Hi, fintech fam! 💜

We’re just one week away from the most iconic stage in fintech: the Fintech Is Femme Leadership Summit at The Times Center in NYC.

I still can’t believe we’ll all be together, in person, under one roof. 🤯

To help you channel the vibe, here’s our Summit mood board for some outfit inspo and an inside look at the energy we’re bringing.

Our full agenda is now live and times are locked—check it out here to start planning your day. Trust me, you’ll want to make the most of it.

And because no Fintech Is Femme event is complete without a little extra love, we’ve got surprise-and-delight moments on site, including gifts from some incredible woman-owned wellness brands.

I built this Summit for you—for the founders, operators, and leaders who show up every week in this community. If you’re building something and could use a little help getting there, reply to this email. I’ll hook you up with a discount code.

Because I want you in this room.

Now, let’s get into today’s column.

INNOVATION

Why Financial Harmony Is the Missing Growth Strategy in Fintech

$98.5 million.

That’s how much money businesses are losing—every single year—thanks to cyberthreats, fraud, regulatory headaches, and old financial systems that weren’t built for the speed, scale, and complexity of today’s economy.

It’s not theoretical. It’s operational. And it’s happening right now.

Last week, I got a front-row seat to the financial sector’s next big reckoning. Sitting 40 stories above Manhattan at FIS HQ—surrounded by the skyline of more than 600 financial institutions—I joined a select group of fintech leaders, policymakers, and innovators for the release of a landmark report from FIS in partnership with Oxford Economics.

The title? The Harmony Gap: Finding the Financial Upside in Uncertainty.

The thesis is clear: Financial systems out of sync cost companies millions in lost productivity, innovation, and resilience. But those closing the gap are not just weathering disruption—they’re winning because of it.

The Harmony Gap

Based on global research with 1,000 C-suite leaders across six industries, the report defines “disharmony” as any disruption or inefficiency across the money lifecycle—whether money is at rest (think: deposits), in motion (payments, transfers), or at work (investments, lending, credit infrastructure).

The results reveal a troubling disconnect between companies' goals and what their infrastructure allows them to do.

• 88% cite cyber threats as their top source of tension

• 79% report fraud as a persistent financial drain

• 65% identify regulatory complexity as a major operational hurdle

Add operational friction, outdated software, and rising expectations from both customers and regulators, and the result is a dangerous misalignment—one that slows down progress and siphons away profit.

Stephanie Ferris Says It Plainly

“Whether money is at rest, in motion, or at work—we need systems that work in harmony,” said FIS CEO Stephanie Ferris. “That’s how we build resilience. That’s how we unlock growth.”

Ferris, who leads one of the largest fintech infrastructure firms globally, isn’t just talking about optimization. She’s calling for an overhaul in how we think about growth itself.

Harmony, in her view, is no longer a luxury—it’s a strategic imperative.

Because the fintechs that will lead the next chapter of the industry aren’t just delivering functionality. They deliver trust through connected systems, smarter infrastructure, and AI-driven intelligence.

From Pain Points to Profit

The numbers are stark:

• 1 in 3 companies experience cyberattacks daily

• 74% face critical threats monthly

• 47% don’t train employees on cyber and fraud prevention

Meanwhile, outdated tech and fragmented workflows continue to cost companies millions—often quietly, in the background, through small inefficiencies that add up fast.

But proactive companies? They’re already seeing results:

• 85% of firms with dedicated fintech teams feel prepared to handle modern risks

• 83% of those embedding fintech solutions report revenue increases

• Organizations using embedded finance tools are seeing 8.5% growth in sales

Ferris made it clear: Fintech is no longer just the enabler. It’s the differentiator. 

Fintech, Ferris argued, has evolved past being a set of tools or APIs—it’s a business model in its own right.

What the Report Really Reveals

This isn’t just a tech story—it’s a leadership story.

