"It always seems impossible until it's done."

Sivan is a seasoned design leader in the fintech space with 20 years of experience across physical and digital experience design. Currently, she is the Senior Design Director for Digital Banking at Absa. Since taking on this role, Sivan has helped Absa's digital banking grow its user base to over 3 million users, while winning numerous awards. 

Sivan studied multimedia design, with a focus on how experiences are key to building strong brands. Her academic endeavours culminated with her Master's thesis "Building Trust Through Authentic, Human Brands”, which was published in multiple international journals. 

Sivan is now known for being innovative and fostering intrapreneurship within Absa. She has been a driving force in market-leading innovations. Her work on biometric authentication has seen massive adoption and is used by over 2 million customers to keep their banking safe. Sivan also played a pivotal role in the design and launch of PayShap (rapid payments) in South Africa. Most recently, Sivan played an instrumental role in Absa's ChatWallet, a first-to-market product that enables Absa and non-Absa customers to create a mobile wallet and bank entirely in WhatsApp. This initiative brings together Sivan's expertise in payments and her passion for financial inclusion, and is now one of Absa’s key ESG focus points. 

Despite her busy schedule and numerous achievements, Sivan mentors designers at all levels in their careers and is committed to building the next generation of design leaders.