Best Platonic Academy Podcasts (2025)

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Kevin Nazemi, CEO of Charlie, on building a trusted fintech serving seniors 39:37

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1d ago39:37

39:37

It is something of a mystery that virtually no fintech entrepreneurs have tackled one of the biggest markets there is: senior citizens collecting social security. Well, until now. In this episode, I sit down with Kevin Nazemi, CEO and co-founder of Charlie, to explore serving this large market. With over 60 million Americans in this demographic, Ke…

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Arad Levertov, CEO of Sunbit, on creating an offline BNPL leader 34:39

12h ago34:39

34:39

Today, I welcome back to the show Arad Levertov, CEO and co-founder of Sunbit (I last had him on the show in 2019), one of the leaders in offline buy-now-pay-later. From 2,000 retail locations in 2019 to nearly 30,000 across verticals like auto repair, dental, and veterinary services, Sunbit has achieved tremendous growth. But what I found most imp…

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Joseph L. Breeden, CEO of Deep Future Analytics, on the hidden math behind credit risk 39:59

12d ago39:59

39:59

Today, I sit down with Joe Breeden, CEO and founder of Deep Future Analytics (DFA), for what is, in effect, a two-part conversation. First we do a deep dive into credit risk management and where it is falling short today and then we discuss AI monitoring and governance and how it is going to revolutionize software. The conversation covers why tradi…

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Joe Heck, US CEO of Zip, on the role of BNPL for America's underserved consumers 34:52

11d ago34:52

34:52

Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) has transformed how consumers approach purchasing, yet adoption in the US still trails markets like Australia and Europe. In this episode, we sit down with Joe Heck, US CEO of Zip, who brings somewhat of a contrarian perspective to the industry. Joe argues that BNPL isn't just another credit product, it's a financial tool …

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Jason Guss, CEO of Octane Lending, on building the number one powersports lender 41:51

18d ago41:51

41:51

In this episode, I sit down with Jason Guss, CEO and co-founder of Octane Lending, to discuss how the company became the #1 powersports lender in the country. The conversation covers Octane's early pivot from lender aggregator to direct lender, their dominance in niche markets, and strategies for thriving in challenging interest rate environments. …

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Violet Abtahi, CEO of Platonic, on building the next generation of financial infrastructure 40:20

1M ago40:20

40:20

Violet Abtahi is the CEO and Founder of Platonic, a company developing blockchain infrastructure to solve counterparty risk and privacy challenges in financial markets. With over a decade of experience in both traditional finance and blockchain technology, Violet transitioned from a mathematics background on Wall Street to building next-generation …

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Tomás Campos, CEO of Spinwheel, on building fintech infrastructure for consumer debt 34:26

1M ago34:26

34:26

In this episode, I sit down with Tomás Campos, CEO and Co-Founder of Spinwheel, a fintech infrastructure company that's revolutionizing how lenders and financial platforms access consumer credit data. With over 20 years in fintech, Tomás explains how Spinwheel can authenticate users and connect to all their liability accounts—credit cards, loans, m…

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Paulette Rowe, CEO of Stax, on winning in embedded payments 39:34

2M ago39:34

39:34

In this episode of the Fintech One-on-One podcast, we talk with Paulette Rowe, CEO of Stax, a payments technology company that's making waves in the embedded payments space by taking a fundamentally different approach than many competitors. Rather than simply reselling services from payment processing giants, Stax has built and acquired the technol…

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Matt Potere, CEO of Happy Money, on building a great consumer lending business 30:33

2M ago30:33

30:33

As long-time listeners will know, I love the consumer lending space. So, I am delighted to welcome back to the podcast Matt Potere, the CEO of Happy Money, a position he has held since September 2024. Previously, Matt served as CEO of Sunlight Financial, which he took public via SPAC in 2021. With decades of experience in consumer finance across mu…

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Sam Lewis, CEO of Fruitful, with a new approach to financial advice 34:16