Behind the numbers is a reality many executives feel but can’t always quantify: the misalignment between people, systems, and strategy.

Take fraud, for example. While 83% of companies say they prioritize it, 41% are unhappy with their prevention tools—and 47% don’t offer regular internal training. It’s not just a tools gap—it’s a culture gap.

Yes, 55% of companies are investing in AI and automation. But many cite steep implementation costs, lack of internal expertise, and integration friction as blockers.

The takeaway? The technology is ready. The strategy—and executive alignment—often isn’t.

The Leadership Mandate

Ferris summed it up perfectly: “Consumers expect digital onboarding. They expect you to know who they are at the point of transaction. Financial services are no longer just transactional. They’re experiential.”

The fintech companies that succeed next won’t just have better products. They’ll have better playbooks—where compliance, tech, risk, and product leaders collaborate from day one.

That shift starts in the C-suite. Not in the backend.

The Bottom Line

Fintech has always been a story of transformation. But transformation without harmony is just chaos at scale.

This report reveals not just a cost but a blueprint for competitive advantage. The businesses bridging the Harmony Gap aren’t just solving problems—they’re opening new doors for growth, agility, and customer trust.

As Firdaus Bhathena, CTO of FIS, puts it:

“A well-defined technology strategy, supported by a dedicated and knowledgeable team, is a fundamental component of a firm’s success.

Companies that invest in building or partnering with fintech expertise are better positioned to optimize their financial operations, mitigate risks, and ultimately achieve the financial harmony that drives sustainable growth.”

And that’s the real insight here: harmony isn’t just about prevention—it’s about propulsion.

It’s how you turn regulation into resilience, fraud risk into ROI, and compliance into customer confidence.

The fintechs that get this right? They won’t just survive 2025. They’ll define it.

✨ You can check out a preview of The Harmony Gap findings here, with the full report dropping just ahead of FIS’s Emerald conference this May.

FINTECH IS FEMME EVENTS

On April 23, hundreds of fintech leaders will gather at The Times Center in NYC for a double-stage experience:

✨ The Fintech Is Femme Leadership Summit, focused on growth, leadership, and innovation

🔐 The Fintech Security Summit, co-hosted with Frances Zelazny of Anonybit, tackling risk, compliance, and fraud head-on

If FIS findings tell us anything, it’s this:

🔐 Cybersecurity is a business imperative

💸 Fraud prevention is a competitive advantage

⚙️ Operational harmony isn’t a luxury—it’s a growth engine

The harmony gap is real. But so is the opportunity.

Let’s close it—together.

FINTECH SECURITY SUMMIT

_{WTF ELSE?}

• Girls Who Code founder Reshma Saujani spills business tea with Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

• Stripe’s banking push comes as fintechs dive deeper into finance

• The fintech revolution opens global doors for alternative investments

_{I WANT IT, I GOT IT}

• 🧴 Today’s Skincare: Meet SIX GLDN—a woman-owned brand rooted in adaptogenic botanical complexes that give your skin exactly what it needs, when it needs it. Catch them live at the Leadership Summit!

• 💊 Today’s Vitamins: Say hello to NNABI—the award-winning, most comprehensive peri-specific solution on the market. Your wellness routine just leveled up. (Also featured at the Leadership Summit).

• 🎧 Today’s Listen: Episode 5 of Fintech Mavericks just dropped! Tune in as the iconic Tanya Van Court shares her journey building Goalsetter and raising $30M. Listen now →

_FINTUNES

🎵 Lady Gaga - Zombieboy

In other news, it looks like Lady Gaga is crushing the Coachella stage. I'm loving her new album this year and can’t wait to keep seeing all the videos from the stage pop up in my social feeds!

_{LET’S CONNECT}

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📚 Increase your expertise by ordering your copy of my book, Fintech Feminists: Increasing Inclusion, Redefining Innovation, and Changing the Future for Women Around the World.

That’s all for now! See you Thursday!

Love,

Nicole 💜