Fintech Impact

In this episode of Fintech Impact, host Jason welcomes back repeat guest Trevor Greenway, the founder of interVal. Trevor discusses how interVal's software platform assists financial advisors, accountants, and other professionals in valuing businesses. The platform provides estimates of business value, guides clients in the right direction, and helps them optimize their largest asset.Episode Highlights 02:36: Jason inquires about the process of business valuation for financial advisors and others who want to help clients determine their business's worth.03:57: The conversation highlights the crucial aspects of raising awareness among business owners, enabling advisors to add value, and ultimately working together to create a well-planned and cohesive future. interVal's automated discovery process plays a pivotal role in achieving these goals.04:19: Jason emphasizes that conveying the value of something is one aspect, but explaining the reasons behind its value and providing strategies for improvement is even more significant.06:02: The discussion delves into the nuances of enterprise value growth and highlights the importance of understanding and optimizing value drivers beyond simple top-line revenue increases.14:15: Trevor highlighted the importance of focusing on optimizing business health and informed decision-making for business owners.20:49: interVal is actively navigating the dynamic landscape of technological adoption and increasing business owner expectations. 3 Key PointsJason and Trevor's conversation highlights the power of understanding "why" and "how" in addition to the value of data-driven insights. It also underscores the critical role advisors play in leveraging these insights to guide business owners toward growth and improvement.The discussion emphasizes interVal's flexibility in valuation frequency and data integration, highlighting the platform's ability to accommodate partners' preferences while delivering valuable insights for making informed decisions.Trevor highlighted the complexity of business valuations and how various factors can influence the perceived value of a business.Tweetable Quotes"While valuation is a methodology, the true focus is on enhancing visibility into the business's health and performance." - Trevor Greenway"Understanding the value drivers behind the valuation is more crucial than the valuation itself." - Trevor Greenway"The frequency of valuation updates doesn't necessarily lead to dramatic changes in valuation results." - Trevor Greenway"By automating certain aspects of discovery, advisors can focus on delivering true value to business owners, helping them hit milestones, achieve goals, and mitigate risks." - Trevor GreenwayResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInPodcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Jud Mackrill, co-founder of Milemarker & Mammoth, who has been on the show before. The discussion centers around the challenges related to data and data management in the industry. For the past 15 years, many conferences have complained about the quality of data, its location, and how it's often siloed. Jud is working on a solution to address these issues.Episode Highlights 0:56: The company's main goal is to address issues related to connectivity, integration, and operational efficiency for firms that may not have the resources to specialize in these areas due to their focus on taking care of their clients' needs.01:40: Jason and Jud discuss the challenges faced by average RAs (Risk Analysis) depending on their size.06:27: Jud emphasizes that Milemarker's goal is not to compete with internal teams but to assist and augment their efforts.08:30: Milemarker helps integrate data and information so that when the Home Office receives requests from the field, they are intelligent and specific to the unique office or role making the request.16:37: Mammoth is an opportunity to modernize and streamline the process of handling alternative investments.19:54: Mammoth offers a single pane of glass solution that integrates with various technologies used by wealth management firms. The platform helps advisors manage alternative investments more efficiently and addresses the complexities involved in handling such investments for clients.21:45: The guest emphasizes the importance of having professional-grade software and processes to support technology and compliance efforts, especially as more firms transcend into becoming media and technology companies alongside their core service offerings.24:19: Being data-driven and having a clear point of view can provide a significant advantage to companies in the long run.3 Key PointsJud describes their approach to the consulting process, which involves writing a plan and designing how the data management and integration should work.Jud explains some of the quick wins and secondary wins that their consulting services provide to their clients.While technology can support the advisor-client relationship, the human element of personalized service will always be essential and cannot be fully scaled.Tweetable Quotes"As for the benefits of the consulting process, once the data challenges are identified and understood, the firms can leverage the solutions provided by Milemarker to improve data connectivity, integration, and operational efficiency." – Jud"It's very common for technology teams to be consumed with daily operational tasks and support, leaving little time for strategic planning and comprehensive data management." – Jud"A study by Fidelity, which found that many firms are acquiring other companies with clients that don't generate profits for the acquiring firm." - JudResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorPodcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Philipp Hecker, CEO of Bento Engine. It is a cutting-edge content and conversation system designed for financial advisors. The system's primary goal is to assist financial advisors in cultivating stronger client relationships and expanding their businesses.Episode Highlights 0.49: Bento Engine aims to help advisors focus on crucial moments in their clients' and