2M ago34:16

34:16

In this episode, we are talking personal financial management, but with a human twist. Sam Lewis is the CEO and Founder of Fruitful, a fintech company reimagining financial advice for millennials and Gen Z. Fruitful offers a $98 monthly membership that combines certified financial planners (actual humans) with AI-powered technology to create person…

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Arjan Schütte, Founder of Core Innovation Capital, on investing in financial empowerment 33:16

2M ago33:16

33:16

One of the fintech investing pioneers is Arjan Schütte, the founder and managing partner of Core Innovation Capital. He has been around fintech for more than two decades and has been an active investor for most of that time. I am way overdue in getting him on the show. In this conversation, we explore why 50% of Americans still live paycheck to pay…

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Tim Newell, CEO & Founder of GreenFi, on building a climate-friendly fintech 37:11

3M ago37:11

37:11

In this episode, I'm joined by Tim Newell, CEO and founder of GreenFi, a climate-focused fintech that emerged from the ashes of Aspiration's consumer banking business. Tim brings a fascinating fintech and climate tech pedigree, having previously sold a solar financing company to SolarCity, run financial products at both SolarCity and Tesla, and eve…

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Carol Hamilton, Chief Product and Strategy Officer at Provenir, on AI-powered risk decisioning 32:50

3M ago32:50

32:50

In today's episode, we have Carol Hamilton, Chief Product and Strategy Officer at Provenird. She discusses how AI-powered decisioning platforms are transforming risk management across financial services. She explores the critical balance financial institutions must strike between managing evolving risk threats and maintaining seamless customer expe…

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Penny Lee, CEO of the Financial Technology Association, on the changes in Washington 35:04

3M ago35:04

35:04

To say it has been a busy year for fintech policy folks would be a gross understatement. With the change in administration to Trump 2.0, we have a 180-degree different perspective on most fintech issues than the previous administration. And there have already been many actions taken by the Trump White House that will have far-reaching implications …

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Olugbenga “GB” Agboola, CEO of Flutterwave, on creating African payments infrastructure 28:54

3M ago28:54

28:54

Africa is quietly becoming one of the hottest areas for fintech investment. I am overdue to focus on Africa here on the podcast, so when the chance to interview the CEO of the largest African fintech presented itself, I jumped at the opportunity. In a similar way to Latin America, Africa has leapfrogged from offline financial infrastructure to mobi…

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Brandon Spear, CEO of TreviPay, on taking the complexity out of cross border B2B payments 37:14

4M ago37:14

37:14

Streamlining international B2B payments is a complex undertaking. TreviPay has been taking the complexity out of this process for several decades now. In my conversation with CEO Brandon Spear, we explore TreviPay's transformation from MSTS, its rebranding inspiration, and its global reach across 30 countries. Our discussion highlights TreviPay's v…

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Anthony Soohoo, CEO of MoneyGram, on rethinking global remittances 31:21

4M ago31:21

31:21

In this episode, Anthony Soohoo, CEO of MoneyGram, shares his vision for transforming one of the world's largest global payments networks through what he calls a "refounder mindset." Drawing from his experience leading digital transformations at major companies like Walmart and CBS, Soohoo discusses how MoneyGram is modernizing its platform while l…

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Michele Alt, Co-Founder of Klaros Group, on the new era for fintechs and bank charters 35:15

4M ago35:15

35:15

When it comes to fintechs getting bank charters we are entering a golden age. With zero fintech-oriented bank applications approved in the Biden administration we already have several fintechs with shiny new bank charters just a few months into the new administration. So, if you are a fintech and are thinking about bank charters now is the time. To…

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Ravi Adusumilli, President, Americas of Airwallex on building a global B2B payments platform 37:03

4M ago37:03

37:03

Moving money internationally is mission-critical for many businesses in the world, particularly those outside the U.S. But, today, for businesses using traditional banks, moving money across borders is often expensive, slow and a terrible user experience. Wherever you have that combination you can be sure a fintech company is attacking the problem …

