How we built design into the Middle East's fastest growing app
CASE STUDY
LIGATURE X ZIINA
Anton Badashov was scrolling through old messages when he stumbled upon the newspaper ad that Ziina’s CEO, Faisal Toukan, had shared in those frantic early days. It was the infamous 1914 Shackleton expedition call: "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success."
Badashov chuckles at the memory now, five years into his tenure as Ziina’s first Head of Design and founding designer. Back then, joining as the second employee felt exactly like that—equal parts peril and promise.
The mission hooked him immediately: bring financial freedom to every person in the Middle East. "Our mission was set from day one and never wavered," Badashov recalls. In 2020, with just five people, they launched a peer-to-peer payment app from scratch.
Badashov prioritized accessibility above all—meticulous color choices, generous font sizes, multilingual support. "We designed for maximum clarity: one tab to receive money, one to send, one for transactions." The craft paid off. Ziina snagged Red Dot and UX Design Awards, with UK consultancy 11FS later praising their UX alongside Apple and Revolut.
Their big break came after doing a number of user research sessions.
During research, Badashov’s team uncovered a pain point for small businesses: endless app-switching to generate invoices via banks, then pasting into WhatsApp or Instagram. "We built Ziiboard—a native keyboard for iOS and Android that lets you generate and share invoices without leaving your conversation." Niche? Sure. But beloved. Some SMEs ran entirely on it, marking Ziina’s product-market fit.
Growth exploded: They quickly 10×'ed annual revenue and hit or exceeded 34% month-on-month growth.
Badashov credits product-led growth (PLG) mechanics, honed with guidance from my Ligature VC partner Dan and Daniel. "We iterated constantly on growth loops, referral flows, and ways to help users share Ziina with their peers. Dan and Daniel were instrumental—their guidance on growth mechanics and user psychology helped us build viral loops that actually worked."
At Ziina, Badashov shaped a design culture rooted in principles. "Set clear design principles from day one—we designed for local people, not copying Western patterns. This meant being onsite, working with local experts, and crafting every detail meticulously."
He removed the unnecessary, investing in emotional delights: custom 3D graphics, a unique iconography system. "We removed everything unnecessary while investing in emotional touches." Challenging norms led to innovations like Ziiboard. Crucially, he built a team that cared. "Bring in people who care about craft—specifically in engineering."
"The right principles attract the right people who want to build something they can proudly show their families."
Business acumen sharpened too. "Understand the business deeply—margins, runway, compliance, and fundraising all impact design decisions."
Our sessions at Ligature VC refined this. "Vision framing and strategic focus—Dan and Daniel helped us zoom out to a 2-year view, then back to 12 months, forcing us to tie our 'big bets' to measurable outcomes." Hiring chats were gold: "Finding talent is hard, but reflecting on our culture helped us understand who thrives—trust your gut, balance with skills."
"What made Dan and Daniel special was their range—from tiny UI details to company strategy. Every idea we brought, they elevated to world-class."
Anton Badashov
Q&A with
Anton Badashov
Biggest AHA as he reflects on 5 years at Ziina:
"Great products come from uncompromising principles, the right people, and relentless simplification. Our design framework: remove friction, simplify then add delight. Create experiences that are emotionally efficient—fast but human, simple but memorable."
Proudest moment:
"With just five people total, we built our first peer-to-peer payment app from scratch." And the impact: empowering SMEs in a region where fintech is nascent but vital. Ziina isn’t just hot—it’s essential, transacting $300 million yearly, backed by elite VCs, and lauded for UX that rivals globals.
Lessons for designers:
"Write the outcome first—before any design work, draft a one-line ‘job to be done,’ one primary metric, and a 2–3-sentence success story."
"Triangulate, don’t telescope—look for patterns across ten voices rather than zooming in on one squeaky wheel." And the mantra: "Cut steps, then cut again. Speed beats sparkle; every removed click compounds adoption."