prospects' lives. It operates as a B2B SaaS solution, integrating with widely used CRM systems through APIs.2.05: During his time at JP Morgan's Wealth Planning and Advice unit, Phil witnessed the power of comprehensive advice in action. This unit included various financial planning teams across JP Morgan's private bank, broker-dealer business, and TRACE network.5:30: As per Jason, some advisors opt to limit the number of households, they serve to provide high-level service, which may restrict their income potential. This approach often leaves the bottom end of their client base underserved.13.41: Bento Engine triggers opportunities for gifting and personalization, and it often leads to fulfilment needs and product opportunities. Bento Engine is delighted to see the various directions that clients take in utilizing the platform's opportunities for the benefit of all involved parties.15.06: By avoiding the need for a separate login or app, Bento Engine becomes a background system that enhances the CRM experience and provides advisors with timely opportunities and materials. 19.40: AI language is an inefficient form of communication, and understanding clients' needs and concerns requires empathy and expertise.3 Key PointsBento Engine serves as a tax solution that integrates with popular CRM systems, making it the central hub of client-centric technology for advisors. By mining and leveraging client data, advisors can shine during crucial moments that matter in their clients' lives. Jason envisions that users of Bento Engine can use the triggered events to initiate other workflows, allowing for customized touchpoints with clients.It's crucial to strike the right balance between AI-driven automation and the personalized human touch to ensure a successful and ethical implementation of AI technology in the financial advisory space.Tweetable Quotes"Many financial advisors talk about providing holistic advice but may not consistently deliver it across their entire client base. Bento Engine aims to address this opportunity by providing a technology-driven solution that allows advisors to offer comprehensive advice consistently and efficiently to all their clients and prospects." - Philipp"Bento Engine sees the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models to unlock valuable insights from unstructured data within CRM systems." - Philipp"AI will not replace financial advisors; instead, it will make them more efficient, effective, and capable of serving more clients." - PhilippResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInPodcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Jacob McGraw from Sikka.ai, a fintech company specializing in API platform services for dental support organizations (DSOs). DSOs are large firms that operate numerous dental practices. Jacob discusses Sikka.ai’s innovative underwriting methodology for insurance companies and explains the company's value proposition. Episode Highlights 01:00: Jacob explains the operations of Sikka.ai The company collects data from dental practices to underwrite life insurance applicants. 03:13: The company's API platform integrates with over 92% of the practice management systems used by these dental clinics, making it easier for DSOs to manage their operations.04:45: Jacob highlights the power of taking data from oral health practitioners since oral health often serves as an indicator of other medical issues.07:12: The current reliance on self-reported information in traditional underwriting can lead to inaccuracies and misclassifications. With Sikka.ai’s dental data integration, these issues can be addressed, leading to a more accurate assessment of risks, especially related to smoking habits.08:56: Jason and Jacob discuss how the fear of rejection has created a negative stigma around insurance applications.10:50: Jacob provides a practical example of how the risk model is used to differentiate risk within different preexisting conditions.17:10: The real-time data sources and API platform provided by the company are relatively new and novel to insurance companies, which are typically not accustomed to real-time processes.3 Key PointsJason and Jacob discuss the novelty of using dental data for insurance underwriting and acknowledges the value of alternative data sources in the insurance industry.The significance of dental data in insurance underwriting lies in its ability to offer valuable insights throughout an individual's life, regardless of their age or prior oral health practices.Jacob explains how their focus is on improving the underwriting process by reducing the need for additional tests and enhancing the speed and accuracy of risk assessment.Tweetable Quotes“Sikka.ai utilize two main products for this purpose. The first product includes indicators for pre-existing conditions like tobacco use, kidney disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, etc. Among these, the tobacco indicator is the most crucial, providing significant protective value per hit from exam one. The second product is mortality risk scores for life insurance underwriting, powered by procedure codes and the frequency of dental procedures performed per calendar year. These procedures help assess and understand mortality risks for potential life insurance applicants.” – Jacob“Data can be viewed as Swiss cheese, with holes representing missing or incomplete information.” – Jacob“Starting from a certain point in technology often influences a country's willingness to embrace new advancements.” - JasonResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – Sponsorhttps://sikka.ai/Podcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Jay Goodis, the CEO of Tax Template Sync, a software designed to help advisors in Canada assess different tax scenarios for their clients. The software allows users to analyze current tax situations, run test scenarios, and optimize tax strategies.Episode Highlights01:57: Jay explains that the genesis of the company was driven by the need to save time and improve efficiency.02:23: While working in public practice, Jay constantly sought ways to be more efficient and