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Finovate Blog
Tracking fintech, banking & financial services innovations since 1994
Last week, we showcased five companies—all led by female CEOs—who demonstrated their latest innovations at FinovateEurope in London in February. Part of Finovate’s annual Women’s History Month commemoration, the post not only highlighted the achievements of women in fintech, it also helped introduce five new companies to our Finovate audience.
With that last point in mind, we’re thrilled this week to introduce you to some of the women who will be leading their companies on the Finovate stage next month at FinovateSpring in San Diego, May 7 through 9.
First, meet the two companies—Cinareo Solutions and Cratoflow—that were selected to participate at FinovateSpring as part of our Female Founder Scholarship program. Second, we introduce two additional companies—Penny Finance and Instarails—both with female CEOs, and both slated to demo their latest innovation at FinovateSpring next month.
Elliott (LinkedIn) is CEO and Co-Founder of Cinareo Solutions, a SaaS platform that provides capacity planning for agents and support staff, financial management, what-if scenario modelling, and multi-skilling simulation.
Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Cinareo Solutions sets a new standard for workforce planning and decision support for multi-channel contact centers. This provides robust and pro-active resource planning and financial analysis to cost-efficiently manage front and back-office staff, as well as all support staff.
Patel (LinkedIn) is CEO of Cratoflow, a company that helps organizations to save up to 110 hours a week, reduce errors, and acclerate payments, enabling faster decision-making and driving operational efficiency and cost savings.
Based in Anaheim, California, and founded in 2021, Cratoflow offers a no-code financial workflow solution that centralizes and simplifies complex daily accounting processeas with an intuitive user interface. The platform leverages machine learning and AI to sync with third-party financial systems to systematically complete revenue, banking, and expense entries.
Sagar (LinkedIn) is founder and CEO of Instarails, a global payment network infrastructure that helps credit unions, community banks, and businesses attract and retain more clients while accelerating revenue growth,
Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Instarails leverages blockchain technology to make direct, real-time, cheap, inclusive, and transparent payments. Clients connect to Instarails’ network via SaaS API and send transactions. These transactions are routed through Instarails’ network and recipients get funds instantly through their bank, e-wallet, or via cash pickup.
Cole (LinkedIn) is CEO and Founder of Penny Finance, an online financial planning engagement engine that attracts, retains, and services the digital generation of credit unions and community banks by providing tailored education, resources, rewards, and services to their members and customers at large.
Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, and founded in 2020, Penny Finance connects the dots between a financial institution’s products and services and member and customer needs, all while creating efficiency for their marketing organizations.
FinovateSpring 2025 kicks off May 7 through 9 in San Diego, California. Visit our FinovateSpring hub today to learn more about our emerging speaker lineup, demoing companies, and how to plan your visit to Finovate’s first conference in SoCal!
This past Saturday marked International Women’s Day, but if you missed it, I’ve got good news: Women’s History Month is celebrated throughout the month.
In the US, Women’s History Week was first celebrated in 1982, and this commemoration of women’s history was extended to the full month of March four years later. To learn more about the history of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month—and their fascinating origins in European and women’s labor history—check out this primer from Time.com.
Here at Finovate, we have recognized the accomplishments of women in fintech and financial services for more than a decade. In both our conferences and on the Finovate blog, we have endeavored to showcase women who have founded and led some of the most innovative companies in our industry.
With this in mind, Finovate is once again proud to recognize the women who introduced themselves and their companies to our FinovateEurope audience this past February.
Kurt (LinkedIn) is a co-founder at AQ22, leading the growth of an agentic banking orchestration platform that transforms financial workflows with AI-driven automation globally.
Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Vilnius, Lithuania, AQ22 automates and accelerates up to 90% of commercial lending processes.
Botskina (LinkedIn) is an award-winning serial founder, Oxford-trained AI scientist, and banking lawyer with 10+ years of expertise in safe, explainable AI, and compliance for the financial sector.
Founded in 2020 and headquartered in London, England, Deriskly empowers organizations to enhance customer trust, reduce compliance risks, and optimize engagement via AI-driven insights to create clear, effective, and customer-centric financial communications.
Dunne (LinkedIn) is a seasoned executive whose expertise lies in the financial services and fintech/regtech industry. She has a proven track record in growing and building businesses and fostering relationships.
Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Dimply helps banks and credit unions unlock greater value from their data and create beautiful, personalized, insightful, and resonant embedded financial experiences.
Dang (LinkedIn) is a former Asia investment researcher, Uber data scientist, an experienced entrepreneur, and YC alum.
Founded in 2024 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, Mati Labs helps financial institutions transform and grow by enabling AI adoption with robust data foundations, ensuring security and compliance, and fostering knowledge-based innovation.
Franch (LinkedIn) has more than a decade of experience in artificial intelligence and business leadership, working with organizations of all sizes to drive business growth through digital transformation.
Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Montreal, Canada, PromoComply streamlines compliance for financial promotions, cutting down significantly on the time and cost of maintaining compliant marketing, so organizations build trust with consumers and regulators.
How can banks and financial services providers ensure that their loyalty programs are in sync with consumer behaviors and preferences? What is a loyalty ecosystem and how can financial institutions benefit from being a part of one?
We caught up with Becky Hill, President of Vanson Technology Services and former Senior Vice President of Loyalty at U.S. Bank. In our extended conversation – in partnership with William Mills – we discuss the power of loyalty in fostering long-term relationships and better customer engagement in financial services.
We also discuss loyalty when it comes to relationships between companies and their employees, and how engagement and sales incentive programs can help them retain top talent and develop greater organizational resilience.
Founded in 1997, Vanson Technology Services specializes in technology and software solutions for loyalty, channel incentive, and employee engagement programs. The Minneapolis, Minnesota-based company offers capabilities in points earning technology, fulfillment catalog management, email communications, site and data management, customer service and support, reporting, and more.
Tell us more about your professional experience. What were some of your major accomplishments and career highlights while working at U.S. Bank?
Becky Hill: Before joining Vanson Technology Services last summer, I spent most of my career in U.S. Bank’s payments division. Initially, I supported the credit card acquisition strategy for the bank’s consumer and small business programs. This gave me a solid understanding of the credit card profit and loss (P&L), which helped me gain insights into what drives consumer behavior and how to capture their interest. I learned that people expect banks to simplify complexities for them and that offers need to clearly show their value and benefits.
Later, my responsibilities included managing all aspects of the bank’s Rewards platform for internal and co-branded credit card programs that included a variety of cards like Cash+, FlexPerks, Fidelity and Harley-Davidson. I would partner with program managers to support acquisition, attrition, benefit, and redemption strategies to keep the bank’s cards top-of-wallet.
Why is it important to shape your loyalty programs around consumer behaviors and preferences?
Hill: Understanding consumer behavior is key to designing effective loyalty programs because people value convenience and consistency. Loyalty programs work best when they’re simple and easy to navigate, especially when it comes to redeeming rewards. Over the years, these programs have become more sophisticated but keeping them clear and straightforward is still the key to success.
How would you define a loyalty ecosystem?
Hill: A loyalty ecosystem brings together programs, technology, and partnerships to engage and reward customers and employees. It’s about simplifying the process while delivering meaningful value. For Vanson, this means offering an easily configurable rewards platform that helps companies transform their incentive programs into formal campaigns that drive employee motivation, enhance performance and longevity, and build brand loyalty. We believe a successful loyalty ecosystem is built on understanding behavior and providing clear, flexible incentives. It’s not just about rewards — it’s about fostering long-term relationships through transparency, simplicity, and thoughtful execution.
How can financial institutions be part of the loyalty ecosystem?
Hill: Financial institutions can play a key role in the loyalty ecosystem by partnering with loyalty platform providers to offer their clients Prepaid Rewards cards. These cards give consumers the flexibility to spend as they choose, while financial institutions can capitalize on revenue opportunities, such as interchange fees.
How is this ecosystem evolving in the near future?
Hill: Technology is always evolving, and loyalty programs will continue to focus on streamlining the end user experience for ease and convenience. Loyalty platforms will need to be flexible and have the capabilities to provide a variety of offerings from redemptions selection, gamification, educational lessons, experiences, and personalized communication strategy. Customer-centricity will continue to be a big part of the loyalty program technology evolution, especially as the industry starts to utilize AI-driven analytics to engage members.
Let’s talk about within companies. What does an effective employee and sales incentive program entail?
