Hey, fintech fam! 💜

I’m back from Las Vegas — tired, grateful, and buzzing from a week that reminded me why this industry still gives me chills after nearly a decade covering it.

Because beneath the flashing lights and the noise, a very different conversation was happening at Money20/20 this year. One about trust, transparency, authenticity, and collaboration — the invisible infrastructure that will define fintech’s next era.

At our Toast to Women in Fintech and live recording of Humans of Fintech at the Fintech Penthouse, three leaders helped put words to what so many founders, operators, and policymakers are feeling right now: we’re in the middle of a rewrite.

The old system is fading, and the new one hasn’t fully taken shape.

Here are three stories that show what that new blueprint could look like.

Let's get into it.

#TRENDING

#1 Stripe’s Erica Woods on Why Policy Is Fintech’s Most Overlooked Growth Strategy

Erica Woods, Stripe’s Head of U.S. State & Local Public Policy, doesn’t usually speak from a main stage — her work happens in rooms where the microphones are off and the stakes are high. She’s one of fintech’s quiet architects, bridging the gap between builders and policymakers.

When she stepped in for Asya Bradley on our panel, she dropped one of the most important reminders of the week:

“Don’t wait for policy to be an afterthought,” she said. “Know your regulators before you need them — so when you do, you’re ready.”

Woods has spent the last decade working at the intersection of technology and law — from the Obama administration to Meta to now Stripe. Her job is to ensure that the next wave of innovation doesn’t get buried under the weight of outdated regulation.

At Stripe, that means sitting down with legislators across 50 states to explain that fintech isn’t just a “payments processor.”

It’s infrastructure for the real economy—the system that keeps small businesses alive when banks won’t lend.

“When lawmakers see that we’re helping entrepreneurs keep the lights on, that’s when the conversation shifts,” she said.

Her advice for founders? Think of policy as an extension of your product strategy. “Innovation outpaces regulation,” she said, “but collaboration outlasts both.”

And it couldn’t come at a more crucial time.

The U.S. is in the middle of a fractured policy moment — with the CFPB’s authority under pressure, new state-level AI bills emerging, and open banking regulation finally gaining traction. While Europe pushes forward with unified frameworks like PSD3, American innovators are navigating a patchwork.

Stripe’s answer: proactive education.

“Lobbying isn’t a dirty word,” Woods reminded us. “It’s storytelling at the policy level — helping regulators understand what innovation actually looks like on the ground.”

Why It Matters

Fintech can’t afford to treat regulation as a postscript. As AI reshapes credit models and data access, companies that anticipate policy shifts — not just react to them — will earn long-term trust from both consumers and regulators.

Policy, done right, is fintech’s ultimate moat. The companies that win won’t just innovate fast — they’ll build responsibly, with alignment between users, governments, and the technologies shaping our lives.

#2 Casap CEO Shanthi Shanmugam on Why Trust — Not Tech — Is Fintech’s Real Currency

Shanthi Shanmugam didn’t set out to fix fraud — she set out to rebuild trust.

After six years at Robinhood, where she helped launch 24/7 customer support in the aftermath of the GameStop saga, she witnessed something that every fintech founder should remember: once trust is broken, product features can’t fix it.

So she built Casap, a platform that reimagines how payment disputes are resolved. What most banks see as a compliance cost, Shanmugam saw as an opportunity to create empathy at scale.

“When someone disputes a charge, what they’re really saying is, ‘Do you have my back?’” she said. “That’s not a workflow — that’s a relationship.”

Casap’s results are staggering:

• Fraud losses down 51%

• Costs per dispute cut by up to 90%

• And customers sending thank you emails instead of complaints

But Shanmugam’s impact goes beyond metrics. Her story is a case study in how fintech can humanize the hardest parts of finance — the moments when consumers are scared, frustrated, or unsure.

She calls it “the business of financial peace of mind.”

And her biggest insight from Money20/20? That AI — often seen as a risk to trust — can actually help rebuild it.

