Fintech Thought Leaders

Beyond the Noise: The Fintech Investor Series is a LinkedIn Live Series hosted by Bill Cilluffo, partner and head of global early stage investments, where Bill talks to industry experts to break down the most important topics in global fintech. In this episode, Will stablecoins disrupt global finance?, you can listen to Bill's discussion with QED's Gbenga Ajayi and Adams Conrad to explore emerging trends, including real-world use cases in emerging markets and the U.S., and what has been solve...

In LATAM countries, particularly Mexico, 10% of the population has a credit card. However, within credit card transactions, according to Mexico's central bank Banxico, around 65% of transactions from credit cards in any given year are installment-based. While working at Morgan Stanley in NYC, Angel Peña, co-founder and CEO of Aplazo, a modern payment network offering payment solutions and merchant tools to help merchants sell more and grow their brands, discovered Mexico's huge cultura...

Could the Costco model revolutionize business banking? Meow CEO Brandon Arvanaghi reveals how Meow is redefining the landscape by passing the majority of interest economics back to their customers, surpassing $1 billion assets on the platform with a lean team of appromimately 15 people. We'll uncover the critical role fintech and bank partnerships play, especially in the wake of significant events like the collapse of SVB and Synapse's bankruptcy and we'll share advice for finte...

Bill Cilluffo sits down with co-founder & CEO of Capchase, Miguel Fernandez Larrea, to discuss critical lessons learned from his early entrepreneurial ventures, creating a category with Capchase, the importance of talking to customers early-on and the importance of managing risk in lending in order to succeed.

Bill Cilluffo sits down with QED Principal, Ale Piedrahita, to discuss how living in multiple countries during her childhood has influenced her international life, her perspective on the European VC ecosystem, the competitive edge that Europe’s fintech sector has and the market trends she's most excited about.

Bill Cilluffo sits down with Aidan Rushby, founder and CEO of Carmoola, to discuss coming to terms with failure, the importance of taking care of one's mental health and founding Carmoola to enable cheaper, easier and faster car finance.

Bill Cilluffo sits down with Eduardo della Maggiora, founder and CEO of Betterfly, to discuss the life-altering events that catalyzed the birth of his company, the importance of social impact in Betterfly's business model and how the platform is integrating the worlds of insurance, well-being and purpose with a big mission to empower people to help them live longer, healthier, happier lives.

QED's Partner and Head of International Early Stage Investments Bill Cilluffo sits down with QED's Partner and Head of Latin America Mike Packer to discuss how Mike's eagerness to digitize corporate banking led him to fintech investing in Latin America.

Bill Cilluffo sits down with Sean Harper, CEO and co-founder of Kin Insurance to discuss how he's shaking up the homeowners insurance industry. Sean shares how Kin's cutting-edge direct-to-consumer model and data-driven techniques are setting new standards for pricing accuracy and customer satisfaction in the face of an industry traditionally dominated by agents.

Bill Cilluffo, Partner and Head of Early Stage Investments, sits down with Chris Dean, Treasury Prime's co-founder and CEO, to discuss how Treasury Prime is revolutionizing banking.

Bill Cilluffo, Partner and Head of Early Stage Investments, sits down with Revio co-founder Nicole Dunn to discuss how Revio is reducing the cost and risk of payment operations in Africa.

Bill Cilluffo, Partner and Head of Early Stage Investments, sits down with Wander CEO John Andrew Entwistle to discuss young entrepreneurship, workplace culture and revolutionizing the vacation rental experience.

What if your big idea began as a scribble on a napkin? Carolyn Rodz and Elizabeth Gore, co-founders of Hello Alice, saw this idea through. Hear the captivating journey of these two astonishing entrepreneurs as they build a business that now connects more than 1.3 million small-business owners to critical resources, including capital, connections and opportunities. Learn how they developed their company from a simple napkin sketch to a groundbreaking platform that counts enterpri...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED's Head of Early Stage Investments Bill Cilluffo speaks with Partner, Head of UK & Europe, Yusuf Özdalga.

What if the way you handle payroll could transform your business? That's the question Maya Dadoo, CEO of Worky, answers in today's episode. A trailblazer in the world of fintech, Maya's startup is shaking up the HR and payroll industry in Latin America. Maya takes us on a captivating journey, starting from her formative years, shaped by her father's entrepreneurial pursuits and his investment banking experience, to her transition from corporate behemoths like BCG, Citi, and eBay to her own v...

What happens when an Armenian woman, born in a collapsing Soviet Union, goes on to head the United Nations Millennium Development Goals and then takes a leap of faith into entrepreneurship? You get Naré Vardanyan, CEO of Ntropy, whose journey we unravel in our latest episode. Her fascinating trajectory, from her humble beginnings to learning AI on Coursera and launching her own company, is inspiring. Prepare to be swept away by Naré's bold move to decipher the encryp...