Hill: An effective employee engagement and sales incentive program requires the right technology. The technology should be straightforward, flexible, and tailored to support the specific needs of the program. It should be easy to implement, quick to deploy, and designed to drive engagement and performance without unnecessary complexity. Vanson offers a technology platform with configurable tools that provides self-administer options to drive results.
Equally important is having the right partner. A good partner provides valuable support throughout the journey, helping companies configure rewards to fit their unique needs and assisting with add-ons like developing email campaigns and enhancing engagement strategies. Together, the right technology and partnership can create a successful program.
Why should a company consider offering employee engagement and sales incentive programs?
Hill: Offering employee engagement and sales incentive programs is critical for retaining top talent and ensuring the resilience of your organization. People are motivated by more than just salary — they value recognition, work-life balance, and meaningful benefits. Incentive programs don’t have to be complex; even simple, day-to-day recognition can go a long way. It’s about creating a program that works for all employees, not just a select few. However, implementing these programs requires a cultural shift within the organization, combining both a change in mindset and the right technology to support it. Focusing on your employees’ needs and making them feel valued is key to long-term success.
You joined Vanson Technology Services less than a year ago. What tips and guidance can you provide other professionals who are transitioning industries?
Hill: I’ve had the unique opportunity to work on both the client side and now the vendor side of Loyalty programs across multiple industries. Being on this side — with firsthand knowledge of client expectations — has pushed me to think differently about what we deliver and how we meet client expectations. It’s also opened the door to more strategic conversations, like helping other loyalty companies within CORA Group’s portfolio expand into new verticals. At the end of the day, it’s about maintaining strong networks and staying open-minded to new opportunities.
What is your biggest piece of professional advice?
Hill: Always stay true to yourself and uphold your integrity. Take the time to identify the key decision-makers and those who truly understand what’s happening within your organization. Knowing who can make decisions and offer support is crucial — otherwise, you risk getting caught in unnecessary red tape. Building strong relationships and trust with your peers is essential, as effective leadership relies on the two-way flow of information. Above all, remain focused on what will move the business forward.
As part of Finovate’s commemoration of Women’s History Month, our Women in Fintech column features Laurie Winger, Chief Financial Officer with TruStage. Formerly known as CUNA Mutual Group, TruStage is a financial services company that provides insurance, investment, and fintech solutions to individuals and businesses.
Winger has been praised by colleagues as a visionary and results-oriented, cross functional leader. At TruStage, she has helped transform a decades-old insurance company into a modern, technology-driven business.
In our Women in Fintech conversation, we discuss her origins in fintech and financial services, current trends that she has her eye on, and why it’s important for financial services companies to invest both human and financial resources into the fintech space.
Tell us about your role at TruStage and your journey into the fintech space.
Laurie Winger: I started my career as an accountant at TruStage, previously CUNA Mutual Group, more than 30 years ago. I spent the first half of my career in various finance roles – Budget Manager, Vice President of Finance, etc. – and then shifted my focus to credit union market strategy in the mid-2010s. At that time, our company was seen in the marketplace as an insurance rather than a technology company. Our goal was to change that perception and the best way to do so was to get more involved in fintech. This was when I first dipped my toes into the fintech space.
One of our first investments was the creation of our Ventures Portfolio, TruStage Ventures, which funds innovators focused on improving the financial services industry. A few years later, we also acquired Compliance Systems, a fintech provider of digital and dynamic compliance documentation, and CuneXus, a consumer-facing portal featuring financial services for credit unions. As Chief Product Officer at the time, I was very involved in the strategy and the execution of that acquisition. Since then, I returned to my finance roots as Chief Financial Officer while keeping a close eye on TruStage and TruStage Venture’s fintech acquisitions and investments, as well as being a member of various fintechs’ boards.
Recently, I’ve dipped back into the fintech side of our business by overseeing our Fintech Solutions team as part of my role as CFO. This team is focused on developing and implementing our Digital Storefront e-commerce platform (based on our acquisition of CuneXus mentioned above) which provides financial institutions with the ability to lend, generate deposits, and open accounts in a fully online experience – all centered around a consumer’s individual banking needs.
It seems like you had a strong role in building TruStage’s fintech strategy. Why did you see a need to provide more holistic support to credit unions?
