East, and is currently Independent Director at PE/VC backed players. He is an active investor in the global Insurtech/Fintech space. Anupam is based out of Singapore and has joined us in March 2024

With over 6 years of experience in Europe, Florian has been responsible for project management, strategy management and customer success management in various multinational conglomerates, as well as startups based out of Europe.

He has a background in FinTech, Cybersecurity and Supply chain management. Florian is trilingual, speaking English, German and Hungarian.

He received his Master’s degree from ESCP Business school in Strategy & Digital Business and a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification and joined Democrance end in Q3 - 2023 as Costumer Success Manager and has been Promoted to the Sales Department December 2024.

Maximiliano has been a distinguished professional in the Latin American (LATAM) insurance industry for over 15 years, bringing a wealth of expertise in sales, business consulting, and strategic development. His career has been marked by his adept oversight of marketing initiatives and the development of alternative channels for insurance companies, significantly contributing to the industry's growth and innovation.

Throughout his tenure, Maximiliano has played a pivotal role in the creation and implementation of insurance inclusion programs, product innovation, and tailored insurance solutions for diverse demographics, including migrants, micro-entrepreneurs, and informal workers. His efforts have not only broadened the accessibility of insurance but have also enhanced financial security for underserved communities across the LATAM region.

Maximiliano is highly respected in the industry, evidenced by his active membership in various inclusive insurance organizations and innovation-focused groups. His commitment to advancing the sector through collaborative efforts and cutting-edge solutions is well recognized.

He Joined Democrance Team in March 2024.

He is now cooperating with us as a reseller in Latam.

Viviana Lannutti joined the company in March 2022 and plays a multifaceted leadership role across HR, Operations, and Executive Management. In addition to heading both HR and Operational functions, she also serves as Executive Assistant, making her a key member of the firm’s upper management.

Viviana brings a strong foundation in insurance, developed through her work at Lannutti Assicurazioni Spa, a business she helped grow in her native Italy. Prior to joining our organization, she spent a decade in Paris managing flagship retail operations, leading teams of over 30+ employees and overseeing end-to-end functions across HR, sales, marketing, logistics, management and strategy.

Known for her adaptability, efficiency and deep understanding of both people and process, Viviana’s multi-disciplinary expertise makes her an invaluable asset at all levels of the business.

She continues to play a central role in shaping the company’s culture, operations and strategic direction.

PRINCE2 certified, Lauriane has over 5 years of experience in the SaaS industry. She has assisted Tier 1 Brands and retailers in digitizing and streamlining their data-sharing processes while working in technical delivery and customer success for a Tech SaaS company specializing in Product Information Management (PIM) in France, with clients across Europe and North America.
Lauriane has a proven track record of leading successful client onboarding, driving adoption, and ensuring client satisfaction by advocating for customer needs and facilitating collaboration with technical teams.
She is Bilingual in French and English, and she earned her MSc in Supply Chain Management from SKEMA Business School, studying at campuses in Sophia Antipolis, France, and Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. She has joined Democrance in July 2024.

A skilled professional with over 5 years of experience in SaaS and business solutions, joined Democrance in October 2024 as a Customer Success Manager.

With a background in Computer Engineering from the American University of Sharjah, Ahmed brings a strong mix of technical knowledge and client management expertise.
Before joining Democrance, Ahmed worked at Odoo Middle East as a Customer Success Manager. Over the time in this role, he was responsible for onboarding clients, managing key accounts, and collaborating with stakeholders to ensure smooth ERP system adoption. His focus was on understanding client needs and delivering tailored solutions.

Earlier in his career, Ahmad gained valuable experience as a Business Analyst at Rasan Information Technology, working in the health insurance sector. His ability to analyze business processes and align them with technical solutions strengthened his approach to client success.

Ahmed’s fluency in English and Arabic, combined with his technical expertise, positions him as a key asset to Democrance in fostering strong client relationships.

With a background in public relations and advertising from the Lebanese university and with over 6 years of experience in the Saas industry, Mariane specializes in delivering value to clients by applying both her client relations skills and knowledge in the Saas. With a track record in value-added services (VAS) and cybersecurity, she has been responsible for Customer engagement and Customer success management from onboarding phases all the way to customer expansion and retention. Throughout the years she has handled tier 1 clients ensuring the delivery of their needs efficiently and the enablement of tailored solutions.
Mariane is Fluent in Arabic, English and French. She joined Democrance in November 2024.

With over 9 years of experience in Accounting and Finance, Nausheen is a Finance Manager with valuable skills gained through working in diverse financial positions within multiple industries in the UK, Mauritius, and UAE.
Nausheen has solely managed several projects within the FinTech, Oil & Gas, Health Care, Construction, Financial Services and Technology industries from different jurisdictions.

Prior to joining Democrance in 2023, she helped other companies design and implement accounting systems from scratch with procedures and policies to be implemented within the company and the group in order to stay compliant and ensure the smooth running of the businesses.