Imagine discovering that a family member, struggling with Alzheimer's, can no longer handle their own finances safely. That's the reality Kai Stinchcombe faced with his grandmother Ruth and what he used as fuel to create a fintech solution. In this episode, we journey with Kai as he reveals the personal origin story behind True Link's innovative mission. Hear how his commitment to empower those with Alzheimer's, addiction, special needs and mental health issues to make payments safely and ind...

QED's Head of Early Stage Investing Bill Cilluffo sat down with Laura Bock, an alumna of Princeton and a former management consultant at Oliver Wyman, to hear her unique story and gain her insights into the financial services industry. Laura opens up the hood of startup culture and how it's changing the face of investment. She shares her thoughts on the agility of startups and the instrumental role of investors and advisors in this dynamic space.. Laura's insights on founder assessment...

In an exciting conversation, we had the pleasure of hosting QED Investors colleague Victoria Zuo. Victoria's journey from China to the U.S. and her endeavors in the payments industry, mobile and commerce sectors took center stage. The radical technological shift in China and its stark contrast with the U.S payments systems marked the key discussions in her episode with Bill Cilluffo. Victoria's unique experience in applying to Stanford and her decision to venture to the West Coast added a pe...

Ever wondered how a young entrepreneur from a small town in India scaled up his startup to onboard 4.6 million employees in just two years? Tune in as QED's Head of Early Stage Investing Bill Cilluffo sits down with Chitresh Sharma, the charismatic CEO of Refyne, India's largest online access platform and hear his inspiring journey from the heartland of Chattisgarh to the bustling streets of the Indian startup ecosystem. Chitresh gets candid about launching his first business venture at 19, ...

What fuels the fire of entrepreneurship? For Roberto Biselli, CEO of Capim, it’s a potent mix of familial influence, tough life choices, and an unshakeable belief in the power of credit. From growing up as the youngest of nine in a Brazilian family steeped in entrepreneurial spirit to making pivotal decisions that veered him away from the trodden path, Roberto’s journey is captivating and inspirational. During our conversation, Roberto unravels his experiences at McKinsey and how they ignite...

Venture into the world of real estate and learn how GetGround CEO Moubin Khan is turning the proptech industry on its head. QED Partner Bill Cilluffo and Moubin discuss the creation of a property investment marketplace, a solution to the lack of information, trust, and actionability in the industry. Marking a significant shift, the use of corporate vehicles has seen an increase of 15-65% in the UK in the past three and a half years. From the biggest challenges to the most rewarding victories,...

Has the war for talent mitigated? Is it as ferocious as it was during COVID? How does it differ between sector and stage? What can hiring managers and senior leaders do to ensure diversity is front and center, not just an afterthought?

Sandeep Patil shares how Asia's combination of technology talent and financial services talent has set the foundation for transformational fintech companies to thrive.

QED's Managing Partner Nigel Morris and Head of LatAm Mike Packer discuss the findings of the Global Fintech 2023: Reimagining the Future of Finance report that we co-authored with the Boston Consulting Group. Mike discusses what we can learn from the global benchmark companies coming out of LatAm like Nubank, and he shares his thoughts on second-time founders, forward-looking regulators and the future of B2B innovation.

The similarities between fintech in LatAm and Africa is striking. Gbenga Ajayi shares how that gives him a blueprint for success. In this episode, QED's Managing Partner Nigel Morris and Head of Africa Gbenga Ajayi discuss the findings of the Global Fintech 2023: Reimagining the Future of Finance report that we co-authored with the Boston Consulting Group.

Yusuf Ozdalga shares why embedded finance, back-office automation and international payments are key themes QED's European team is excited by.

Are we in Chapter 2 or Chapter 8 of fintech's story? That was the question we have been discussing internally for more than a year as we tried to accurately outline and size the opportunity that stands before us. Through that lens, we have partnered with the Boston Consulting Group to co-author a research paper, Global Fintech 2023: Reimagining the Future of Finance, to frame the discussion and highlight the sizable tailwinds that, with the exception of the past two years, have have powered n...

Jordan shares the lessons learned from growing up in a family-owned business in Chicago, how he approaches hiring and scaling, and the importance of building meaningful business relationships.

Ahmad discusses building MENA's largest revenue-based financing platform, 'winning the lottery' twice, why it's OK to fail and why you'll never win an argument by losing the heart.

Sam chats with QED's Bill Cilluffo about the origin story of Ocrolus, his competitive drive to succeed and how he drew inspiration from Google's CAPTCHA to improve the accuracy of machine learning tools.

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED Partner and Head of Early Stage Investing Bill Cilluffo chats with colleague and Head of Africa Gbenga Ajayi.

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED's Head of Early Stage Investments Bill Cilluffo speaks with Fairplay CEO Manolo Atala.

