This October at The Fintech Times is all about shining a spotlight on the incredible women working in the fintech industry, sharing their greatest achievement, their biggest challenges and their hopes for the future.
Though progress has been made to reduce the gender gap in fintech, the industry still has far to go until it hits true representation and champions full equality.
To help highlight the influential and significant contributions of women to the industry, here are six incredible women from the industry highlighting their greatest achievement in their careers (so far).
Technology innovation
Neha Singh, VP of product strategy & innovation at Broadridge, a financial technology provider, said: “As an immigrant executive from a middle-class background in India, I’ve always dealt with a steep learning curve when leading teams. While working at Boston Consulting Group as a management consultant, I gained a lot of experience in the world of financial services, but my Computer Engineering background has always stayed with me and I left to be a business leader at Broadridge Financial Solutions, where I drive technology innovation. As Vice President of Product Strategy and Innovation for Capital Markets, I am recognised for bringing a collaborative, inter-disciplinary approach to driving company-wide innovation.
“One of my greatest accomplishments in my career so far has been when Broadridge acquired Itiviti in its largest-ever acquisition, and I was tapped to lead the product integration. Over the last year, Broadridge has uniquely positioned itself to look across the full trade lifecycle and help clients solve the problems challenging the Capital Markets industry. I am leading the creation of a unique offering that aims to provide a lower cost of ownership, reduced risk, and increased agility to clients that didn’t exist in the before. The road has not been easy, but our efforts are bearing fruit with firms signing up for solutions.”
Positive Impacts
Tina Hsiao is the Co-Founder and COO at billing & practice management platform, Soundry Health.
“I’ve been able to scale and grow several businesses, including at WePay. When I joined we were a small fintech just post Series B. When I left as COO, we had scaled through Series C, D and successful acquisition by JP Morgan Chase. That was an amazing journey.
“However, while there are lots of ‘on paper’ successes in terms of growth stories, exits and titles, when I look back at the companies I’ve helped build, what I remember most are the people, communities and relationships I positively impacted. I think of the teams that bonded while achieving great things together but also the specific individuals I mentored and saw grow and flourish. When I’m old & grey, that’s what will stay with me.”
A huge opportunity
Felicia Tang, marketing director at cashback app, Airtime Rewards, said: “My greatest achievement to date was leading the marketing and communications strategy for Volt.io’s Series A funding round. Following these efforts, Volt.io successfully secured $23.5million in funding in June 2021, marking a significant milestone as the largest Series A funding round on record within the open banking industry. This was a huge opportunity for me, and played a key role in my own learning and development.”
Enhancing experiences
Jodi Neiding, vice president, Americas banking portfolio at Diebold Nixdorf, providers of software, hardware and information technology services for financial institutions and retailers.
“My greatest achievement has been developing an easy-to-use, award-winning ATM family that has enabled access to cash to be expanded to the unbanked and underbanked populations in over 100 countries worldwide. ATMs are an important bridge between the physical and digital worlds, particularly for demographics that rely on cash for purchasing essentials and accessing vital services due to specific payment or financial requirements. I am proud that my work efficiently helps solve our customers’ business challenges and, more importantly, enhances the experiences for their customers.”
Supported by leadership
Lauren McCollom, director of Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) at Grasshopper Bank, a digital bank serving small businesses, start ups, and investors, said: “My greatest achievement was arriving at a place in my career where I am comfortable in my strengths, aware of my weaknesses, and feel absolutely trusted and supported by leadership.
“The critical moment was when I realised that I’m a builder, and that realization has allowed me to embrace and be willing to do what it takes to not only go after but also crush my goals. It only took 15 years spanning multiple financial institutions, but over the last few years, I’ve never had more success or felt more passionate about my chosen career and what I’m currently building at Grasshopper.”
A huge accomplishment
Dubie Cunnigham, North American banking group president at Zafin, provider of SaaS product and pricing platform solutions for banks, said:
“My career-defining moment was when I was brought into Zafin and then elevated to President of the North American Banking Group. After seeing few women holding these types of executive tech roles, receiving the president role was a huge accomplishment. I’m proud to be in this position and hope I can inspire other women in technology to pursue similar types of leadership positions.
“This position has brought together everything I’ve learned throughout my career. The objective of most of my roles has been to solve technology and business problems in the banking industry. When I came to Zafin, I felt like the platform was one I could really get behind and invest in. I’ve had the opportunity to solve complex problems for our banking clients in the realm of product and pricing. On top of that, I’ve witnessed the Zafin platform come into its own as a solution for banking and significantly benefit our clients, ultimately resulting in increased satisfaction with their current customers.”
Polly Jean Harrison