Nausheen is from Mauritius, and she holds a bachelor’s degree in Applied Accounting from Oxford Brookes University together with an Advanced Diploma in Accounting and Business from ACCA.

Since joining the Democrance team in 2019, Aysha has overseen numerous product implementations that have aided in driving the company’s mission to make insurance products accessible to all within the changing digital landscape.

Aysha has over 9 years of sales and customer success experience within the software and e-commerce industry, including multinational organizations such as Meltwater.

Raised in the UAE, Aysha holds a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Management from Murdoch University.

In 2023 her responsibilities shifted complitely towards Product !

Bhavesh joined Democrance in august 2021, he is a Senior software architect specializing in making technology accessible to all through innovative low-code/no-code solutions. He has been instrumental in transforming the insurance platform architecture from developer-centric to DIY user-centric, enabling non-technical users to build insurance products independently.
Prior to Democrance, Bhavesh served as Staff Software Engineer at One.com in Dubai, where he architected hybrid cloud infrastructure solutions and designed scalable website builder platforms serving over 2 million active users. His career also includes valuable experience at Google, where he developed real-time analytics platforms for the developer relations team. With over 13 years of experience, Bhavesh has consistently demonstrated expertise in distributed systems design, microservices architecture, and cloud infrastructure optimization.
Bhavesh holds a B.Tech in Electronics and Communication from Bharati Vidyapeeth's College of Engineering, affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi, India.
He is passionate about creating tools that empower users and firmly believes that while problems can be complex, the solutions should be simple.

Muhammad Ashad Chaudhary is an AI Software Engineer at Democrance, where he builds scalable InsurTech and FinTech solutions with a focus on intelligent automation and personalization. Since joining in November 2017 as a Senior Backend Developer (Python), Ashad has played a central role in evolving Democrance’s technical capabilities and shaping its AI direction.

He began by leading client-side implementations, working closely with Customer Success to deliver partner solutions. He later transitioned into AI and machine learning, where he now focuses on building customer profiling engines, text-based chat assistants for policy purchases, and tools for automated quoting and personalization.

Prior to Democrance, Ashad held senior engineering roles at Etisalat UAE and contributed to platforms across finance, telecom, and e-commerce including the Etisalat App, Swyp, Smiles, and digital systems for the Pakistan Stock Exchange (CDC).

He holds a Computer Science degree from FAST-NUCES and a Diploma in Actuarial Science from Paris Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi.

Sami  Zaman joined Democrance in June  2023, moving into a full‑time position after a standout internship with the company. As a Product Software Engineer, he designs and maintains the core platform that enables insurers to rapidly create, configure, and launch tailored insurance products, work that sits at the heart of Democrance’s mission to keep clients ahead of shifting market demands.

During his internship, Sami worked on client‑side projects, building end‑to‑end insurance product configurations and integrations.

Sami holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Middlesex University. Originally from Pakistan, he is keenly interested in applying emerging advances in artificial intelligence to broaden access to inclusive insurance solutions.

Osama Rasheed joined Democrance in Q4 2021 and has since been promoted Lead Client Engineer, a role he stepped into in early 2025. He leads the design and delivery of scalable, client-focused software solutions, playing a pivotal role in bridging business requirements with technical execution. His work spans solution architecture, engineering leadership, and cross-functional coordination to ensure successful client integrations and platform enhancements.

With over 11 years of experience in software development, Osama brings deep expertise across insurtech, fintech, telecom, and digital media. Prior to joining Democrance, he led backend architecture initiatives, improved system performance, and mentored high-performing teams in dynamic, fast-paced environments.

Osama holds a Master’s degree in Data Science and a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences (FAST), Pakistan. Passionate about cloud-native systems and the practical application of AI, he is also an active contributor to the tech community through mentorship and open-source engagement.

Ahmad Gharibeh joined Democrance in October 2021 and has been instrumental in building and scaling digital insurance platforms for clients across the GCC region. He started working in Dubai and he is now based in the United Kingdom, Ahmad focuses on the design and development of scalable motor and health insurance solutions that support the digital transformation of the industry.

Prior to joining Democrance, Ahmad gained over ten years of experience in software development across various sectors in the United Kingdom and the Middle East. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computing from the University of Greenwich and is currently advancing his knowledge in artificial intelligence and data science.

Ahmad brings a hands-on and collaborative approach to engineering, having led the development of core features, managed third-party integrations, and contributed to product launches. His strong technical foundation and commitment to continuous improvement make him a valuable asset to the Democrance team.

Hameed Yusuf is a backend engineer who joined Democrance on March 21, 2022. He is responsible for designing and maintaining secure, scalable backend systems and REST APIs that power key platform features.

Prior to Democrance, Hameed worked with tech companies in Saudi Arabia and India, including Menaget SPC, Mokhatat, and Prakshep, leading backend development for SaaS products, ETL platforms, and map-based solutions. He also has experience as a programming trainer and database developer with academic and international research institutions such as IITA.