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED's Head of Early Stage Investments Bill Cilluffo speaks with Stem CEO Milana Lewis. Tune in to learn: [2:17] The problem that Stem is solving, from music distribution to automating payouts, and how the company unlocks economic opportunities for content creators, including mortgages, benefits and healthcare. [4:38] The exponential growth of new music, from 70,000 songs a week, to more than 100,000 a day. [6:20] How Milana was shaped by her immig...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED's Managing Partner Nigel Morris speaks with ClearScore CEO Justin Basini. Tune in to learn: [4:55] How Justin thinks about the role of left-brain, right-brain thinking in decision making. [6:17] Why creating a business is about building art on top of science. [12:45] How CEOs think about existential threats to their businesses and how they deal with crises of leadership. [16:20] What happens when you need to re-motivate your team whe...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED's Head of Early Stage Investments Bill Cilluffo speaks with Coru CEO and QED Executive-in-Residence Fernando Gonzalez. Tune in to learn: [2:24] How Fernando’s entrepreneurial journey was shaped by his familial experiences and those of his father. [7:04] The story of Fernando's first business idea -- Taking cheese from north of Mexico City and selling it to his favorite taco place. [10:05] How Fernando thinks about the role culture plays...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders by QED Investors, QED Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Bambee CEO Allan Jones, Tribal Credit President Duane Good and organizational and strategy consultant Seamus McMahon about the lessons learned from conducting reductions in force. Tune in to learn: How the best founders thrive under constraints. "Constraints drive creativity and they rob you of optionality.” How founders think about the balance of keeping once versus cutting too deep...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders, QED's Head of Early Stage Investments Bill Cilluffo speaks with Wagestream CTO and co-founder Portman Wills. Tune in to learn: [1:07] An introduction to Wagestream, a super-app for frontline workers. [2:28] How Portman thinks about his North Star -- the concept of a social enterprise business that helps those who are less fortunate but still pursues a profit. [6:10] How moving schools 14 times in 12 years helped shaped Portman’s independence a...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders by QED Investors, QED Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Wander CEO John Andrew Entwistle, Summer CEO Paul Kromidas and QED Partner and Head of Growth Chuckie Reddy to discuss the future of proptech and short-term rentals.

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders by QED Investors, Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Cora CEO Igor Senra, Covalto CEO David Poritz and Nuvocargo CEO Deepak Chhugani. Tune in to learn: [3:45] Why Covalto rebranded from Credijusto [14:22] How to fill the gap between large banks and microfinance companies[20:53] How Nuvocargo tackles the complexity of cross-border trucking logistics[27:00] Why Cora can out-maneuver the incumbent banks in Brazil[35:04] Maintaining focu...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders by QED Investors, Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Caribou CEO Kevin Bennett and QED Investors Partner Matt Risley. Tune in to learn: [2:46] Kevin's personal journey from completing his law degree and serving in the Obama administration to building a leading auto refinance business.[6:44] The struggle of educating consumers to the fact that they are able to refinance auto loans, often saving more than $100 each month.[16:55] The tipping ...

In this episode of Fintech Thought Leaders by QED Investors, Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Albert CEO Yinon Ravid, Wagestream CEO Peter Briffett, Mission Lane CEO Shane Holdaway and QED Investors Partner Yusuf Özdalga. Tune in to learn: [11:25] Why saving small amounts of money, in an automatic way, can be the bedrock of financial health.[16:10] How Wagestream's "Save the penny" concept has broken down the barrier for hourly workers to save money through earned-wage access.[17:2...

In this episode of the Fintech Thought Leaders podcast by QED Investors, QED Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Bitso CEO Daniel Vogel, Tribal Credit CEO Amr Shady, Shakepay CEO Jean Amiouny and QED Partner Matt Burton. Tune in to learn: [10:01] Why Bitso CEO Daniel Vogel thinks increased mind share is leading to a plethora of ideas, a ton of collaboration and a magnitude of innovation.[14:50] Why crypto and web3 is past the point of no return.[16:32] How web3 is going to remove ineff...

In this episode of the Fintech Thought Leaders podcast by QED Investors, QED Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Atomic CEO David Dindi and QED Partner Amias Gerety. Tune in to learn: [2:06] David's international background which took him from Kenya, through Europe and eventually to the U.S.[7:38] Why QED's excitment in Atomic was grounded in the combination of the most cutting edge wealth management techniques inside of a very customer accessible consumer experience.[9:41] Why every c...

In this episode of the Fintech Thought Leaders podcast by QED Investors, QED Managing Partner Nigel Morris is joined by Wayflyer CEO Aidan Corbett and QED Partner Yusuf Özdalga. Tune in to learn: [2:28] How Wayflyer helps e-commerce companies pay for inventory and for marketing spend and solves the struggle of working capital requirements. [4:59] Why banks have traditionally refused to enter this space, including why e-commerce companies typically don't have many assets that a...