Mike Nabavi
CEO & Chief Growth Officer
"People creating opportunities and changing trajectory of lives."
Mike Nabavi
CEO & Chief Growth Officer
Overview
Mike Nabavi is the CEO and Chief Growth Officer of BankLink, bringing decades of entrepreneurial and leadership experience to the forefront of financial innovation. As a three-time tech CEO and two-time solutions architect, Mike launched his first business during his undergraduate studies, scaling it to a team of over 35 employees before exiting to pursue opportunities in technology.
Mike’s journey in tech began during the pre-dotcom era, with early success in leading high-value technology sales to asset management firms in the southern United States. He later played a pivotal role in drafting a business plan that helped secure $30.75M on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
His career includes building and scaling innovative technology ventures, such as a fiat and crypto PayTech company, and founding and exiting a tech accelerator. Mike has also advised, mentored, and invested as an Angel in numerous advanced technology firms. Before focusing on tech entrepreneurship, Mike worked with Deloitte and his own consultancy, advising financial institutions and other clients on strategy, execution, and organizational development.
Mike’s passion for entrepreneurship stems from his belief in its transformative potential to create value and give back. Mike is well recognized for his expertise in designing financial and legal frameworks that foster collaboration and mutual benefit.
At BankLink, Mike provides visionary leadership, spearheading the creation of a resilient, regulated, decentralized banking ecosystem designed to empower FinTechs and drive their success.
The Spark That Led to BankLink
The idea for BankLink surfaced out of frustration—one that many FinTech founders know all too well. Despite running a fully regulated PayTech in Canada, I struggled to secure a stable basic deposit account. The only options available were two Tier 3 banks offering outrageous terms and fees. It was a stark realization: even well-run, compliant FinTechs face systemic barriers that stifle their ability to operate, let alone scale.
Determined to solve this issue, I explored securing our own banking license or acquiring a small, struggling bank. As I built the business case, I had the great fortune of meeting my now co-founder, Frank Chong—a former regulator and banker who has started, sold, and acquired banks. Our discussions quickly evolved beyond the original problem. We weren’t just solving a PayTech challenge—we saw an opportunity to build the world’s first regulated decentralized bank at a global scale.
A Personal Mission to Unlock Opportunity
While BankLink came about as a practical solution to a business problem, its genesis was deeply personal, one that has been with me for many years.
My first real business venture began with a $2,500 micro-loan from the Alberta Opportunity Company, a government program supporting young entrepreneurs. That small loan allowed me to start a business while attending university, which grew to over 35 employees. A few years after graduating, I exited the business.
Later, I took out a $65,000 student loan to pursue my MBA—an opportunity only possible because of the financial foundation I had built from that initial $2,500 loan. Those two financial opportunities changed the trajectory of my life. I’m grateful I had these and other similar opportunities, but I know many others still do not have these opportunities, and it doesn’t have to be so.
BankLink is, at its core, about creating more opportunities for the average person —at scale. I believe access to fair banking is a powerful enabler of economic mobility, and BankLink can reshape the financial landscape to make it more equitable and accessible for the underserved middle-class and those with limited means.
The Structural Gaps in Banking
Banking today is riddled with inefficiencies and barriers that disproportionately impact FinTechs and, ultimately, end users.
- FinTechs are revolutionizing financial services, delivering faster, cheaper, and more customer-centric solutions than traditional banks in every segment.
- Yet, securing regulatory licenses, a stable bank account and accessing payment rails remains a major challenge for many FinTechs, stalling their growth.
- The incumbent financial institutions don’t have the technology to enable them to have an adequate view of FinTech’s transactions for adequate regulatory compliance, and they don’t have an interest in creating competition for themselves.
- The fragmented FinTech ecosystem drives up customer acquisition costs and limits the scale of innovation.
BankLink’s regulated decentralized banking model and technology capabilities eliminate these barriers, allowing FinTechs to grow, compete, and collaborate in ways traditional banks and BaaS providers don’t enable.
A Multi-Trillion Dollar Opportunity
Some truths in business are self-evident:
- Lower costs drive adoption.
- Innovation thrives under constraints.
- Open ecosystems win.
- Collaboration accelerates success.
FinTechs have proven they can deliver better innovative financial products at lower costs, but their ability to scale is being stifled by regulatory complexity, traditional financial institutions’ lack of interest and a fractured FinTech ecosystem. BankLink solves these problems by:
- Securing banking licenses so FinTechs don’t have to.
- Managing compliance so FinTechs can focus on customers.
- Enabling growth by reducing customer acquisition costs and onboarding frictions.
- Providing exit path options for FinTechs to drive liquidity and growth in the FinTech ecosystem.
At scale, when BankLink and our FinTech partners offer everything consumers need to keep their money within our ecosystem, we become the place where all the money is—creating a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity for our shareholders and FinTech network partners while delivering significant benefits to consumers.
Why Now?
The timing for BankLink is critical. A perfect storm of global shifts is creating an urgent need for a new banking model:
- Traditional banks rely on barriers, not competition – Instead of improving, many banks are focused on restricting competition through regulatory bottlenecks and limiting access to payment rails.
- Regulatory stagnation – Compliance frameworks aren’t evolving quickly enough to accommodate the needs of FinTech innovation.
- The FinTech boom – FinTechs are growing rapidly but are still dependent on traditional banks for deposits, access to payment rails, and basic infrastructure
- Consumer adoption of app-driven finance – Digital-first financial experiences are now the norm, not the exception.
- Embedded Finance Expansion – Businesses outside of banking are integrating financial services, but they need a regulated, scalable backbone to do so effectively.
- The success of decentralized models – Companies like Airbnb (decentralized hotels) and Uber (decentralized transportation) have reshaped their industries. BankLink is the first decentralized banking model that is reshaping the financial sector.
- Blockchain & Tokenization Growth – Digital assets and tokenized financial instruments are gaining traction but lack proper banking support. BankLink bridges this gap.
- Demand for Transparency & Control – Consumers want more control over their money and better financial experiences. Legacy banks are not delivering.
BankLink is the missing piece—a regulated decentralized banking infrastructure that accelerates FinTech growth, improves financial accessibility, and strengthens regulatory oversight while benefiting consumers
BankLink’s Bigger Purpose
Beyond the structural and financial opportunity, BankLink has the potential to be a counterbalance to rising economic inequality. The gap between the wealthy and the poor is widening, and the middle class is eroding.
More competition from BankLink’s FinTech network will drive down borrowing costs, putting more money back in people’s pockets—money they can use to:
- Start a small business
- Invest in their education
- Escape the heavy burden of high interest debt
- Pay off their mortgage faster
- Take a family vacation
- Spend more time with family instead of work a side job
- Build generational wealth
This is how we empower more people get into and not slip out of the middle class. BankLink isn’t just a business – it’s a catalyst for opportunity, transforming lives and communities at scale.
We’re not just building a bank. We’re redefining the future of banking.
Now is the time.
Mike Nabavi
CEO & Chief Growth Officer
BankLink
Meet BankLink's other executives
Frank Chong
Chief Regulatory Officer (CRO)
Yves Messy
Chief Technology Officer (CTO)