Wharton FinTech Podcast

Ryan Zauk sits down with Kai Cunningham, the youngest founding General Partner at Limited Ventures. Limited Ventures is a fund created alongside titans of industry like the Forbes & Rockefeller families, and counts numerous athletes and entertainers as LPs. Kai serves two critical roles: 1. Helping family foundations + institutions satisfy their Diversity and Inclusion Mandates without sacrificing returns 2. Bridging the gap between athletes/entertainers and the billionaire families of the world. He has helped over 100 athletes and entertainers participate in deals like Airbnb, SpaceX, Lime, Coinbase, Pinterest, Lyft, DapperLabs, Zilch, Kraken, and many more. They cover: - His wild journey from the DMV area to the trading floor of Goldman Sachs and Limited Ventures - Helping the "99%" of pro athletes invest like the 1% - The future of the athlete investor and why that’s a positive for culture - What fintech marketers need to know when working with celebs - The problem companies will face when deploying their DEI&I funds - His investment in UK BNPL Zilch - and much more Mentioned: Brandon Copeland: https://medium.com/wharton-fintech/nfl-star-penn-professor-brandon-copeland-tackling-financial-education-through-life-101-9482e4d461b8 Harlem Capital: https://medium.com/wharton-fintech/jarrid-tingle-managing-partner-of-harlem-capital-transforming-the-face-of-entrepreneurship-b8d97db9a94a -- For more Fintech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Ryan's Twitter: twitter.com/RyanZauk LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/wharton-fintech-club/

Gabriela Ariana Campoverde sits down with Nathaniel Harley, CEO and Co-Founder of MANTL, a software platform specializing in online account opening and deposit growth strategies for community banks and credit unions. Founded in 2016, MANTL has helped banks raise more than $1 billion in core deposits -- with the highest performing account opening solution on the market. This past spring, this fintech raised $40MM in a Series B round. MANTL is on a mission to expand access to financial services by challenging the cost structures of traditional banks with its robust APIs, conversion best practices, and seamless user experience. In this episode we discuss: - How MANTL’s platform serves thousands of Americans today - The negative impact legacy infrastructure has on the user experience for account holders, banks and credit unions - Why community banks and credit unions matter - Lessons learned from Nathaniel’s career at Spoon University - What’s next in the pipeline for MANTL - And much more! About Nathaniel Harley: Nathaniel Harley is the CEO and Co-Founder of MANTL. Prior to founding MANTL, Nathaniel served as COO of Spoon University, a food publication by and for college students. This was the first start-up which he joined and was backed by Techstars. MANTL is his second company with the accelerator. Before joining the start-up world, Nathaniel was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs. He is a graduate of Northwestern University, where he studied Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences. Nathaniel is passionate about building products that will help people. To follow him on Twitter visit twitter.com/nathanielharley. About MANTL: MANTL helps banks and credit unions grow deposits and streamline back-office tasks with an omni-channel account opening platform that integrates with their cores. For additional information on MANTL, please visit www.mantl.com | Twitter: twitter.com/mantl_tech For more FinTech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Gabriela’s Twitter: twitter.com/byGabyC Gabriela’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gcampoverde