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Vince Passione, CEO of LendKey, on digital network lending 35:38

5M ago35:38

35:38

One of the big challenges for community banks and credit unions is that they often have a very concentrated base of customers. The vast majority of their accounts could be with people and businesses within a 100-mile radius. While setting up digital tools can allow these banks and credit unions to expand beyond their home base, this comes with a lo…

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Shensi Ding, CEO of Merge, on building the leading unified API platform 30:48

5M ago30:48

30:48

Most fintech companies, and increasingly banks, rely on API integrations to run their business. Yet, building and maintaining these integrations can be time consuming and complex, particularly when it is only a part of what an engineering team does. Today, you can outsource these integrations to companies that specialize in this type of connectivit…

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Fintech Revealed: Earned Wage Access with Clair and Gusto 41:09

5M ago41:09

41:09

Welcome back to the occasional series on the podcast called Fintech Revealed. This is a sponsored show where we take a deep dive on one topic with a couple of industry experts. Today, we have Nico Simko, CEO and Co-Founder of Clair and Dan Loomis, the General Manager and Head of Product for the Money Group at Gusto. The topic we are doing a deep di…

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John Mitchell, CEO of Episode Six, on next generation payments infrastructure 32:27

5M ago32:27

32:27

There are not many US-based fintech companies that are global from day one. Nearly every company starts in the domestic market, gets established and after a few years starts looking at overseas markets. That was not the case for today's podcast guest. My next guest on the Fintech One-on-One podcast is John Mitchell, the CEO and Co-Founder of Episod…

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Simon Taylor, Head of Strategy & Content at Sardine, on a framework for AI Agents 38:12

5M ago38:12

38:12

Most of us have heard the term "AI agent" but it is only the minority of banks and fintechs that have done any kind of implementation. This is partly because it is not a trivial task and there are real risks to getting this wrong. What is needed is some kind of framework that helps reduce these risks and provides best practices for implementing AI …

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Andrew Jamison, CEO of Extend, on building a more flexible spend management platform 37:58

5M ago37:58

37:58

Many of us have used virtual credit or debit cards and haven't given them a second thought. In today's world of contactless payments, there is no difference between a virtual and physical card. But a virtual card is actually a piece of software and as such it can be programmed to act in very specific ways. My next guest on the Fintech One-on-One po…

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Jerry Tylman, Founder of the Fraud Red Team, on the gaps in fraud detection systems 35:36

6M ago35:36

35:36

Every bank and fintech company has a suite of anti-fraud tools that they use to keep the bad guys out. Few tools are 100% effective, however, and often the implementation of these tools, along with their interfaces with other system leave gaps. And the fraudsters will exploit these gaps. So, how do you get a holistic view of your anti-fraud arsenal…

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Sophia Goldberg, CEO of Ansa, on building a stored value wallet as a service 31:37

6M ago31:37

31:37

Everyone in fintech knows about the Starbucks reloadable wallet. It has become wildly successful for Starbucks, to the extent that they now have over $1.6 billion in balances on these wallets. Now, Starbucks has unique scale that made this kind of tech investment feasible. But I have been wondering for many years why so few corporations have copied…

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Mike Butler, CEO of Grasshopper Bank, on growing a BaaS and digital bank 34:23

6M ago34:23

34:23

Every bank that decides to get into the Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) space already has an existing legacy business. Most of those legacy businesses have very little crossover with fintech and BaaS, so internally at the bank, there is a completely new skill set that needs to be developed. But then there are those banks that were born digital and for …

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Gaurav Sharma, CEO of Capitalize, on making retirement savings easier 35:48

6M ago35:48

35:48

If you have ever tried to rollover a 401(k) from a previous job you know what a painful process that can be. Another big problem with 401(k)s is that many people will move jobs and ultimately forget about their old 401(k). Both of these problems are hurting people trying to maximize their wealth in retirement. Enter Capitalize. My next guest on the…

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Jason Mikula of Fintech Business Weekly on the development of banking-as-a-service 43:12