identified opportunities to develop software solutions for the complex challenges faced by professionals in the wealth management industry.03:40: Jay explains that when assessing tax outcomes, it can be done from both a corporate and personal perspective. From a personal perspective, individuals can download tax tables from their websites to determine their marginal tax rate.05:52: Jason explains that individuals at the lower end of the income spectrum may face high marginal tax rates due to clawbacks, such as the guaranteed income supplement, which effectively results in close to 70% taxation.11:14: Taxes can be perceived as both simple and complex, depending on individuals' level of understanding and experience.11.38: Jason raises a concern about the perception of taxes being simple or complex. He mentions two categories of people: those who believe taxes are simple because they use tax software without fully understanding the complexities and those who recognize the complexity.18:22: The software developed is primarily used for personal tax planning and corporate tax planning with shareholders, says Jay.19:38: The lack of software dedicated to anything outside of financial planning and investment in this industry is horrible.29:43: Jay discusses the importance of simplifying the tax code and the challenges faced in finding professionals with expertise in tax and programming. 3 Key PointsJason and Jay discuss the impact of government benefits and income testing on tax calculations. Jason mentions that in the US, these are referred to as phase-outs, where entitlements are based on income and may result in different calculations.Jason shares his perspective on the challenges faced by business owners who often have surprise tax bills at the end of the year.Jason and Jay discuss the use cases and value of software in the financial planning industry, particularly in the areas of personal tax planning and corporate tax planning with shareholders. Tweetable Quotes“Many advisors focus on corporate tax and personal tax, so that's where most users begin. They work with their clients to assess their tax situations and determine what deductions, credits, or planning strategies are available to optimize their tax outcomes.” – Jason“The software aims to address both the total tax amount and the cash flow implications for clients.” - Jay“There is a lot of time spent by me and my colleagues reading tax legislation, putting that tax legislation into an interface that's easier for others to understand and to keep it current.” - JayResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorPodcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Derek Notman, the founder and CEO of Couplr. It is a fintech company that provides a platform for people to find the right financial advisor for their needs. Jason mentions that he often gets pitched similar ideas, but he finds Derek's approach unique and effective. Derek explains that Couplr is focused on fixing lead generation in the financial advisory industry. He highlights that lead generation has been a personal frustration for him, and Couplr aims to address this issue. Episode Highlights01:08: Couplr is a platform that combines the concepts of eHarmony and Bumble. It focuses on facilitating connections between financial advisors and consumers based on the human elements and dimensions of the relationship.03:07: Early in his career, Derek joined New York Life and encountered the traditional methods of lead generation, such as cold calling, door knocking, and attending networking events like BNI meetings.12:02: Derek introduces the concept of warm inbound traffic, which refers to the existing pool of people actively searching for financial guidance.14:06: Derek further explains that Couplr empowers consumers by allowing them to research and get matched with an advisor when they are ready.17:21: Derek highlights the importance of providing valuable information and building trust with consumers before they even contact the advisor.34:20: Through the work at Couplr, Derek aims to break down the friction and barriers in the financial industry, enabling more advisors to help more clients.36:20: Derek shared his passion for fixing the issues surrounding money and improving financial outcomes for individuals and advisors. The conversation highlighted the complex nature of financial relationships and the significance of addressing them effectively.3 Key PointsDerek explains how Couplr's approach to lead generation is different from the traditional methods like SEO and paid ads. Derek explains the "bumble aspect" of Couplr, where consumers can explore the matches, read buyer reviews, visit websites, and check broker checks to gather more information about the advisors.By leveraging machine learning and AI, Couplr aims to continually improve its models and gather valuable data insights.Tweetable Quotes"The current process of finding a financial advisor is broken, as it fails to create a positive experience for both clients and advisors." – Derek"Couplr aims to help consumers find the best advisor based on shared human dimensions, commonalities, experiences, and philosophies." – Derek"By focusing on connecting consumers and advisors on a human level, Couplr offers a more targeted and effective solution." – Derek"Minimizing friction is crucial for adoption and user satisfaction." – Jason"Money is a powerful tool that people have access to, yet there is a lack of education and guidance in managing it effectively." - DerekResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – Sponsorhttps://www.couplr.ai/about-couplr/Podcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Rishi Khanna, CEO of StockTwits. It is a social media platform for the retail investing and trading community, known for inventing the cash tag. Rishi talks about his vision involving horizontal expansion to become a global platform and vertical expansion into diverse asset classes, while leveraging the culture of money and markets and the significance of live interactions.Episode Highlights01:00: StockTwits has expanded beyond U.S. stocks to cover Canadian equities, Indian