In this content-rich episode, Ally McCloskey sits down with Stephany Kirkpatrick, Founder & CEO of Orum. Orum is building new and frictionless financial infrastructure to power smart, real-time, and fully-automated money movement across accounts, products, and financial institutions. Backed by Bain Capital Ventures, Inspired Capital, Homebrew, Acrew, Primary, Clocktower, Box Group, SVB Capital, AmEx Ventures, and an impressive angel network. Orum has 2 signature products in market: 1) Orum’s Foresight product is an ACH risk intelligence tool, which identifies and reduces ACH return risk and fraud before it occurs by pulling in extra data through partnerships with financial institutions. And 2) Orum’s Momentum product, which intelligently routes which payment rails a transaction should travel on given the financial institution’s preferences for speed and cost. Ally and Stephany discuss: - How Stephany’s background as a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and years of working at LearnVest and Northwestern Mutual exposed to her a ubiquitous market challenge - Stephany’s earliest steps when taking the plunge into starting a company - Why Orum started in stealth - The history of payment rails and infrastructure and why there is so much friction in the system - How the burden of ACH risk ultimately lands on the end user via nonsufficient funds and overdraft fees - Stephany’s advice on looking for stage-specific and sector-specific investors, but most importantly screening for good humans - The great recommendation she got from Satya Patel at Homebrew on hiring a Head of People early - Her impressive Whoop record - And a WHOLE lot more Stephany Kirkpatrick Stephany Kirkpatrick is a digital executive and seasoned entrepreneur with over 15 years experience in companies across a variety of industries, from startups to Fortune 100 corporations. Stephany founded Orum in 2019 on the belief that consumers should have immediate access to their money. Stephany is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ who’s spent the last decade building technology to optimize financial outcomes for Americans – first at LearnVest where she helped design its financial planning software and now at Orum. Orum is building new financial infrastructure that allows money to move immediately and automatically across accounts, products, and financial institutions. Stephany leads with strong core values and believes in diversity of thought and people. She is a mother of two young girls and actively participates in building a future that empowers women through her mentorship work. About Orum Orum is building the infrastructure for a frictionless financial system, powering smart, real-time money movement with proprietary intelligence. Enterprises partnered with Orum can stop spending time thinking about how to move money and focus on the simple question: how fast. Learn more at https://orum.io, and check out Orum's inclusion in the 2021 Forbes FinTech 50 list here: https://www.forbes.com/companies/orum/?sh=49118a29712a. -- As always, for more Fintech insights, please follow us below: WFT Blog: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Ally's Twitter: twitter.com/AllyMcCloskey LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/wharton-fintech-club/

In today's episode, Ryan Zauk sits down with Silicon Valley investor, entrepreneur, angel, community builder, and super-connector Brianne Kimmel. Brianne is the Founder of Worklife Ventures, a future of work-focused fund investing in the tools and services powering the next wave of work. Worklife is backed by a who's who of tech including a16z partners Marc Andreesen and Chris Dixon, Stewart Butterfield of Slack, the CEOs of Zoom and Cameo, the Co-Founder of Twitch, Alexis Ohanian, and many more! Her fund includes 6 unicorns - Webflow, Tonal, Hopin, Clubhouse, and former Wharton Fintech guests Pipe and Public. Business Insider also recently named Brianne a top angel investor that every startup should know. In today's episode, they discuss: - The rise of the 'solo capitalist' model - The transition from angel to VC - The booming creator economy, creator tools, and the future of work - Building "Stay at Home Valley" on Figma, and surprising Figma's CEO with it on a walk - Her investment and sourcing methodology through the lens of Pipe Webflow, and Hopin and much more! Brianne: briannekimmel.com Worklife: worklife.vc Building "Stay at Home Valley: https://wfh.substack.com/p/why-i-built-silicon-valley-in-figma For more Fintech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Ryan's Twitter: twitter.com/RyanZauk LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/wharton-fintech-club/

Miguel Armaza sits down with Salim Ramji, BlackRock Senior Managing Director and Global Head of iShares and Index Investments and a member of the firm’s Global Executive Committee. Founded in 1988, BlackRock is a global investment management firm and the world's largest asset manager, with almost $9 trillion dollars in AUM – and iShares is one of the largest ETF providers with almost $3 trillion dollars in AUM. In this episode, we discuss: - Salim’s exciting career. From microfinance in the mountains of Pakistan to the top of Wall Street in New York City. - Joining BlackRock and why he actually rejected Larry Fink’s first offer to join the firm. - The power of ETFs and Index Investing and why he considers Indexing to be one of the original Fintech innovations. - iShares and its incredible reach helping over 100 million investors from around the world. - The rise of robo-advisors and why asset managers should implement guardrails to offer investment products and capabilities that are good for the long term. - The rapid acceleration of ESG, Environmental, Social, and Governance ETFs and why Blackrock considers climate risks are investment risks that should be taken very seriously. - Leadership lessons and the power of leading through influence, collaboration, and forging alliances. - And a lot more! Salim Ramji Salim Ramji, Senior Managing Director, is Global Head of iShares and Index Investments for BlackRock and a member of the firm’s Global Executive Committee. Prior to his appointment to lead the ETF and Index Investments business in 2019, Mr. Ramji was Head of BlackRock's U.S. Wealth Advisory business where he was responsible for leading BlackRock's relationships with wealth management firms and platforms, for distributing BlackRock's alpha-seeking and iShares investment capabilities and for the adoption of BlackRock's portfolio construction and digital wealth technologies to financial advisors. Mr. Ramji joined BlackRock in 2014, serving initially as the Global Head of Corporate Strategy. Before joining BlackRock, he was a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company where he led the Asset & Wealth Management practice areas. He started his career as a corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions lawyer in London and Hong Kong. Mr. Ramji earned a bachelor's degree in economics and politics from University of Toronto, a law degree from Cambridge University and is a CFA charter holder. He is a trustee of Graham Windham, a New York-based child care agency. About iShares iShares unlocks opportunity across markets to meet the evolving needs of investors. With more than twenty years of experience, a global line-up of 900+ exchange traded funds (ETFs) and $2.81 trillion in assets under management as of March 31, 2021, iShares continues to drive progress for the financial industry. iShares funds are powered by the expert portfolio and risk management of BlackRock. About BlackRock BlackRock’s purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporate | Twitter: @blackrock For more FinTech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Miguel's Twitter: twitter.com/MiguelArmaza Miguel's Newsletter: https://bit.ly/3jWIpqp