Winger: I’ve always been a big fan of credit unions because their mission is consistent with ours at TruStage, namely the desire to help people who would otherwise not get access to financial products. Unfortunately, in the digital era, credit unions are having a harder time than ever competing with larger financial institutions and digital banks, and many are closing their doors or are being acquired. We realized early on that if we wanted to truly help credit unions compete, we needed to provide more holistic support. By investing in and making modern, end-to-end technology solutions available to credit unions of all sizes and helping them meet their members’ needs – we are ultimately helping consumers on their buying, borrowing, and saving journeys.
What changes have you seen in the fintech space in the last couple of years and how would you advise fintechs to react to these changes?
Winger: I am learning along with our entire organization that the current fintech market is very different than it was even just a year and a half ago. The high inflation environment has caused valuations to go down, so many fintechs are struggling to attract interest and raise money from third-party investors. They need to find new ways to generate capital.
The best way to do this is to listen to credit unions’ pain points and pivot their focus and/or messaging to meet those current needs. At the moment, growing deposits, finding ways to deepen existing relationships, and acquiring new members are at the top of the priority list for most credit union leadership teams. Fintechs that are heavily promoting lending technologies are probably having a hard time finding prospects, as many credit unions are running into liquidity challenges and are not able to lend as much as before. Pivoting their focus to respond to market needs, or tweaking their messaging to better appeal to potential prospects, will help fintechs stay afloat. The key to success in this economic environment is to listen to market demand, stay flexible, and be willing to take risks.
How are you and TruStage helping advance women leaders in the fintech and credit unions spaces?
Winger: As a company, we are very proud of the TruStage Ventures Discovery Fund, which invests $5 million annually in early-stage fintech companies led by BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and woman founders. We created the fund to address inequities in the financial sector and support underrepresented entrepreneurs, many of which are women. Personally, I also try to keep in touch with the female founders who have benefitted from the fund and build those relationships.
In the credit union market, I’ve also had the opportunity to be a mentor as part of the Credit Union Women’s Leadership Alliance (CUWLA) coaching program. The program pairs senior female leaders with women CEOs of credit unions with asset sizes of $300 million or less, providing a channel for support and the exchange of insights. I try to generously share my career experiences, successes, failures, and learnings with other women leaders as often as possible, as I think it is the best way to help other women advance and succeed in both the fintech and credit union industries.
Finally, as a Chief Financial Officer, why is it important to invest company resources (funds and people) into the fintech space to power future/tech-driven strategy?
Winger: Ultimately, it all comes down to remaining relevant. Financial services today operate in a fast-moving, competitive marketplace with ever-evolving consumer demands for seamless, digital-first transactions. No matter how well capitalized, any company that wishes to compete in this space must be willing to allocate investments towards innovations with the consumer expectation at the center. If they don’t, even the most venerable companies risk being passed by fintechs, start-ups, and the industry as a whole.
We had the privilege of sitting down and interviewing three remarkable women leaders in the fintech industry last month. As we bid farewell to Women’s History Month, we are thrilled to share the wealth of knowledge and experience they shared with us.
In our interview videos below, you’ll hear from Nadia Edwards-Dashti, Co-Founder at Harrington Star Group; Jen Godderidge, CEO & Founder at ATMO Technologies; and Chantal Swainston, Founder at The Heard.
These leaders delve into a variety of topics including personal and professional development, strategies for retaining female talent, the importance of empowering women in fintech, driving meaningful change within organizations, the role of coaching and mentoring, and the vital aspects of diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
En route to FinovateEurope in London last month, a cab driver asked me what I did for a living. After giving it a few moments of thought (“fintech research analyst” doesn’t always cut it), I told him, “I get to meet interesting people and ask them interesting questions.”
This year at FinovateEurope, I had the opportunity to sit down with more than a baker’s dozen of fintech entrepreneurs, analysts, and authors to talk about some of the top trends in fintech and financial services. Here, as part of our Finovate Speaker Series, I’m looking forward to sharing these conversations with you over the next few weeks.
First up, in commemoration of International Women’s History Month, my interviews with Samantha Seaton, CEO of Moneyhub, and Anette Broløs, founder of Finthropology.
