5 November 2026
Nikaila Naidoo has spent seven years in the financial services industry – but the last two have been especially challenging, as she moved from South Africa to build her career in the Netherlands. She discusses how Varrlyn has helped her to settle, while offering exciting new opportunities to broaden her experiences in the banking sector.
According to Naidoo, moving from South Africa to the Netherlands was “a big decision,” not just because of the geographical distance, but the personal and professional hurdles it resulted in. Looking back, however, the decision has proven to be one of the “most significant” of her career – providing Naidoo with the chance to move outside her comfort zone, become “more adaptable”, and realise how to “work in a completely different financial market.”
That is a crucial ability, because financial services and capital markets are “constantly evolving,” meaning there is “always something new to learn” and the need to grow to keep up with the work. Even at a time when she had five years of experience in the sector, Naidoo was well aware that she could not afford to rest on her laurels.
The Netherlands
“I started my career in this industry and have had the opportunity to work with complex systems across clients,” she notes. “I enjoy understanding how different parts of a financial institution connect and finding solutions to challenging problems… Working in the Netherlands has deepened my technical and functional expertise while broadening my perspective beyond my original specialisation. I’ve been able to work with new products, different systems, processes and teams, and have gained greater exposure to the wider capital markets landscape within Europe.”
Of course, moving to a different hemisphere is not without its difficulties, even for an experienced professional. The biggest adjustment according to Naidoo has been “adapting to a different culture and way of working”.
Most infamously, in the Netherlands, “communication tends to be very direct” – something which Naidoo was initially not used to from her work in South Africa. At the same time, there is a stronger emphasis on work-life balance and independence in her new home. But in the end, those adaptations have been “some of the most rewarding aspects of the move.”
Naidoo expands, “I’ve become much more comfortable stepping outside my comfort zone, communicating with people from different backgrounds and embracing a different pace of life. I still miss the warmth, energy and familiarity of South Africa, but I’ve really enjoyed building a new life and career in the Netherlands.”
Varrlyn
After living in the Netherlands for a year, Naidoo joined Varrlyn. Having “a company that understands both the industry and the local market” was what attracted her to the firm – and Varrlyn lived up to its promise, giving her access to opportunities within the Dutch and international financial services sector, while also “providing a combination of professional guidance and personal support.”
Founded in 2010 in Amsterdam, Varrlyn provides IT consultancy to financial services clients in the Netherlands and across Europe, with expertise in dealing room, asset management, digital assets, finance and risk, digital services, and artificial intelligence.
“For me, the biggest value has been the learning opportunities from the people around me,” Naidoo continues. “Having access to colleagues with different areas and years of expertise means there is always someone to learn from. I’ve appreciated being encouraged to keep developing my technical expertise and my professional and leadership skills.”
The firm’s projects have also strengthened her stakeholder management and communication skills. The consulting industry remains a top choice for young professionals and graduates, keen to continue learning while accruing experience – and being exposed to different banks via Varrlyn’s projects has done just that, showing Naidoo that there are “many different ways to approach the same challenge and that a system is just a means to a solution.”
So far, Naidoo has had the opportunity to work with two major Dutch banks, where her roles have focused largely on the back-office side of capital markets. Her work involved areas such as settlements, confirmations, collateral, reporting and business analysis, as well as working closely with different stakeholders to understand requirements and implement solutions.
Looking ahead, she believes this will set her in good stead for all that the financial services sector has to offer – and help Varrlyn’s clients realise the business potential in the process.
She concludes, “Each assignment has been different and worked on different systems, which allowed me to experience different ways of working and gain a much broader understanding of how large financial institutions operate.”