Miguel Armaza sits down with Jarrid Tingle, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Harlem Capital, an early-stage, diversity-focused venture capital firm that was founded in 2015 with the specific mission to fundamentally change the face of entrepreneurship. Jarrid and team now manage a $174 million portfolio comprised of 61% Black or Latino led companies and 43% female-only led companies. Harlem Capital aims to invest in 1,000 diverse founders over the next 30 years. Jarrid is also a proud alum of our amazing Wharton School! In this episode, we discuss: - Jarrid’s background and how he and his co-founders raised Harlem Capital’s initial capital while in business school - The story behind Harlem Capital’s very own Harvard Business School case - Importance of backing founders that fundamentally can sell and are analytical - Their fintech outlook and why Jarrid is excited about the power of fintech to help supercharge eCommerce - Debunking the myth of the pipeline problem and why it’s really just about giving people access and opportunities - Why he’s hopeful but not satisfied with the progress of the VC and Tech industry as it relates to diversity - Biggest lesson he’s learned as an investor - And a lot more! Jarrid Tingle Jarrid Tingle is Managing Partner of Harlem Capital where he focuses on deal sourcing, organizational strategy, and due diligence efforts. Jarrid was featured on the 2019 Forbes 30 under 30 list, 2019 Inc. 30 under 30 list, and the 2018 Ebony Power 100 list. He received his MBA from Harvard Business School (HBS) in 2019 where he was a Baker Scholar (top 5% of class). During HBS, Jarrid was a fellow in the Robert Toigo Foundation and Management Leadership for Tomorrow MBA Programs. Previously, Jarrid was a Private Equity Investment Professional at ICV Partners. Prior to ICV, Jarrid was an Investment Banker in the Global Technology, Media & Telecommunications Group at Barclays. Jarrid graduated cum laude from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Economics and a Concentration in Finance. Jarrid was an active member of Friars Senior Society, Onyx Senior Honor Society, and The Lantern Senior Society. Upon graduation, Jarrid received the Wharton Undergraduate Dean’s Award for Excellence (Wharton’s highest honor). Jarrid’s favorite activities include reading, weight training, traveling, and attending concerts. About Harlem Capital: Harlem Capital (HCP) is an early-stage, diversity-focused venture capital firm. HCP makes initial investments of $750k to $1.5mm in U.S. Seed rounds for 10%+ ownership. For more FinTech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Miguel's Twitter: twitter.com/MiguelArmaza Miguel's Newsletter: https://bit.ly/3jWIpqp

Ryan Zauk sits down with Jeff Seltzer, Managing Partner of Pierce Yates Ventures and former board member of the New York Angels. Pierce Yates provides early-stage funding and advice to emerging companies with a focus on fintech and sports tech. The NY Angels is an incredible collection of some of New York's titans across various industries, who get together to invest and advise companies. Jeff is a proud Wharton alum and in 2019 received the Alumni Award of Merit in recognition of his lifelong commitment and service to Penn. In today’s episode, they cover: - His long road to investing and why it can be advantageous to do a stint in DC politics - New York Angels 101 including how they’re structured, the companies they back, and how you can get involved - The ups, downs, and many misunderstandings of angel investing Jeff wants to clear up - What founders and investors need to think about at the start of around - His must-read angel resources And much more. NY Angels: https://www.newyorkangels.com/ Book Recs: https://gust.com/guide Jeff Seltzer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-seltzer-b4603744 -- For more FinTech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Ryan's Twitter: twitter.com/RyanZauk LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/wharton-fintech-club/