***
As Ziina scales, Badashov eyes the horizon. "Our culture of continuous learning and great mentors pushed me to expand rapidly." He’s taking forward a honed philosophy: user-centric, data-driven, emotionally resonant design. In his portfolio, projects like Careem’s design system (boosting conversions) and Yandex’s user-tested apps underscore this. But Ziina? It’s the crown jewel—a victory lap for five years of hazard turned honor.
For designers building from 0-1, his advice rings clear: Principles first, people next, simplify relentlessly. And always, add that human delight.
"Set clear design principles from day one—we designed for local people, not copying Western patterns."
Anton Badashov
Q&A with
Anton Badashov
Biggest AHA as he reflects on 5 years at Ziina:
"Great products come from uncompromising principles, the right people, and relentless simplification. Our design framework: remove friction, simplify then add delight. Create experiences that are emotionally efficient—fast but human, simple but memorable."
Proudest moment:
"With just five people total, we built our first peer-to-peer payment app from scratch." And the impact: empowering SMEs in a region where fintech is nascent but vital. Ziina isn’t just hot—it’s essential, transacting $300 million yearly, backed by elite VCs, and lauded for UX that rivals globals.
Lessons for designers:
"Write the outcome first—before any design work, draft a one-line ‘job to be done,’ one primary metric, and a 2–3-sentence success story."
"Triangulate, don’t telescope—look for patterns across ten voices rather than zooming in on one squeaky wheel." And the mantra: "Cut steps, then cut again. Speed beats sparkle; every removed click compounds adoption."
***
As Ziina scales, Badashov eyes the horizon. "Our culture of continuous learning and great mentors pushed me to expand rapidly." He’s taking forward a honed philosophy: user-centric, data-driven, emotionally resonant design. In his portfolio, projects like Careem’s design system (boosting conversions) and Yandex’s user-tested apps underscore this. But Ziina? It’s the crown jewel—a victory lap for five years of hazard turned honor.
For designers building from 0-1, his advice rings clear: Principles first, people next, simplify relentlessly. And always, add that human delight.
"Set clear design principles from day one—we designed for local people, not copying Western patterns."
Anton Badashov
"Our openness to different cultures and art, as well as the blending of our vast and rich heritage with our experience and new technologies has resulted in a design we are incredibly proud of."
Anton Badashov
The path to Ziina began in the sprawling engineering halls of Bryansk State Technical University, where Anton earned his degree in computer programming. But it was during his time at Yandex and later Careem that he discovered his true calling wasn't just in code—it was in the invisible magic that happens when technology meets human emotion. At Careem, the region's $3.1 billion unicorn, he cut his teeth on products that millions of people touched daily, learning how to design for a diverse, rapidly digitizing Middle Eastern market.
When Ziina's founders approached him in 2020, the fintech landscape in the region was dominated by traditional banks and international players who seemed to view the Middle East as an afterthought. Their apps felt sterile, corporate, designed in Silicon Valley for Silicon Valley. Anton saw something different: an opportunity to create something that felt authentically Middle Eastern while being technologically sophisticated.
"Ziina means beauty or ornament in Arabic. We believe strongly in the ability of art and design to change people's lives for the better."
Anton Badashov
This philosophy would become the foundation for everything that followed—a design approach that combined traditional Middle Eastern patterns with bold typography and 3D illustrations, creating something that felt both local and global, familiar and innovative.
The early days weren't easy. Building a peer-to-peer payment app in a region where most people were unbanked required more than just good design—it required cultural sensitivity and deep market understanding. Anton spent countless hours researching how people in the Middle East talked about money, discovering that financial conversations were often avoided, considered taboo. His design challenge became clear: create an experience so delightful that it would break down social barriers around money discussions.
The breakthrough came with ZiiBoard, a patented "payments keyboard" that would become Anton's signature innovation. The idea was elegantly simple: instead of forcing merchants to jump between apps and copy-paste payment links, ZiiBoard integrated directly into messaging apps like WhatsApp and Instagram, allowing businesses to generate payment links and collect payments in three taps.
"Ziina stands out with its exceptional user experience and design, having been recognised with and awarded nine international UI/UX design awards, including the prestigious Red Dot Award. The ZiiBoard continues this design tradition, with technology that serves customer needs by integrating payments effortlessly into the way merchants are already conducting their business."
