Brand Transformation
I created an icon and illustration system for Etihad Credit Bureau, designed to make financial information feel clearer, more human, and easier to understand.
Etihad Credit Bureau needed a visual language capable of explaining credit-related services with clarity and cultural relevance. The challenge was to make abstract financial concepts easier to read at first glance, without falling into predictable corporate visuals, financial clichés, or a generic representation of Dubai.
The design response was built around local metaphors, subtle humour, and a restrained visual language.
The characters were designed to reflect a more authentic view of local culture, from traditional references to more contemporary expressions. Clothing, body language, and gesture became key storytelling tools.
Faces were kept small and simple, allowing the expression to come through the body, especially through hands and posture, which play an important role in local communication.
Beyond illustration, the system became a tool for understanding. A simple colour palette with focused accents helped guide attention, while the use of metaphor made complex financial ideas easier to recognise quickly. The goal was not to make finance look playful for the sake of it, but to use humour intelligently: as a way to create empathy, memorability, and a more intuitive connection with the brand.
The system was designed to scale from detail to story.
Level S, M, and L allowed each concept to adapt across formats, from simple visual cues to complete narrative scenes, while keeping the same visual logic.
Icons became more useful when they could change without losing their meaning.
Modifiers allowed the system to express status, progress, alerts, confirmation, and context while keeping every icon part of the same visual language.
In a strong visual system, every small decision affects the whole.
Proportion, gesture, colour, composition, motion, and iconography were defined together so the brand could stay consistent across every touchpoint without becoming rigid.
Financial brands don’t need to feel distant to be trusted.
Metaphor and humour became tools for understanding, not decoration. By grounding the system in local culture, the brand could make credit feel more intuitive, human, and easier to trust.
Credits —
A large-scale brand transformation for Etihad Credit Bureau, developed with Accenture Song Dubai across strategy, design, illustration, digital experience, and brand systems. The project was created in collaboration with Etihad Credit Bureau and the team David Fregonas, Humza Ijaz, Elie El Khoury, Daniele Lavallee, Mazhar Mohad, Daniel Zamir, Daniel Fernandez, Jaideep Khemani, Mario Morales, and Farah Ramadan.