7M ago43:12

43:12

In the last year I don't think there is any area of fintech that has received more attention than the Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) space. And it is not just the Synapse debacle, it is all the consent orders that have come out of the bank regulators. We have a banking system that pretty much demands that fintech companies partner with banks and we ar…

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David Baxter, CEO of Solutions by Text, on the growth of integrated text payments 33:58

7M ago33:58

33:58

While text is a big part of our daily communications most corporations, particularly those in financial services, use it sparingly. Why is that when texting gets many times the engagement of email? We explain why in this interview. But this is all changing, in large part due to the work of my next guest on the Fintech One-on-One podcast. Dave Baxte…

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Daragh Murphy, CEO of Imprint, on creating a new tech stack for co-branded cards 38:02

7M ago38:02

38:02

The co-branded credit card space is a mature market. Chase and American Express have large deals with airlines and hotels as well as the likes of Amazon and Disney. These are typically huge programs with not just millions but tens of millions of customers. But what about those Fortune 500 companies that are not big enough for Chase or Amex but stil…

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Karen G. Mills of Harvard Business School on the state of U.S. small business 36:35

7M ago36:35

36:35

Despite the challenges and the obvious risk of failure, Americans are starting small businesses in record numbers. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well but the difference today is that the tools have become so much better. And they are going to continue to improve, particularly as small business owners start taking advantage of the latest A…

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Nelson Chu, CEO of Percent, on riding the private credit wave 35:54

8M ago35:54

35:54

In an article last year, the International Monetary Fund said that the global private credit market topped $2.1 trillion globally in 2023, with 75% of that in the U.S. That number has been rising rapidly for many years as more companies look beyond banks and the public debt markets to raise capital. Along with this rise in private credit, some fint…

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Alex Bradford, CEO of Rain, on why earned wage access is becoming a must-have 37:22

8M ago37:22

37:22

The earned wage access (EWA) space is maturing and now has some players that are getting real scale. In many industries, it has gone from a curiosity to a must-have for employers. As the space scales, there are bigger questions in play. How can we ensure that all salaried workers have access to this innovative product, so they don't need to provide…

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Don Muir, CEO of Arc, on bringing technology to debt markets 32:08

8M ago32:08

32:08

Technology has impacted so many areas of lending but one niche that has remained a manual, human-powered process is middle market lending, where deals are typically $5 million to $100 million. These deals have been consummated on the golf course or at expensive dinners after often months of analysis and negotiation. That is not an efficient way to …

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Adrian Nazari, CEO of Credit Sesame, on giving consumers deep insights into credit behavior 34:25

8M ago34:25

34:25

If there is one thing that the last decade of fintech innovation has achieved, it is more awareness around consumer credit scores. The majority of the population know their approximate score and even teenagers are talking about it. For better or worse (I think it almost uniformly positive) consumers look at the score as a measure, maybe even the me…

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Kyle Mack, CEO of Middesk, on creating a modern business identity platform 33:44

9M ago33:44

33:44

Small business data is very different to consumer data. When a person is born, they don't need to go and open a bank account, obtain a line of credit or apply for some kind of permit. But a business may be three days old and want all those things. This creates a data challenge. This new business has little to no digital footprint and so the availab…

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Carlo Kobe, CEO of Fizz, on building a great financial app for college students 35:18

9M ago35:18

35:18

[Editor's note: This is our last podcast of 2024. We are taking two weeks off and will be back on January 9. Happy Holidays everyone!] The 20 million college students in the US today, while a vast market that is somewhat homogenous, has not been a focus for many banks or fintechs. Since the Card Act in 2010, credit card issuers have not been able t…

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Yaacov Martin, CEO of Jifiti, on building embedded lending programs for banks 34:06

9M ago34:06

34:06

When it comes to embedded lending, point of sale is really where the action is at. We have seen the explosion of BNPL volume over the last decade, but not every point-of-sale transaction is suitable for those platforms. Then we have banks, who have missed out on the credit card volume that has been lost to BNPL. Ideally, they would like to embed a …