Anton Badashov
The impact was immediate. Transactions that previously took 10-20 minutes of awkward back-and-forth messaging were reduced to 10 seconds. Small businesses that had struggled with payment collection suddenly had a tool that worked within their existing workflows. The feature addressed a uniquely Middle Eastern challenge: the preference for personal, relationship-based commerce conducted through messaging apps rather than formal e-commerce platforms.
But ZiiBoard was just the beginning. As Anton's team grew from a handful of designers to a full product organization, they tackled bigger challenges. The platform evolved from simple peer-to-peer transfers to a comprehensive financial ecosystem with Ziina Personal for bill splitting and expense management, and Ziina Business for merchant services. Each product maintained the same design philosophy: safety, speed, social connection, user-friendliness, and delight.
The numbers told the story of their success. Over five years, Ziina achieved 10x revenue growth, 34% month-over-month customer growth, and was processing toward $300 million in annualized volume. But Anton measures success differently. He points to the nine international design awards, including the prestigious Red Dot Award, as proof that Middle Eastern design could compete on the global stage.
Working with Dan and Daniel from Ligature provided Anton with crucial guidance during Ziina's rapid scaling phase. The mentorship came at a pivotal moment when the company was transitioning from a consumer-focused app to a comprehensive business platform. Ligature's advice flowed from high-level design strategy down to pragmatic discussions about iconography and user experience details.
The partnership proved its value during critical product launches. When Ziina was preparing to launch new features, Ligature's network and strategic guidance helped them reach tens of thousands of users and achieve top rankings on Product Hunt. For Anton, this wasn't just about marketing—it was validation that design-first thinking could drive business results.
"We believe that putting people in control of their finances, and refining every detail to bring delight to our customers, will make them fall in love with our products."
Anton Badashov
This philosophy extended beyond the product itself to how he built his design team. He instituted regular one-on-ones with designers, created internal showcases to manifest the value of design to leadership, and hosted design-related sessions to build a culture of creative excellence.
His approach to hiring was equally thoughtful. Rather than looking for designers who could simply execute specifications, he sought individuals who understood the broader business context and could advocate for user needs at the strategic level. The result was a team that could move fluidly between pixel-perfect execution and high-level product strategy.
The $22 million Series A round led by Altos Ventures in September 2024 marked a new chapter for Ziina, but for Anton, it was validation of a design philosophy that had guided him since day one. The funding wasn't just about capital—it was recognition that a design-first approach could build a sustainable, scalable business in one of the world's most competitive fintech markets.
As Ziina expands beyond payments into end-to-end financial services, Anton's role is evolving from head of design to strategic leader. The company is launching ZiiCard for expense management, exploring new merchant services, and building toward their vision of financial freedom for every person in the Middle East. Each new product must maintain the design excellence that has become Ziina's signature while serving an increasingly diverse customer base.
"Access isn't a privilege—it's a right."
Anton Badashov
"Access isn't a privilege—it's a right," Anton says, describing the mission that drives his work. This isn't just startup rhetoric; it's a deeply held belief that shapes every design decision. In a region where traditional banking has left millions underserved, Ziina's success proves that thoughtful design can be a force for financial inclusion.
Looking forward, Anton sees his five years at Ziina as a masterclass in building product organizations that can scale without losing their soul. The lessons he's learned—about balancing local cultural sensitivity with global design standards, about building teams that can execute at startup speed while maintaining enterprise quality, about turning design excellence into business advantage—are principles he'll carry into whatever comes next.
The awards and accolades matter, but Anton's proudest accomplishment is simpler: helping build a product that makes people's lives better, one transaction at a time. In a region where financial technology has often felt foreign and impersonal, Ziina represents something different—a homegrown solution that understands its users' needs, speaks their language, and respects their culture while pushing the boundaries of what's possible.
As Dubai's lights twinkle below his window, Anton knows that Ziina's story is just beginning. The platform that started as a simple peer-to-peer payment app has become the foundation for a new kind of financial services company, one that proves design excellence and business success aren't just compatible—they're inseparable.