Pontemesto
Merchant payments
Payment infrastructure for modern
businesses, built for scale and reliability.
USD $80M+ in payment-processing
volume at Pontemesto · since March 2026,
as of Oct 5, 2026.
PRODUCT LEADER
I turn complex
financial infrastructure
into products people
can use.
Founder-level ownership. Hands-on
technical depth. From problem
definition to launch.
Toronto, Canada
I build at the intersection of
finance, technology, and real-world
use. I care about products that
scale, teams that execute, and
outcomes that matter.
Whether it’s modernizing payments
or enabling secure digital asset
custody, I focus on turning complex
systems into simple, reliable
experiences.
Selected work
Keywa
Shared-control custody
Organizational digital-asset custody
with shared control and multiple
signing authorities.
Pontemesto
From concept to launch.
Ali Nojoumi co-founded Pontemesto in 2026. He led the merchant-payments roadmap and onboarding requirements, engineered the gateway and integration APIs, and selected processing partners for launch.
USD $80M+
Payment-processing volume
March 2026–October 5, 2026
Owner-reported volume. Source and scope
Read the case studyClose the case study Roadmap · Integrations · Partnerships
The challenge
Bring a merchant payments offering from concept to launch, with onboarding requirements suited to high-risk merchants, including gaming operators. Connect merchant and partner requirements with the gateway, integrations and commercial relationships behind the service.
My role
I co-founded Pontemesto in 2026 and led its product roadmap. My work extended from defining merchant onboarding requirements to engineering the payment gateway and integration APIs and structuring processing partnerships.
Product decisions and execution
Define the merchant requirements.
I set the onboarding requirements for the target merchants and translated merchant and partner needs into technical flows for the development team.
Connect the payment system.
I engineered the gateway and integration APIs, including exchange and liquidity-provider connections.
Build the partner model.
I evaluated and selected processing partners, then structured the partnership and its commercial contracts.
Outcome to date
Pontemesto processed more than USD $80 million from March 2026 through October 5, 2026. This figure measures payment-processing volume, not revenue.
Keywa
Formerly Tardigrade
Shared control.
Wider reach.
Ali Nojoumi co-founded Keywa (formerly Tardigrade) and led a 20-person team during 2020–2024. The work connected organizational self-custody with multiple signing authorities to a retail wallet.
- Funding
- CAD $3M
- Team recruited and led
- 20 people
- Retail-wallet clients
within weeks - ≈20,000
Owner-reported outcomes from the 2020–2024 tenure. Source and scope
Read the case studyClose the case study Research · Architecture · Adoption
The challenge
Organizations needed a way to share control of crypto assets across multiple signing authorities. I identified that control problem as a barrier and interviewed industry specialists to inform the product direction.
My role
I co-founded Keywa, formerly Tardigrade, and recruited and led a 20-person team during my 2020–2024 tenure. I directed architectural design and worked hands-on on integration components.
Product decisions and execution
Design for shared control.
The product direction centered on organizational self-custody with multiple signing authorities, informed by interviews with industry specialists.
Connect custody to the wider system.
I directed the architecture of exchange and liquidity-provider APIs, specified the protocols and implemented components hands-on.
Adapt the technology for retail use.
I extended the work into a retail wallet that reached approximately 20,000 clients within weeks.
Technical exploration
A threshold-signing whitepaper proposed a specific mechanism for shared control. That mechanism is presented here as a proposal, separate from the documented product work and business outcomes.
Business outcomes
The business secured CAD $3 million in funding, and its retail wallet reached approximately 20,000 clients within weeks. An investment in 2022 included an agreed CAD $35 million pre-money valuation. Acquisition and divestment followed in December 2024.
About Ali Nojoumi
A founder’s view. A product leader’s focus.
Ali Nojoumi is a Toronto-based product leader and co-founder working across merchant payments, digital-asset custody, integrations and algorithmic trading. His work connects product roadmaps and merchant onboarding with hands-on gateway and API implementation.
- Connect requirements to implementation.
- I translate merchant and partner needs into technical flows, with hands-on work in gateway and integration API design, protocol specification and component implementation.
- Own the business around the product.
- My work has also included selecting processing partners, structuring commercial contracts, and recruiting and leading teams. I see those responsibilities as part of building a product.
Experience
Download resume (PDF)2026–present
Pontemesto
Co-founder
Merchant payments from concept to launch: roadmap, onboarding requirements, integration APIs and processing partnerships.
2020–2024
Keywa
Formerly Tardigrade
Co-founder
Led a 20-person team developing organizational self-custody and a retail wallet. Acquisition and divestment in December 2024.
2018–2023
CMOR Group Corporation
CEO
Founded and self-funded a fintech venture, overseeing algorithmic FX and equity trading applications and developing an AI-powered news-trading system.
Additional ventures
2020–2025
MyInvestino.ir
Founder
Market research and financial-institution integrations for a micro-investing platform.
2020–2025
Chante.app
Founder
Localized onboarding and customer support for a wallet.
2018–2020
Chainblock.app
Founder
Digital-asset transactions, smart contracts and decentralized application infrastructure.
Technical foundations
Gateway and integration APIs, exchange and liquidity-provider connections, protocol specification and hands-on component implementation.
Education
Bachelor of Computer ScienceUniversity of Mashhad
Languages
English — fluentFarsi — native
Project notes
Reviewed
These case studies are Ali Nojoumi’s account of his work. Business metrics are owner reported; the resume (PDF) provides additional career context.
Pontemesto’s USD $80 million-plus figure covers payment-processing volume from March 2026 through October 5, 2026. Keywa’s funding, team size, wallet adoption and agreed 2022 pre-money valuation refer to Ali’s 2020–2024 tenure.
Project artwork and the payment-flow animation are conceptual illustrations. The threshold-signing mechanism is a whitepaper proposal; it is not presented as a deployed capability.