Ryan Zauk hosts legendary venture capitalist, billionaire, bitcoin investor, activist, and educator, Tim Draper. Tim Draper helps entrepreneurs drive their visions through funding, education, media, and government reform. His investments over the last few decades include companies like Baidu, Hotmail, Skype, Tesla, SpaceX, Robinhood, Twitter, Carta, Coinbase, and many more. He also is a large holder of bitcoin, having bought 50,000+ bitcoin when it was priced below $1,000. Draper Associates: draper.vc DFJ: https://www.dfj.com/ Website: timothydraper.com Book: https://www.amazon.com/How-Startup-Hero-Textbook-Entrepreneurs-ebook/dp/B078HWH29T They discuss: - His bullish views on bitcoin and the 1 reason he will never sell - His investment in Robinhood, Carta, and others - His very strong libertarian views and why he believes in minimal government, which ties into his bitcoin thesis - Why the Mt Gox hack improved his belief in bitcoin - His thoughts on the current state of China and where it’s headed - And a fun rapid-fire round including the first bank branch in space and his updated bitcoin price target About Tim: Tim Draper is a prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist and founder of Draper Associates, DFJ, and the Draper Venture Network, a global network of venture capital funds. The firms’ investments include Baidu, Focus Media, YeePay, KongZhong, Skype, Hotmail, Tesla, SolarCity, Coinbase, Ledger, Robinhood, Athenahealth, Box, TwitchTV, SpaceX, Cruise Automation, Carta, Planet, PTC, and many others. Tim is a leading spokesperson for Bitcoin, Blockchain, ICOs, and cryptocurrencies. He won the US Marshall’s auction in 2014 (where he bid on 50,000 bitcoins) and invests in over 50 crypto companies as well as leads investments in Coinbase, Ledger, Tezos, and Bancor, among others. He created viral marketing, a marketing method for exponentially spreading an electronic service from customer to customer. Tim is regularly featured on major networks, in publications, and in social media as a proponent for entrepreneurship, innovative governance, free markets, and Bitcoin. He has received various awards and honors including the World Entrepreneurship Forum's "Entrepreneur of the World." He has also been highly ranked on several notable lists including one of the top 100 most powerful people in finance by Worth Magazine, the top 20 most influential people in Crypto by Crypto Weekly, #1 most networked venture capitalist by AlwaysOn, #7 on the Forbes Midas List, and #48 most influential Harvard Alum. In his mission to promote entrepreneurship, Tim created Draper University of Heroes, a residential and online school based in San Mateo, California, to help extraordinary people accomplish their life missions. School alumni have gone on to build 350 companies including crypto leaders, QTUM, Spacecash, DataWallet, and Credo. He also started Innovate Your State, a non-profit dedicated to crowdsource innovation in government; and BizWorld, a non-profit that teaches young children how business and entrepreneurship work. Tim is involved in California politics and education/organizations, having served on the California State Board of Education and starting a movement for local choice in schools that led to him becoming a proponent for a statewide initiative for school vouchers. He also led a statewide initiative to create competitive governance with Six Californias, followed by an initiative for Three Californias. Tim received a Bachelor of Science from Stanford University with a major in electrical engineering and a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School. He also has two honorary doctorates from The International University and Trinity College of Dublin. -- For more FinTech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Ryan's Twitter: twitter.com/RyanZauk LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/wharton-fintech-club/

