Fintech Business Podcast Jason Mikula

In this episode, I had the chance to sit down with Neepa Patel, cofounder and CEO of Themis, a compliance collaboration tool for banks and fintechs, on stage at last month’s Empire Fintech Conference in New York. Neepa and I had the chance to talk about:
* What “fintech people” misunderstand about regulators
* What fintechs should think about when selecting a bank partner
* Whether or not tech is (and should be) a competitive differentiator in banking-as-a-service platforms
“Many banks are still utilizing manual controls, processes and even spreadsheets to manage compliance and governance. We've been impressed with Themis’ collaborative and centralized modules to increase efficiency, and reduce complexities and internal costs while helping to streamline compliance controls.”
— Candice Antinori, VP Compliance Management & CRA Officer at FinWise Bank
Themis is a user friendly, collaborative compliance platform to help financial institutions manage complex relationships across internal control groups and to help fintechs’ level up their own governance, risk, and compliance cultures.
The platform provides a centralized compliance collaboration suite of purpose-built workflows and tools that seamlessly integrate risk, communications, documents and so much for internal teams and external partnerships between banks and fintechs. 
With Synapse entering into bankruptcy proceedings in the last few weeks, with knock-on impacts to Evolve Bank and Trust, Lineage, and multiple fintech programs, one could easily be forgiven for thinking fintech categorically is facing a regulatory reckoning. But, current turmoil notwithstanding, the bank-fintech partnership model will endure, with the players that prioritize compliance best suited to navigate the fallout.
Learn more about how Themis banks are Elevating Governance, Risk and Compliance Cultures here.
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This month we had the chance to talk about:
* BaaS drama continues, with Piermont and Sutton receiving consent orders
* Chime has HOW MANY customers?
* Trade groups vs. Colorado on DIDMCA, or, where is an online loan “made”?
* Quick takes on the Visa/Mastercard settlement
* And, as always, what we just can’t let go of
If you enjoy listening to this podcast and find value in it, please consider supporting me (and finhealth non-profits!) by signing up for a paid subscription. It wouldn’t be possible to do what I do without the support of listeners like you!


Get full access to Fintech Business Weekly at fintechbusinessweekly.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I had the chance to sit down with Tommy Nicholas, CEO of identity risk solutions platform Alloy, a global, end-to-end identity risk solution for banks and fintechs. Tommy and I had the chance to talk about:
* factors impacting fraud risk today, including the growth of real-time payments and the dawn of the genAI age
* key take aways from Alloy’s 2024 State of Fraud Benchmark Report
* the difference between “frictionless” and “seamless” in financial services UX
* public and private efforts to create digital identity solutions
* what’s on Tommy’s radar in the fraud space in 2024
* and more!


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In this episode, I spoke with Michal Cieplinski, founder and CEO at CapStack.
CapStack is the first integrated operating system for banks enabling cooperation across banks and other financial services institutions in order to drive profitability and asset diversification. Michal and I had a chance to talk about:
* The importance and challenges of asset/liability management for banks
* The risks that come from asset, geographic, and sectoral concentration, especially with current concerns around commercial real estate
* How CapStack can help banks mitigate these risks
* Moving from manual, Excel-and-email-based processes to technology-powered, automated exchanges for buying and selling loan participation stakes
* and more!


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In this episode, I spoke with Jon Lear, President and cofounder of Fintech Meetup, taking place in Las Vegas March 3-6, 2024 (learn more and get your tickets here.) We had the chance to discuss:
* the crazy year in fintech and banking that was 2023
* looking for silver linings in a challenging operating and fundraising environment
* what’s in store for 2024
* key themes and topics for next year’s Fintech Meetup event
* and more!


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In this episode, I spoke with Neal Desai, CEO of lease-to-own startup Kafene. We had the chance to discuss:
* Kafene’s recently announced Series B extension
* The impact of an uncertain economic environment on Kafene’s business
* Regulatory activity in the lease-to-own space
* Where Kafene is heading in 2024
* and much, much more!
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