equities, cryptocurrencies, and other assets.01:16: The company aims to provide a highly engaging place for global investors to connect, learn, and have fun while profiting.03:10: Rishi Khanna got involved with StockTwits in late 2019 after knowing the company for several years. He was invited to help build the next phase of StockTwits' vision, expanding its value to the investing community throughout the investing life cycle.03:35: Rishi mentions joining in January 2020 and how the world changed drastically during that time.04:07: Jason suggests having a dedicated social media outlet for a specific community of interest.06:08: Rishi discusses unlocking and utilizing unique data points, such as social sentiment data, trending activity data, and messaging bonds.07:37: Rishi highlights the importance of enriching the execution experience and providing a comprehensive toolset for users.08:57: Rishi discusses the challenges of the equity trading business model.10:26: Jason mentions the monetization strategy of advertising on the social media platform.20:45: The conversation touches on the introduction of trending streams and the importance of trust and quality conversations on the platform.22:20: Rishi Khanna expresses his wish to change the default position of cynicism and distrust in communications.3 Key PointsRishi talks about the importance of data and information in the investing life cycle.Rishi discusses the challenges of the equity trading business model, particularly in the US where it is highly commoditized and most big platforms offer free trading.Rishi explains how to facilitate and enable investors to explore and connect with different asset classes, find their tribes, engage in conversations, learn, and potentially build wealth.Tweetable Quotes"Equity trading is not a great business model. It's very hard to generate revenue to cover costs." - Rishi"We're expanding globally to become the go-to platform for the retail investing community. Launching in India is just the beginning." - Rishi"Our goal is to expand the asset classes and cater to the diverse interests within the investing and trading community. There are many micro-communities within this space." - Rishi"Changing things is a challenge... users hate change, especially if they've been using [the platform] for 10 plus years." - Rishi Khanna"We punch way above our weight class... getting to take on these challenges and problems every day is fun." - Rishi KhannaResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorStockTwits Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Brigit Carroll, the policy lead for the Americas at Wise. Wise is a company that has previously appeared on the show. Jason has invited Bridget to discuss the progress or lack thereof regarding open banking in North America. They discuss various topics related to cross-border payments, banking apps, and the challenges faced by the industry. Bridget emphasizes the need for transparency in pricing and reducing the cost of remittances. They also talk about the evolving narrative of fintech disruptors and the importance of collaboration within the payment ecosystem.Episode Highlights00:42: Bridget provides a recap of what Wise (formerly known as TransferWise) is all about. 01:18: Wise is a global payments company that focuses on providing the best solution for moving money across borders. 02:22: Open banking is seen as a crucial component of the overall modernization of the payment ecosystem in Canada. 08:33: Bridget emphasizes the importance of faster payments, stating that Canadians deserve it and it's not just a luxury. Failure to deliver on this promise would be detrimental to consumers and businesses during the cost-of-living crisis.11:26: Bridget emphasizes the importance of bringing Canada up to speed with the rest of the world.16:22: Canadian banks are not competitive and are expensive compared to other financial institutions globally. 18:06: There are long lead times for various initiatives, such as the retail Payments Activities Act, which is currently undergoing consultations. 27:10: Knowing that we are making a positive difference in the lives of millions of people around the world is incredibly rewarding. It's why we do what we do, and it's what keeps us motivated to continue pushing for better solutions and a more inclusive financial system, says Bridget.3 Key PointsBridget explains that payments modernization in Canada includes various aspects such as real-time payments, modern payment licensing through systems like RPAs (Request-to-Pay Agreements), open banking, and enabling fintech companies to access the payment system through amendments to the Canadian Payments Act.Jason highlights the frustration of waiting several days for a payment to clear and emphasizes that instant payments are crucial for individuals who cannot afford to wait for their paychecks or for small businesses seeking instant liquidity.Jason criticizes banks for their generic marketing approaches that fail to address individual needs.Tweetable Quotes"Canadian banks may strongly resist open banking, while noting that Europe has taken a legislative approach, and the United States has embraced free market capitalism." – Jason"Wise was the first non-bank to access the Bank of England's faster payment system, resulting in cost reductions for customers and significantly faster payment processing." - Bridget"Change needs to happen in collaboration with regulators and incumbents as well. It's not about disrupting for the sake of disruption, but it's about working together to create a better system." – BridgetResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorPodcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Giuseppe Stuto, co-founder and managing partner of 186 Ventures. It is a venture capital firm founded by former high-growth tech executives themselves. They have been there, and they know how to advise people who are going through that same journey. Giuseppe explains that their criteria for investing in a company involve evaluating founder market fit, the competence and unique positioning of the founders, their understanding of the problem, and their passion and motivations for building the business.Episode Highlights:00:47: Giuseppe Stuto says that they are at an early stage precede and seed venture capital firm. So, they typically invest at the earliest stages. There may or may not be a company incorporated or maybe a business already with over $1,000,000 in annual revenue, but primarily invests in the US primarily in the Northeast.01:43: Giuseppe shares how he and his best friend started angel investing. 