Samantha Seaton is CEO of open banking, open finance, and open data platform Moneyhub. The company’s technology helps transform data into personalized digital experiences and initiate payments. Seaton is also a Non-Executive Director at the Charities Aid Foundation Bank and at The Investing and Savings Alliance (TISA).
In our conversation, Seaton discusses the contemporary “obsession with personalization.” We also talk about the latest trends in financial services, the impact of AI, and what financial services can learn from other sectors when it comes to best leveraging new technologies.
How can the study of human cultures benefit banks? We posed this question to Dr. Anette Broløs, co-founder and Director of Finthropology.
For all the discussion of the power of data in financial services in recent years, Broløs believes that companies in this space have not yet done all they can do in order to take advantage of qualitative research that can help them become more customer-centric. As the co-author of the soon-to-be-released book, Customer-Centric Innovation in Finance, Broløs explains how methods common in anthropology can be effectively applied to financial services, potentially revealing insights that banks have been missing for years.
At Finovate, we are known for having companies demo their solution. Anyone can talk about their product, but showing how it works (especially in front of 1,000+ people) is difficult. Today, as we celebrate International Women’s Day– a day assigned by the United Nations— we wanted to do a demo of our own by showing three ways we are taking action on the theme for International Women’s Day, Invest in Women.
Here are three ways Finovate invests in women:
Scholarship program
We launched our scholarship program to spotlight underrepresented founders and startups tackling climate change, diversity, and financial inclusion through sustainable and equitable practices to support social and environmental change. Scholarship opportunities are available at all three Finovate events. In order to qualify for the women in fintech scholarship, the company must be either women-founded or women-owned and have less than $7 million in funding.
Equal representation on stage
Finovate’s speaker curator, Katie Gwyn-Williams, is committed to diversity, ensuring that each show features a balanced mix of male and female speakers, with at least 50% representation from each gender. As part of that she also makes a huge effort to ensure female representation on all panel discussions.
This is no small feat. Katie spends a lot of time and research to recruit the most knowledgeable females in the industry. That said, if you are a woman looking to represent your financial institution in a panel discussion, feel free to send a note her way; she’s currently recruiting for FinovateFall!
Women-centric events
Finovate is proud to feature a Women in Fintech gathering at every show. To be honest, I used to avoid sessions like these because they sounded too fluffy (who wants to talk about women when you can talk about fintech?). However, once I got over myself and began attending, I’ve found valuable discussions with actionable tips on how to uplift myself, my female colleagues, and even my daughter. Not only that, I’ve made meaningful connections with other women in the industry.
Why it matters
It is so easy to fall into discussions about the financial services industry’s insufficient efforts to invest in women. While many of the discussions are valid, let’s spend today promoting awareness about the change being made. Take action and talk about it to inspire others to make similar changes.
We’re starting off our Women in Fintech series this year with a conversation with Erin Wynn. As Executive Director of Product Management at NCR Voyix, Wynn helps both community banks and credit unions form strategies to implement their digital transformation and product roadmap initiatives.
Wynn also works as a mentor and coach for the company’s internal pre-sales teams. In this role, she helps ensure that sales engineers, solution architects and business analysts are supporting NCR Digital Banking’s vision and solutions.
We caught up with Erin Wynn to talk about her own beginnings in fintech, as well as what she is learning from her customers and clients about the most important trends in our industry.
NCR Corporation changed its name to NCR Voyix in the fall of 2023 as the company spun-off its ATM-based business, known as NCR Atleos. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company has 35,000 employees globally, and trades on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “VYX.” NCR has been a Finovate alum since 2015.
How did you get started in fintech? What has led you to where you are today in your career?
Erin Wynn: I began my career in 1998, working at a bank, where I got my first taste of fintech. I worked so closely with one of our vendors, Digital Insight, that I even went to work for them for a few years before a different opportunity presented itself. In the long run, however, I knew Digital Insight was my home, and I returned to them in 2012. Digital Insight was acquired by NCR Voyix’s Digital Banking platform in 2014, but has managed to keep the familial relationship that drew me back here.
My dedication to being a lifelong learner has led me to amazing opportunities, holding various positions within NCR Voyix. I look at every experience as a chance to be curious and learn something new. Whether it be from a client, a colleague, or a partner, I believe everyone has something valuable to share and learn from.
