Meet Edwin Maljames, Head of Product and Engineering, APAC
Edwin Maljames builds engineering teams from the ground up, leading Abnormal's founding engineering team in India and bringing 18 years of industry experience to bear on scaling technical talent across time zones. After careers in investment banking and retail technology, Edwin found his next challenge in cybersecurity. We spoke with him about founding teams, cultural fit, and why progress beats perfection.
March 1, 2025
From Investment Banking to Cybersecurity
Edwin's path to Abnormal winds through diverse technical landscapes. He spent years leading engineering efforts to aggregate retail transactions globally via Open Banking at Envestnet Yodlee. Before that, he worked in the investment banking division at JP Morgan Chase, building systems that handle massive transaction volumes.
But after 18 years in the industry, Edwin was ready for something new. The cybersecurity problem space presented an exciting pivot for a seasoned engineer looking to continue growing his skillset.
"After working in the IT industry for over 18 years, Edwin knew it was time for a new challenge. That's part of what drew him to Abnormal in the first place," he reflects.
Abnormal presented a unique opportunity. Not only could he be a people leader, but he could be the founding leader of the company's first-ever engineering team in India.
Building Systems and Teams
Through years of building new systems, Edwin has realized that solving engineering problems at scale involves more than technical challenges. Real impact requires building teams effectively.
"Solving engineering problems at scale is not just a technical challenge, but a team challenge," he explains. "In order to make a real impact, I committed to developing well-rounded skills across product, technology, and people."
This perspective shapes his approach to leadership. People and culture sometimes get undervalued when organizations put too much emphasis on product and technology. Having the right balance is key to successful organizations.
"People and culture at times get undervalued when we put too much emphasis on product and technology, and having the right balance is key to a successful organization."
Culture as a Deciding Factor
The culture was a big factor in Edwin's choice to work at Abnormal. Before he even joined the team, he was impressed by the thought leaders in the company and enjoyed learning from them through Abnormal Business School.
"Abnormal has some of the smartest people, and they don't shy away from sharing their learnings with others," Edwin shared. "The culture of bringing in top talent and encouraging them to share their expertise with others helps me stay up to date with the latest developments in the industry."
He was sold during the hiring process, which was structured to identify strengths in order to find the perfect match for a role. It felt more like a process of selection rather than elimination, showing that Abnormal values people well before they are even offered a position.
Progress Over Perfection
Now that he is here, Edwin has a lot to look forward to. He loves that velocity is one of Abnormal's core values and feels strongly that improving 1% every day is a much better strategy than iterating too long to build the perfect product.
"Immediately after joining I heard that we had rolled out the first version of a new product, and the fact that it went from ideation to customer roll out in just 3 months is amazing," he shared.
This approach resonates with his engineering philosophy. Rather than getting stuck in analysis paralysis, teams ship early versions and improve based on real customer feedback.
Edwin is excited about Abnormal's expansion into Cloud Office Security because he truly believes in the problem the company is solving. He looks forward to seeing how these new solutions start securing customers' most important data.
"Improving 1% every day is a much better strategy than iterating for too long in order to build the perfect product."
The India Opportunity
Leading Abnormal's India site represents a major step toward Edwin's ultimate goal of building and leading strong engineering teams focused on solving top challenges that society faces, like cybersecurity and financial inclusion.
The role as India Site Manager gives him first-hand experience and learnings to help guide him toward that objective. Building technical teams across cultures and time zones requires understanding not just engineering principles but also how people work best together.
Looking forward, Edwin would love to build and lead strong engineering teams focused on solving some of the top challenges that society faces. His role represents a significant step toward that goal.
A New Chapter in Cybersecurity
Edwin's transition from financial technology to cybersecurity reflects his belief that the most impactful work happens at the intersection of technical excellence and societal need. Cybersecurity touches every organization, every individual, and every interaction in our increasingly digital world.
The opportunity to be part of Abnormal's first India engineering team means more than just a new role. It means helping define how global engineering teams collaborate, how talent develops across regions, and how technical solutions address real-world security challenges.
His experience building systems that handle massive scale in financial services provides valuable perspective for cybersecurity challenges. The same attention to reliability, performance, and security that financial systems require applies directly to protecting organizations from cyber threats.
Lessons from 18 Years in Technology
Edwin's diverse background brings valuable perspective to team building and technical leadership. From investment banking systems that process millions of transactions to retail technology that aggregates global data, he has seen how great engineering teams operate under pressure.
The common thread through all his roles has been the importance of people. Technical problems get solved by talented teams working together effectively. The best systems emerge when engineers feel empowered to do their best work.
"Building engineering teams is about creating an environment where talented people can focus on solving important problems," Edwin notes.