He holds a Bachelor of Computer Application from Bangalore University. His interests include cloud computing (AWS), system automation, and scalable architecture.

Driven by a passion for building scalable and impactful digital systems, Muhammad Asad Shah Jahan joined Democrance in January 2023 as a Senior Software Engineer.

Prior to that, Asad held key engineering roles at Arbisoft, where he contributed to Insurify as a Backend Engineer focused on integrations. He began his career at Khaleef Technologies, where he developed a strong foundation in backend development and system architecture.

Asad holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and a Master of Science in Software Project Management from the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (FAST-NU). He has also earned multiple Nanodegrees from Udacity in Cloud Development, React, and Python, reflecting his commitment to continuous learning and technical excellence.

In his role at Democrance, Asad brings deep technical knowledge and a collaborative mindset, playing a key role in shaping and scaling the company’s digital solutions.

Gustavo Herodier is the Lead Frontend Engineer at Democrance. He joined the company in late 2017 as one of the first FE developers and has played a critical role in shaping the frontend architecture of the platform.

Gustavo brings deep expertise in JavaScript, Vue.js, Node.js, and CSS, combined with a strong design sensibility. Over the years, he has led the frontend team in transforming early concepts into a scalable and elegant product interface, ensuring that user experience remains at the heart of the Democrance platform.

Originally from El Salvador, Gustavo holds an MA in Social Anthropology and a BA in Philosophy, along with postgraduate qualifications in Marketing, Advertising and Art. His curiosity and interdisciplinary thinking inform both his engineering work and leadership style.

With his unique blend of technical excellence and creative insight, Gustavo continues to contribute significantly to Democrance’s innovation and product quality.

Arpit Srivastava joined Democrance in May 2020 as a DevOps and later evolved into the role of DevOps Lead Engineer in late 2023. Since then, he has been instrumental in overseeing the company’s multi-cloud infrastructure, ensuring continuous service availability, and driving automation efforts to reduce manual intervention and mitigate human error. His work also supports Democrance’s cybersecurity and compliance frameworks.

Before joining Democrance, Arpit held roles including Linux System Administrator at C1 India Pvt Ltd and DevOps Engineer at both OpsTree Solutions and Mauqah Technology LLC. He also contributed to the development of a UAE-based messaging platform and an IoT application, while providing DevOps consulting to a range of organizations.

Arpit holds a Bachelor of Technology in Computer Science from ITS Engineering College, Greater Noida.

A committed technologist, Arpit focuses on building secure, scalable systems and advancing the efficiency of digital operations.

Nishanthini Radhakrishnan joined Democrance in June 2023 as a DevOps Engineer where she plays a vital role in maintaining and optimizing the company’s infrastructure and deployment processes. She supports the development team with continuous integration and delivery pipelines, infrastructure-as-code practices, and compliance-related audits across various client projects.

She brings over nine years of experience in DevOps and system administration, having worked across a range of industries to deliver secure and scalable solutions. Her professional background includes expertise in automation, server provisioning, monitoring, and cloud-based deployments.

Nishanthini holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree and is a certified Red Hat Linux Administrator. In addition to her core DevOps responsibilities, she also contributes to the Engineering Review Committee (ERC), ensuring the platform remains secure and audit-ready.

Her interests include cloud automation, DevSecOps, and driving operational excellence through process improvement and smart tooling.

Rakesh joined Democrance in March 2022 as a QA Engineer, bringing over a decade of experience in software quality assurance and testing. At Democrance, he plays a critical role in ensuring the stability, performance, and usability of the platform. His responsibilities include building and maintaining test automation frameworks, executing comprehensive manual test cases, and conducting load testing to evaluate system behavior under stress.

Before joining Democrance, Rakesh held quality assurance roles at several leading organizations, including One.com, Apttus, Siemens Technology & Services, and CenturyLink Technology Limited India, where he refined his expertise across both automation and manual testing.

He holds a Master’s degree in Electronics and Information Systems and is known for his detail-oriented approach and commitment to delivering high-quality software.

Rakesh is passionate about staying ahead of emerging testing methodologies and continuously looks for ways to enhance testing efficiency and coverage through new tools and strategies.

Motivated by a drive to deliver high-quality and reliable digital products, Harshitha Kumar has spent over seven years in Quality Assurance, working across complex enterprise projects for clients such as OPB, American Airlines, and Metro Retail.

Prior to that, Harshitha earned a Bachelor of Engineering in Information Science from Malnad College of Engineering and since has built a reputation for excellence, having been recognized by both internal stakeholders and clients for her precision, ownership, and collaborative mindset.

She joined Democrance in May 2024

Beyond her current role as a Senior QA Engineer, Harshitha continues to contribute to the success of cross-functional teams through her strong coordination skills, ability to lead testing initiatives end-to-end and her commitment to continuous learning in the QA field.