My passion and deep understanding for how our products work and helping financial institutions achieve success have been central to my growth. As the executive director of product management for Digital Banking at NCR Voyix, I lean into my banking experience to help community financial institutions develop strategies for implementing digital transformation and better support their consumers and communities. I empower them to help customers and members improve their financial wellness — a topic I’m especially enthusiastic about (and one that’s driven my career in banking!).
Which digital banking features and capabilities are most resonating with clients? What trends are top of mind for customers?
Wynn: A significant trend we’ve seen is centered around personalization, which really means reminding the consumer that you know and care about them; they’re not just another number. This means creating digital experiences that feel like they’re catered to each user. Financial institutions are realizing that they can’t just compete on low loan rates or high deposit rates. Even if that’s what got the consumer in the door, it won’t be what keeps them there. The financial institutions that emphasize building and maintaining relationships, as well as providing meaningful tools and support (such as financial wellness resources), will be better positioned for loyalty and success.
Another major trend I’ve seen is finding ways to increase overall efficiency. This can mean embracing more automation or researching ways to better maximize current staff and technology. Our clients, like most people, are looking for ways to simplify processes and quickly solve problems. For example, NCR Voyix can support marketing automation, an area of typically high turnover within institutions, helping banks and credit unions make every interaction count.
What has been the impact of AI on banks and credit unions and their accountholders? How should financial institutions begin to incorporate AI into their organizations?
Wynn: AI has notable potential. It can create personalized interactions with each consumer at scale and significantly increase efficiencies. AI can help institutions approach certain processes in different ways. For example, more institutions are using AI when it comes to lending decisions instead of solely relying on traditional factors.
However, when it comes to AI and, especially, generative AI, banks and credit unions should know that the technology is only as strong as the data and information behind it. There is a lot of work to train AI to make AI effective; it’s not a magic bullet. You must give it the right data and training to effectively work, while continuing to provide human oversight.
My advice for banks and credit unions who are considering how to use AI is to first ask themselves what they’re trying to accomplish. For example, is there more of a need to enhance back-office efficiencies? Or are they trying to offer different ways to support users? Don’t try to do everything all at once; it will be too much. Understand that it won’t be perfect from day one. You’re going to have to experiment and improve the AI along the way.
What does it mean to effectively humanize digital experiences? How can banks and credit unions accomplish this?
Wynn: Effectively humanizing the digital experience means leading with empathy throughout the user experience on their phone or online. This could be something as simple as analyzing the language used in an error message. Evaluate everything with a person in mind; are you providing them with relevant information in a human way, making them feel comfortable and supported along the journey? Of course, personalization is also a major factor here, as well. Money and finances are extremely personal, and they need to be treated with care.
Data is a core factor when it comes to humanizing digital. Effectively leveraging data can uncover crucial consumer behaviors, channel preferences, transactional patterns, and key events in the consumer journey. Employing technologies like AI enables financial institutions to analyze this data more effectively, anticipating member behaviors and offering contextual assistance, such as tailoring their website content to specific needs.
Looking ahead, I expect banks and credit unions to prioritize looking for ways to incorporate more empathy and personalization within their platforms, which will drive relationships and loyalty with their consumers.
Are there any leadership tips that you would like to share with other strong females in a male dominated industry?
Wynn: It all comes down to confidence. Knowing your worth and intelligence goes a long way. Surround yourself with a strong group of women who lift you up and encourage you. When you start to see yourself the way others see you, you are more likely to take a risk in your career or feel more confident to speak up. Also, recognize what motivates and drives you, and know that it’s okay if those things change over time. Everyone constantly evolves in their journey, and you’re sure to learn something every step along the way.
What are the opportunities and challenges of AI in the fraud prevention and identity verification space? We caught up with Heidi Hunter, Chief Product Officer for IDology, a GBG company, to find out.
IDology delivers a comprehensive suite of identity verification, AML/KYC, and fraud management solutions to help businesses drive revenue, deter fraud, and maintain compliance. Founded in 2003, IDology made its Finovate debut in 2012. GBG acquired the company in 2019.
Ms. Hunter joined GBG Americas in 2011 and has worked in both product innovation and customer success roles during her career with the company. She brings more than 13 years’ experience in supporting customers and helping them with their business needs through product innovation, support, and implementation roles.
