Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I’m Tearsheet editor in chief, Zack Miller. I’m joined today by the CTOs of Plaid and Brex. The successful fintechs that found early escape velocity did so by rapidly responding to their customers’ needs for complementary products and services. There are just a handful of companies that were able to do this – to go from 0 to 1 in a way that required massive scaling and building product platforms that can support this growth. And a lot of times that required scaffolding, deconstruction, and re-scaffolding while the growth engine is revving. Plaid’s Jean Denis and Brex’s Cos are two of the best in the business. I felt like this discussion was a masterclass in what it takes to lead tech and product teams at the highest level. Having both CTOs on the podcast was also interesting to see where they concurred with one another and where they departed. We discuss the biggest challenges they’ve learned in scaling and the organizational changes they’ve made to support different stages of their growth. We look at the acquisitions both companies made and how Brex and Plaid integrated new teams, technologies, and products. I ask both Cos and Jean Denis about their approach to talent and how their teams are organized to harness their people’s talents. Lastly, we drill down further into how their product planning and product pipelines work, and how both have evolved as their companies have grown. Here’s my conversation with the CTOs of Brex and Plaid. The big points * Lessons learned in scaling the team. * How did the team structure change over time? * Importance of domain expertise. * Integrating new talent into the company. * The evolution of the business model. * Thinking about product surface area. * Turning R&D budget into operating budget. * How far out does product planning go

It’s been a wild ride for mortgage lenders the past few years. With rates high, they’ve been primarily focusing on two things. The first is to cut costs – that can manifest in reduced headcounts, but mortgage lenders are also thinking about using technology smartly to do more with less. And for those lenders who’ve seen a cycle or two, they’re thinking about using technology strategically, too. It’s not just about efficiency – they know the cycle will turn back in their favor at some point, and will they be ready to scale when demand kicks back in? Will they be proactive about growth when things start ramping again? For this episode, I’ll be joined by Courtney Schaefer, COO of Draper and Kramer, a real estate firm that’s over 100 years old and one of the top 30 mortgage banks in the US. She’ll take us through how her firm is positioning itself to be ready for a mortgage rebound. She’s clearly looking at technology and data tactically – to reduce costs and increase efficiency – and strategically – to be able to grow smartly when the market dynamics shift. Also on this episode is John Hardesty, GM of Mortgage at Argyle, a leading provider of income and employment data that does deep work in financial services. I’m Zack Miller, Tearsheet’s editor in chief. Tearsheet has partnered with Argyle to create a four part podcast series that explores how different parts of the financial industry are using modern technology and access to new forms of data to power their businesses today and into the future.

Launching a card is such a core part of today’s financial services. Whether you’re an incumbent or a fintech, a card is likely – or will likely be – a cornerstone product in your portfolio and an important contributor to your revenue. What baffles me is that with all the new technology platforms, banking as s service, and experienced program managers, there’s still a gap for firms and entrepreneurs to really understand what goes into launching and managing a card. We wanted to shine some major light on the card launching process making it easier, smoother, and if things go right, more successful. And to do that, we enlisted some of the best fintech and financial services firms out there to talk about what they’ve learned launching and scaling card products. We turned to some of the top brands – like Wise and Dave – with millions of cards in their users’ hands. We also turned to the platforms and banks – firms like Cross River Bank and First National Bank of Omaha. And we talked to Galileo – the technology and processing platform powering the cards of many of today’s most popular fintechs. Thank you to Galileo, who has supported this project from the beginning. We appreciate your support and the work you do throughout the industry. This podcast mini-series is intended to help get your card launch right. One thing you’ll hear as we speak to some of the best in the industry is the need to plan well. It doesn’t mean you’ll get it right the first time around but at least you’ll have a way forward. We want you to know what’s ahead for you and ultimately to learn from some of the best and brightest around who’ve launched cards ultimately used by millions of people and companies. Learn from their battle scars and successes. This is the first of a three part series. To dive even deeper, I encourage you to download the guide we published incorporating all this inside information and more. To download your free guide, go to www.tearsheet.co/cardguide This first part of the series address all the planning that goes into ideating, creating, and launching a card. We address the following: *Introduction to the importance of launching and managing cards in financial services. *The need for understanding the card launching process and collaborating with partners. *Planning and the "why" behind launching a card, considering customer problems. *Different approaches to launching cards as strategic differentiators or add-ons. *Case studies from Wise, Bluevine, Dave, and their reasons for launching cards. *Understanding the differences between debit and credit cards and their implications. *Planning for the future of card programs and ecosystems. *The importance of testing, not rushing to market, and iterating. *The role of value proposition in connecting with a company's mission. *Differentiation through features surrounding the card and fulfilling customer needs.

Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I’m Tearsheet’s editor in chief, Zack Miller. In this podcast, I welcome Jonathan Valenti, a principal with Deloitte Consulting, who leads an offering at Deloitte called Customer, Experience, and Marketing Strategy, particularly in the context of financial services. Jon shares insights on evolving customer expectations, the importance of personalization, and the influence of experiences from other industries on financial services. We discuss the role of technology in meeting customer demands, including faster onboarding and the development of budgeting tools.  Jon also highlights the growing emphasis on equity and inclusion in financial services, addressing how institutions are striving to represent diversity in leadership and design more accessible services. We conclude with a discussion on recent market events and the impact on customer strategies, including the need for diversification and partnerships within the industry. This is part of a four part series we’re doing with Deloitte’s financial services leadership on the trends shaping our industry today and out into the future. Here’s my conversation with Jonathan Valenti.

Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I’m Tearsheet’s editor in chief, Zack Miller. Uneven market conditions nationally, rate volatility, economic uncertainty, affordability challenges, limited inventory, and soaring home prices are rendering a difficult home buying and refinancing market for Americans. BMO’s published a survey that reflects this strongly: The survey reveals that 64 percent of Americans are delaying their homebuying plans due to mortgage rate concerns - they are waiting for mortgage rates to drop. Additionally, only 6 percent of Americans plan to purchase a home this summer, as elevated rates and home prices impact affordability. Furthermore, among those planning to refinance, 81 percent are waiting for rates to drop. On this episode of the podcast, I’m joined by Tom Parrish, managing director of consumer lending product management at BMO. We talk discuss the impact high interest rates and economic uncertainty are having on consumer home buying and financing decisions and how BMO is responding to help its clients and prospects. Here’s my conversation with BMO’s Tom Parrish.

As lenders become increasingly digital, they need to continuously manage the tradeoff between making really smooth experiences for their customers with becoming targets for fraud.  Plus, marketing funnels aren’t monolithic – helping prospects move from kicking the tires to applying for a loan needs to be balanced with making sure lenders are attracting the right, profitable people. It doesn’t help anyone if a marketing funnel becomes overly optimized for an unprofitable customer.  There’s a new class of technologies  lenders use to more efficiently onboard new, profitable customers and make sure they are who they say they are. That’s helping lenders like Regional Finance, a $1.5 billion consumer lender, stay focused on its business. On this episode of the Tearsheet podcast, I’m joined by Chris Martin, Vice President, Head of Product Management, at Regional Finance.  Also joining us is Matt Gomes, GM of consumer lending and banking at Argyle, a leading provider of income and employment data that does deep work in financial services. I’m Zack Miller, Tearsheet’s editor in chief. Tearsheet has partnered with Argyle to create a four part podcast series that explores how different parts of the financial industry are using modern technology and access to new forms of data to power their businesses today and into the future.

Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I’m Tearsheet editor in chief, Zack Miller. Earned Wage Access has become an important value proposition for workers and many neobanks generally offer it. But for largest incumbent institutions, few do offer it and a lot of it has to do with the lack of regulatory clarity – each state has a different approach to it. But that’s changing. Nico Simko, CEO of Clair, joins me on the podcast to talk about the evolution of EWA and some of the recent legal moves some states have taken to clear things up. Clair is a free on-demand pay app for front line workers. In addition to drilling down on regulatory changes for earned wage access, we also tackle: ** Clair’s distribution strategy ** How the app helps people save money ** The mechanics of wage advance and how they work ** Clair’s fundraising history and where Nico wants to steer the firm in the future

Banking is undergoing deep changes. We’ve been tracking that. And ss consumers become increasingly open to new digital options, incumbent banks are feeling the pressure. It’s hard to innovate when you spend upwards of 70% of your budget maintaining legacy systems. But neobanks are also dealing with their own reckoning – we’ve moved beyond the days where we got excited about the overall headline customer numbers. As they mature, unit economics matter for these institutions if they want to compete for the long term. Frankly, it’s not easy and it’s expensive to build a lasting banking franchise. Deloitte’s Nick Cowell, Digital Banking Leader, joins me on this podcast to go deep into talking about the challenges banks face. As he explores some of the causes of customer attrition, for example, Nick defines the characteristics of the eventual winners in the digital banking market. For him, the banks that will lead in the future will become a multi-tenant or multi-product provider for their customer base. This is part of a four part series we’re doing with Deloitte’s financial services leadership on the trends shaping our industry today and out into the future. **The big ideas and questions** $ What are the key forces driving the evolution of digital banking? $ How digital banking is changing the landscape. $ Consumers openness and intentionality around digital tools. $ Challenges faced by the incumbents. $. Characteristics of the winners in the digital banking market. $. Buy vs. build. $. What is the definition of success? $. Future trends that will influence digital banking propositions. $. How will digital banks evolve from just a bank to a multi-product provider? Here’s my conversation with Nick.

Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I'm Tearsheet's editor in chief, Zack Miller. This episode is part of a special series on Gen Z and financial services. We're really trying to get to the bottom of this next generation. The eldest Gen Zer was born in the same year Instagram was founded. Gen Z has always lived in a world with social media. Surrounded by tech tools and platforms means reaching Gen Z constitutes a challenge for financial firms. The language and ways that worked on their parents probably won’t work on Gen Z. This calls for bringing new strategies, communication, and advertising into play in ways that resonate with this generation To dive deeper into how financial firms can better market to the younger demographic, I brought in two of my favorite people here to talk about this subject here. We've got CJ McDonald, founder of Step. and Ruben Salazar, who runs Visa Direct. We explore the following questions: * What makes this generation unique? * What kind of challenges does serving this generation raise for financial services? * What do some firms get wrong marketing to Gen Z? What are common mistakes? * How does this uniqueness impact your firm’s marketing? product development? * What brands do you look to outside of financial services that nail marketing to Gen Z? * How does your business serve Gen Z today? How do you market that? * What are you doing to serve them better in the future? How will you market that? Tearsheet thanks our sponsor Publicis Sapient for their ongoing support of this series. To download research reports into the opportunity to better serve this generation, go to www.steezlife.co

Hiring in this market is super competitive. Like consumers have grown to expect from the companies they buy from, the bar has been raised in the hiring process. Hiring managers need to create good experiences for candidates if they want to be competitive. They must combine good UX with a growing sensitivity to secure applicants’ personal and professional data, too.  This dynamic is particularly poignant in background checks. Top hiring firms work with Checkr to streamline hiring and also promote more fair hiring practices. That boils down to the data the firm collects and how it accesses and shares it.  On this episode of the Tearsheet podcast, I’m joined by Scott Melman, director of data acquisition at Checkr to discuss the trends afoot in background checks and how better data, data sharing, and data permissioning are leading to better practices, better outcomes, and fairer hiring practices all around. Also joining us is Justin Stolzenberg, GM in the background screening space at Argyle, a leading provider of income and employment data that does deep work in financial services. I’m Zack Miller, Tearsheet’s editor in chief. Tearsheet has partnered with Argyle to create a four part podcast series that explores how different parts of the financial industry are using modern technology and access to new forms of data to power their businesses today and into the future.