07:25: As per Giuseppe for the most part, they make sure that they leave that initial meeting with two or three ways they can begin to provide value to that founder.10:04: The investors focus on connecting companies with key team members and leveraging their extensive network of technical and industry experts to provide support and value to the companies they invest in.11:57: Giuseppe emphasizes their role in assisting founders by aligning their goals, providing insights, and offering support through various programs tailored for founders and operators.15:08: Giuseppe acknowledges that building an unsustainable model can be challenging to unwind, particularly in times of high cost of capital. 21:29: It's crucial to have a deep understanding of the local market when making investment decisions or implementing business strategies.24:19: In the context of early-stage startups, the definition of "early stage" typically refers to the initial stages of a company's development, usually up until the Series A funding round.3 Key Points:Giuseppe shares how in early 2019, the brand was founded and then in fall of 2021, they started investing out of their first institutional vehicle.Giuseppe talks about the 4 pillars that they consider when deciding upon investment.Jason expresses the desire to discuss the investments made in the fintech sector and asks Giuseppe to provide details about the companies they have invested in and what attracted them to those companies.Tweetable Quotes:"Never before was there more of a time where founders should partner. With firms that actually have institutional know-how and being able to build companies themselves." - Giuseppe Stuto"In mid 2021, later on the peak actually where many funds were coming to market, new ones particularly we decided to institutionalize our platform and raise our first fund vehicle, which is a $37 million fund today." - Giuseppe Stuto"The experience of having been there and done, that's incredibly valuable, but there's also an underlying thesis to the investments." - JasonResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedInWoodgate.com – SponsorPodcast Editing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason talks to Jennifer Thomas, Director of Business development for XLR8. It is a well-known financial advisor CRM tool that is built over top of the Salesforce Platform. XLR8 is an overlay or custom version of Salesforce. Jennifer explains that they use all the power and strength and a wonderful thing that Salesforce offers, and then they came out-of-the-box with a fully customized version specific to the finance sector. Episode Highlights:01:19: Jennifer talks about the history of XLR8. How did it come to be and how does it evolve?03.20: Within XLR8 what we are doing is providing the out-of-the-box solution that is able to be and still intended to be sort of further customized, says Jennifer. 07:17: Jennifer explains how they are a little bit different in the Salesforce space and that they are not a transactional relationship. They don't just sell you licenses and then sort of move on.08:43: Jennifer explains how keep updating the system as per process and industry changes.10:17: Jennifer shares how filling gaps is something that they work with the different educational series that they provide.10:57: Jennifer thinks more from a relationship point of view. She doesn't think about business workflow enablement. 12:40: Sort of mathematics in your mind doesn't always go there with technology, says Jason.15:01: Jennifer is currently at a place where her successful business basically caters to the financial advisors.16:13: To sort of filter and disseminate information to our clients of what impacts them, what matters to them, what's important to them, what's useful to them, that is something that we have sort of taken on our shoulders, says Jennifer. 23:08: One of the things that often shocks advisors is the transition cost from CRM to CRM. Jennifer shares what people can expect when they are moving to any CRM. 24:17: Big data is the most valuable part of your business. It is everything, it's every note. It's everything about your clients.28:06: The support in Salesforce is largely handled through DIY stuff on their very good learning systems.30:31: There is some saying about lesson learned or once the lesson is better learned once you have experienced it.3 Key Points:Jennifer explains how the user journeys and the product itself are informed by the user's journey.As per Jennifer a lot of firms don't always investigate the full breadth or depth of the technology they have.Jennifer says that their focus is to make sure that they are an ongoing partner, and their clients are able to and open to and know that they can kind of come knock on their door anytime to ask questions and look for ideas. Tweetable Quotes:"If you are willing to invest the time and effort into the customizations of building your entire practice into Salesforce, you can spend a lot of time on a lot of money, but also get a lot of utility out of it not everyone is built for that." - Jason "You could get into some really deep things, but there are also a ton of really some little things that can be done in the system that takes essentially time really adds time back to somebody that's doing those things manually or kind of doing those things in a repetitive way." - Jennifer"Leveraging a best-in-class platform in a unique vertical which is a great trend and bright place to be as a good, sweet spot." - JasonResources Mentioned:Facebook – Jason Pereira's FacebookLinkedIn – Jason Pereira's LinkedIn Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.