Currently, Ms. Hunter is responsible for driving the company’s product roadmap and bringing new innovations to the identity verification market through strategic product development.
AI has brought on challenges and opportunities when it comes to fraud and financial crime. What are the principal challenges financial institutions are facing?
Heidi Hunter: There are four main areas of concern: cybersecurity and fraud, biased models, human oversight, and regulatory compliance.
Deloitte has written on the growing concern of AI as a cybersecurity and fraud threat, noting that 51% of executives interviewed believe that the cybersecurity vulnerabilities of AI are a major concern. One issue is the problem of more and better fake documents. AI will simplify creation of passports, driver’s licenses, and ID cards that are virtually indistinguishable from genuine ones. Another issue here is increased synthetic identity fraud. Generative AI is a productivity tool for fraudsters, creating highly realistic synthetic identities at scale.
Additionally, there is more effective phishing and social engineering. A recent study of 1,000 decision makers found 37% had experienced deepfake voice fraud. And Generative AI is used to fuel a surge in phishing tactics.
You also mentioned biased models, human oversight, and compliance.
Hunter: The use of AI and machine learning (ML) algorithms have come under scrutiny with concerns over data bias, transparency, and accountability. With regard to human oversight, 88% of consumers reported that they would discontinue a helpful personalization service if they didn’t understand how their data would be managed.
Lack of human oversight is also a regulatory concern. AI often lacks transparency, leaving businesses exposed when they must explain their decisioning, which has brought expectations of future regulation. AI-generated deepfakes are moving fast and policymakers can’t keep up.
Can the same technology that’s enabling fraudsters also enable FIs to thwart them?
Hunter: Yes, especially when AI is paired with human intelligence. AI benefits from experts charged with overseeing incoming and outgoing data. A trained fraud analyst accompanying AI-based solutions can catch new and established fraud trends. This includes novel threats that AI solutions on their own may miss.
From a compliance perspective, this means businesses can offer a more transparent solution and manage potential bias. Supervised AI can eliminate the need to manually verify an ID, and help provide the explanation needed for compliance and regulatory requirements.
Automation plays a major role in AI. So does human oversight. Can you talk about the relationship between AI and automation?
Hunter: Automation is typically rule-based and follows predetermined instructions, while AI can learn from data and make decisions based on that data. In other words, automation software operates on a set of predefined rules, while AI can make predictions and decisions based on the data it is presented with. The ‘predictions’ aspect of AI- and ML-based tech is where human supervision plays such an important role.
What is the proper balance between human oversight and AI? What role do humans have in an increasingly AI-powered world?
Hunter: Like with any tool, human-supervised AI is great when it’s one part of a larger identity verification (IDV) strategy.
Humans have a role at every ‘stage’ of AI use or implementation: in development, in terms of what data is being used to train a model; during deployment, where an AI-based tool is used and to what degree; and when it comes to holding AI-based tools accountable. This means analyzing a given output and what decisions a FI makes based on that output.
For identity verification specifically, how has human-supervised AI helped solve problems?
Hunter: Consumers also set the bar high for seamless interactions. For example, 37% of consumers abandoned a digital onboarding process because it was too time-consuming. Overcoming this challenge requires a comprehensive strategy. Human-supervised AI can play a critical role in the process, as it can quickly scrutinize vast volumes of digital data to uncover patterns of suspicious activity while also providing insight and transparency into how decisions are made.
Are businesses embracing human-supervised AI? What hurdles remain to broader adoption?
Hunter: Yes, because while there is a lot of excitement around what AI can do, several businesses and people in the academic community believe AI isn’t ready to make unsupervised decisions. As mentioned earlier, businesses show concern over AI operating on its own. Concerns range from ethical questions, to cybersecurity and fraud risks, to making a bad business decision based on AI. On a positive note, businesses are becoming more aware of benefits of supervised learning models.
Artificial intelligence has taken the technology world by storm – and fintech is no exception. But questions remain as to how AI can be best applied in the world of fintech and financial services.
I talked with Anu Sachdeva, Global Service Line & Solutions Leader at Genpact, during the FinovateFall conference last month to discuss the role of generative AI in particular in financial services. Among the topics covered were:
How banks can realize the true value of generative AI.
What use cases banks and other financial services organizations have found for generative AI.