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Romi Savova, CEO of PensionBee, on bringing innovation to retirement savings 35:05

10M ago35:05

35:05

There is a looming retirement crisis in the US and in many other countries for that matter. A large portion of the population has no retirement savings at all and will have to rely primarily on social security for their retirement income, and the future of that program is shaky at best. In fintech, not a lot of attention has been paid to this huge …

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Fintech Revealed: Cash Flow Underwriting with Kevin Moss and Alex Johnson 54:45

10M ago54:45

54:45

Welcome to a new occasional series we are doing on the podcast called Fintech Revealed. This is where we take a deep dive into one specific topic with a couple of industry experts. In our first episode we are focused on one of my favorite topics: cash flow underwriting. I invited two of the leading credit experts, Kevin Moss and Alex Johnson, to pr…

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Armen Meyer on the impact of the new Trump Administration on fintech and banking 39:42

10M ago39:42

39:42

[Editor's note: This interview was recorded on November 13 and in the fast-moving transition to a new administration, some items discussed here as possible or unlikely have already come to pass.] The new Trump Administration is going to have a dramatic impact on leadership at Federal banking regulators as well as on the new rules impacting fintech.…

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Veetahl Eilat-Raichel of Sorbet on creating a lending business built around Paid Time Off 34:51

10M ago34:51

34:51

The consumer lending space has seen a great deal of innovation in the past decade or more. But the number of completely new lending concepts that cross my desk has reduced to a trickle in the past couple of years. That is why I was excited to see an idea that was completely original and compelling. My next guest on the Fintech One-on-One podcast is…

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Zack Miller of Tearsheet on creating a leading fintech media company 34:39

10M ago34:39

34:39

When you have been covering fintech as long as I have you get to know others in the space doing similar things. Zack Miller, the founder and managing editor of Tearsheet, was writing about fintech and interviewing people as I was getting serious about fintech lending back in 2012. Since I no longer own a fintech media company, we are no longer comp…

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Michael Praeger of AvidXchange on building the leading accounts payable automation platform 38:56

11M ago38:56

38:56

Account payable automation software is one of those areas of fintech that doesn't get as much coverage as it should. Creating an efficient accounts payable system is a pain point for pretty much every company, but particularly for those businesses occupying the middle market. This is the opportunity that our guest today seized upon when starting hi…

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Zuben Mathews of Brigit on building sustainable financial health at scale 30:22

11M ago30:22

30:22

While there are tens of millions of Americans still struggling with their financial health the reality is that fintech is starting to have a significant impact here. Some companies are reaching scale and are helping those people living paycheck to paycheck save huge amounts of money in aggregate particularly when it comes to punitive bank fees. My …

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Roberto Salcedo of Baubap on providing short term unsecured loans in Mexico profitably 29:21

11M ago29:21

29:21

Imagine serving unsecured consumer loans to a population that has no credit file and no banking activity whatsoever. This population primarily uses cash and operates outside of the traditional financial system. Is it even possible to serve this population with short-term loans profitably? My next guest on the Fintech One-on-One podcast is Roberto S…

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Christian Widhalm of Bloom Credit on building new credit data infrastructure 34:09

11M ago34:09

34:09

Despite all the advances in fintech lending, the way data has been furnished to the credit bureaus has remained largely unchanged for several decades. We still operate on a 30-day payment cycle with no allowance for real time data. Not to mention all the recent credit innovations such as BNPL and short-term cash advances. This is about to change. M…

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Sarah Biller of Fintech Sandbox on the critical importance of data access for fintech startups 31:20

12M ago31:20

31:20

When you think about it, most, if not all, fintech innovation comes via the analysis and application of data. And financial services is more data-dependent now than at any time in its history. But this creates a challenge for brand new startups. How do you get access to data when all you have is an idea? Enter Fintech Sandbox. My next guest on the …