The Evolving Role of Open Source in Finance with GitLab's George Kichukov

FINOS Open Source in Finance Podcast

The Evolving Role of Open Source in Financial Services with GitLab's George Kichukov

In this episode of the FINOS podcast, Grizz Griswold interviews George Kichukov from GitLab to discuss the transformative effect of open-source technology in financial services. The conversation covers the adoption of secure open-source practices, the importance of a strong engineering culture, and the benefits of contributing back to the open-source community. George shares insights from his 20-year career, including his extensive experience at Citibank, and elaborates on his current role in improving software delivery at GitLab. The episode also highlights upcoming events like the Open Source and Finance Forum (OSFF) and the vital role of sponsors in fostering industry collaboration.

00:00 The Evolution of Open Source in Financial Services

01:32 Upcoming OSFF Events and Sponsors

01:33 Upcoming OSFF Events and Sponsors

03:31 Introduction to George Kichukov from GitLab

03:52 George's Role and Experience at GitLab

06:36 George's Career Journey Before GitLab

12:15 The Importance of Developer Experience

15:56 The Role of Open Source in Developer Experience

20:57 The Shift in Financial Services Towards Open Source

26:58 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

George Kichukov: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kichukov/

GitLab: https://about.gitlab.com/

Grizz Griswold: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aarongriswold

Find more info about FINOS:

On the web: https://www.finos.org

Open Source in Finance Forum (OSFF Conference): https://www.finos.org/osff-2025

2024 State of Open Source in Financial Services Download: ⁠https://www.finos.org/state-of-open-source-in-financial-services-2024⁠

FINOS Current Newsletter Here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.finos.org/newsletter

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/finosfoundation

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FINOSFoundation

About FINOS

FINOS (The Fintech Open Source Foundation) is a nonprofit whose mission is to foster the adoption of open source, open standards, and collaborative software development practices in financial services. It is the center for open source developers and the financial services industry to build new technology projects that have a lasting impact on business operations. As a regulatory compliant platform, the foundation enables developers from these competing organizations to collaborate on projects with a strong propensity for mutualization. It has enabled codebase contributions from both the buy- and sell-side firms and counts over 50 major financial institutions, fintechs and technology consultancies as part of its membership. FINOS is also part of the Linux Foundation, the largest shared technology organization in the world. Get involved and join FINOS as a Member.