What are the most important considerations for financial services organizations when adopting generative AI.
New York-based digital bank Grasshopper announced a partnership with automated financial crime assurance and testing specialist Cable.
The partnership will enable the bank to enhance its own compliance and risk management capabilities.
Cable made its Finovate debut last September at FinovateFall.
Digital bank Grasshopper has turned to Cable for its automated financial crime assurance and testing capabilities. The bank will leverage Cable’s technology to deploy next-level automation that will enhance the advanced compliance and risk management capabilities of its own compliance program.
“Cable will help us and our fintech partners take advantage of the latest automation to gain superior visibility and comprehensive compliance insights, which will enable our clients to scale more efficiently and responsibly – back by the leading advanced compliance technology,” Grasshopper Chief Compliance Officer Chris Mastrangelo said.
Cable offers a solution that enables both banks and fintechs to automate their compliance assurance and effectiveness testing. The company’s Automated Assurance offering helps institutions discover regulatory breaches and control failures when they occur, empowering compliance teams to take immediate action. Cable’s technology streamlines a variety of manual processes including operations in quality control, stakeholder reporting, and record management. The company says that businesses have achieved nearly a 6x average return on investment in their first year using Cable. Clients using Cable’s complete suite of solutions have saved an average of $440,000 a year, according to the company. Cable demoed its technology at FinovateFall last year.
Based in New York, Grasshopper is a digital bank with total assets of more than $700 million. The institution caters to the “innovation economy,” serving small businesses, startups, venture capital and private equity, as well as fintechs. The bank’s partners include a number of Finovate alums including Visa, FIS, and Alloy. Grasshopper won Best Use of Tech in Banking at the 2023 Banking Tech Awards USA sponsored by sister publication Fintech Futures.
“As one of the most innovative BaaS providers, Grasshopper demonstrates that integrating cutting-edge compliance infrastructure and automation is mission-critical to the success of the best BaaS companies in today’s banking landscape,” Cable CEO Natasha Vernier said. Grasshopper will take advantage of Cable’s Partner Hub, which provides compliance infrastructure that is specifically designed for bank-fintech relationships. This includes automated risk assessments, automated assurance, quality assurance, management information, reporting, and more.
Vernier co-founded Cable with Chief Product Officer Katie Savitz in 2020. The company raised $11 million in Series A funding in May. Stage 2 Capital and Jump Capital provided the financing, along with existing investor CRV. This year alone, Cable has partnered with digital asset custody platform Palisade, embedded banking software platform Treasury Prime, U.K. bank Griffin, and crypto payments company Ramp.
FinovateEurope in London was a veritable bonfire of fireside chats! And now, courtesy of Finovate TV, you can check out many of the conversations we had with leading fintech entrepreneurs and technologists.
Here’s our Fireside Chat conversation with Bianca Zwart, Chief of Staff to the CEO of Dutch neobank bunq. We talked about the innovative fintech’s origins in the wake of the financial crisis, the challenge and opportunity of “borderlessness” in Europe, and bunq’s goal of being the “global neobank for digital nomads and international people and businesses.”
On the origins of bunq
Zwart: We were founded just after the financial crisis of 2008. Our founder and CEO Ali Niknam looked around and he saw a lot of people hurt by what was happening. A lot of his friends couldn’t get a mortgage. They were forced to sell their houses – or they couldn’t get a loan as an entrepreneur. He looked around and he saw that people were just pointing fingers, blaming each other and nobody was actually fixing the problem.
On the uniqueness of bunq’s business model
Zwart: We were completely self-funded by our founder for nearly a decade, which gave us the independence to focus on what we wanted to focus on: building a product that people love to use, to bring a service model back to the banking industry. We were the first to introduce a subscription-based model because we were convinced that if you build a product that people love to use, they are willing to pay a fair price for it. By doing so, your commercial reality is directly linked to user happiness.
On the challenge of Europe’s borderless Millennial and Gen Z consumers
Zwart: We all look at Europe as a continent, but it’s just a mixture of so many different countries. Banking is super personal, super cultural. Consider the difference, for example, between the Netherlands and Germany in terms of how we look at money, how we deal with money payment infrastructure. It’s a completely different ballgame and we want our users to have access to financial services wherever they go without having to worry about that.