Miguel Armaza sits down with Eric Dunn, CEO of Quicken, one of the largest personal finance software companies in the US with over 17 million clients and also one of the original fintech brands, launched over 30 years ago. In this episode, they discuss: - Eric’s career and why he decided to join Intuit in 1986 as employee #4! - Becoming an investor and reflections from the years he spent in Venture Capital + how it made him a better operator - Quicken’s journey and some of their challenges and reflections from 35+ years - Thought process behind Intuit’s decision to spin off Quicken - His management approach and frameworks to make strategic company decisions - Analysis of a fast-growing fintech space - And a lot more! Eric Dunn Eric has served as the CEO of Quicken Inc since 2016. He has been part of the Quicken business since its early days – he joined Intuit, Quicken’s previous owner, as employee #4 in 1986, when Quicken was the only Intuit software product. Over the course of his 20 years at Intuit Eric served as the CFO through the 1993 IPO and merger with ChipSoft (TurboTax); while he was CFO, he was also a software developer who worked on almost all of the early versions of Quicken; he was the first VP/general manager of the Quicken business; he was Intuit’s first CTO; and then led Intuit’s payments business during an additional tour of duty at Intuit in 2010-2015. Eric retired from Intuit in 2000 to pursue a second career in technology investing, first as an angel investor and then as a General Partner at Cardinal Venture Capital. Eric has served on the boards of directors of dozens of companies and organizations, including six public companies. Eric is married and has two children, both recently graduated from college and employed. In his free time, Eric plays tennis and squash and is a piano student. He is also a helicopter pilot and flies a Robinson R66. About Quicken Quicken is the #1 personal finance software in the US. For over 30 years, customers have relied on Quicken to manage all their finances, so they can lead healthy financial lives. In 2016, Quicken, formerly part of Intuit, became an independent company. Its desktop and cloud product suite includes a family of products that cater to different financial needs and device preferences — Quicken Starter Edition, Quicken Deluxe, Quicken Premier, and Quicken Home & Business, all of which can sync with Quicken's website and mobile apps — as well as Simplifi for mobile and web. Simplifi, named the "best budgeting app" by The New York Times' Wirecutter, is designed to help a new generation of mobile-first customers easily stay on top of their finances. Over 17 million people have used a Quicken product to manage their finances. Learn more at www.quicken.com.

Ryan Zauk sits down with world-renowned former GE CEO Jeff Immelt. Fresh off the release of his book, "Hot Seat: What I Learned Leading a Great American Company," Jeff comes on to discuss his career and legacy, as well as numerous topics ranging from China/US Relations to new fintech trends. Jeff joined GE after graduating from Harvard Business School and worked there for the next 35 (with 16 as CEO). Following the iconic tenure of Jack Welch, Jeff had a rocky road as CEO, losing billions in market cap and weathering numerous crises. Jeff has received merciless criticism from academics, execs, pundits, and more over the last decade, and has finally decided to share his side of the story. Ryan & Jeff touch on it in today's episode, but we highly recommend picking up Hot Seat as your summer read: Book Links: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Hot-Seat/Jeff-Immelt/9781982114718 https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Learned-Leading-American/dp/1982114711 Episode Breakdown: 4:25 His journey to the top of GE 7:50 The one thing Jack Welch did better than anyone 10:04 Why now was the right time to publish "Hot Seat" and what he learned 13:57 His thoughts on his legacy 20:24 His first day of work...September 10, 2001 24:46 His thoughts on globalization 27:40 China / US Relations and his advice for President Biden 33:23 GE Capital 101 and Fintech Trends He's Watching 41:56 His new role as a Venture Partner at NEA 44:37 A great rapid-fire round covering his exec dream team, his thoughts on 30 Rock, best business books, and more! 50:01 Why he has a tattoo of the GE logo Jeff Immelt is a Venture Partner at New Enterprise Associates (NEA), a global venture capital and private equity firm. He is the author of HOT SEAT, a memoir of leadership in times of crisis. Prior to joining NEA in 2018, Jeff was the 9th Chairman of GE and served as CEO for 16 years. He has been named one of the “World’s Best CEOs” three times by Barron’s. During his tenure as CEO, GE was named “America’s Most Admired Company” by Fortune magazine and one of “The World’s Most Respected Companies” in polls by Barron’s and the Financial Times. He has received fifteen honorary degrees and numerous awards for business leadership and chaired the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness under the Obama administration. Jeff has a B.A. degree in applied mathematics from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. from Harvard University. He is a member of The American Academy of Arts & Sciences. -- For more FinTech insights, follow us below: Medium: medium.com/wharton-fintech WFT Twitter: twitter.com/whartonfintech Ryan's Twitter: twitter.com/RyanZauk LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/wharton-fintech-club/