“AI is a big hammer,” she said, laughing. “But if you use it with intention, you can scale the human touch, not erase it.”

Casap’s systems use AI to identify fraud faster while freeing up employees to focus on the why behind disputes — the nuance that machines can’t yet replicate.

“AI should make empathy more efficient, not optional,” Shanmugam said.

Her vision is bold but simple: a world where fraud is a fraction of what it is today and trust is the default.

“I want my daughter to grow up in a world where she doesn’t even know what a dispute is,” she told the room.

Why It Matters

Trust isn’t a marketing metric — it’s fintech’s operating system.

And in an era where AI and automation dominate, the companies that thrive will be the ones that use technology to scale empathy, not eliminate it.

Shanmugam’s story is fintech at its best: human-centered design meeting systemic transformation.

If fintech built the rails, trust will be the electricity that keeps them running.

#3 Goodfin CTO Shilpi Nayak: ‘Financial Empowerment Isn’t Access — It’s Intelligent Access

Shilpi Nayak knows scale. She’s worked at Google and other tech giants that serve billions of users. But what she realized — and what many founders are rediscovering — is that scale without soul doesn’t mean much.

So she left Big Tech to co-found Goodfin, a platform unlocking access to private markets once reserved for the 1%.

Her mission? To turn financial empowerment from a buzzword into a tangible product.

“Empowerment isn’t just access,” she told the room. “It’s intelligent access — access that’s personalized, transparent, and rooted in your values.”

Goodfin uses AI to personalize investment opportunities around what users care about — from climate and sustainability to women-led funds or generational wealth.

It’s not just “democratizing” finance — it’s redesigning it for a world where identity and intention matter as much as yield.

“We’re building a platform that acts like a financial partner,” Nayak said. “It listens, it learns, and it helps you invest in alignment with your purpose.”

And she’s betting on a big trend: Agentic AI — systems that act with human-like judgment and agency.

“The next big wave won’t just be fintech that automates,” she predicted. “It’ll be fintech that collaborates — tools that give users agency, not just access.”

What’s striking about Nayak’s approach is how much it centers community. Goodfin users don’t just invest; they contribute feedback, share due diligence, and help one another navigate complex private deals.

It’s a return to something fintech sometimes forgets: finance has always been social.

And her final piece of advice could double as fintech’s new manifesto:

“Build for the world you want to see, not just the one you inherited.”

Why It Matters

The future of wealth isn’t about bigger markets — it’s about better matches. As private investing becomes mainstream, fintech must bridge access with education, personalization, and purpose.

Goodfin’s model shows where this is headed: a convergence of technology and empathy, where AI doesn’t just predict behavior — it amplifies belief.

The Bottom Line

If fintech’s first era was about access, this next one is about alignment.

Erica showed us that collaboration builds legitimacy.

Shanthi reminded us that trust builds loyalty.

And Shilpi proved that personalization builds purpose.

Each story points to a bigger truth: fintech’s future won’t be written by who moves the fastest — but by who moves with the most integrity.

And if this week in Vegas was any indication, that future is being built by women who are rewriting the code — and the culture — of finance.

🎙️ Stay tuned for the full Humans of Fintech LIVE: Toast to Women in Fintech episode, dropping soon on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube.

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[VIRTUAL] FINTECH BEST-IN-SHOW: Fintech Is Femme Edition

I’m thrilled to team up with Empire Startups once again to spotlight the bold, brilliant women shaping the future of finance.

From payments to lending, investing to insurtech — these early-stage founders aren’t just launching startups. They’re rewriting the rules of money.

At each virtual event, five standout startups will pitch live. A panel of sharp judges from FIS, TruStage Ventures, Artemis, and Fiserv will give real-time feedback. And yes — we’ll crown a Best in Show winner.

This isn’t your average pitch night. It’s a collision of innovation, capital, and community.

💻 Join us from anywhere — register now to see what the next generation of fintech looks like.

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That wraps up today’s edition—thanks for reading!

Until next week, keep innovating and challenging the status quo. See you Tuesday!

Love,

Nicole 💜