We Asked, They Answered: Best Advice From Fintech Leaders
The Southeast’s business landscape is full of major FinTech players like First Data, WorldPay, Global Payments, TSYS, Equifax, NCR, Incomm, and Corpay. But it has also been fertile ground for the next generation of FinTech players, from unicorns AvidXchange in North Carolina and Greenlight in Atlanta to fast-growing startups that have launched since the pandemic.
While the region has been home to many FinTech success stories, success is hard to come by in the industry. FinTechs are building in a highly regulated industry and are often navigating long sales cycles with enterprise clients.
So we asked founders, CEOs, and business leaders who are currently in the trenches building in the FinTech space one question: What advice would you give to other people trying to build in the Fintech space? Their answers could help other founders grow.
We Asked, They Answered: What’s one piece of advice you’d share with fellow FinTech leaders?
Luis Andino, Founder of Ditch
Ditch helps people reduce the psychological stress that burdens millions of Americans struggling with debt.
Andino’s Advice: “Obsess over your customer's problem. Understand it deeply, then systematically chip away at solving it.”
Joshua Silver, Founder and CEO of Rainforest
Rainforest, an embedded payment provider purpose-built for software platforms, has raised $31.75 million in venture capital in less than a year.
Silver’s Advice: “Fintech has zero room for error and fintech founders need to be obsessed with quality. If a fintech company doesn’t get the small details right, customers won’t (and shouldn’t) trust them with the big things. Building an MVP in fintech is harder and more resource-intensive than building an MVP in almost any other industry because in fintech, the MVP has the same regulatory and compliance requirements as the fully-formed product and the MVP needs to be correct 100% of the time. Fintech founders need to be prepared for a long build, because even the MVP needs to be fully-baked.”
Harry Kumar, Head of Business Development at Chattanooga-based Approva
Approva is an AI-driven B2B SaaS platform that seamlessly connects alternative mortgage lenders and brokers, managing the full sales cycle from origination to funding. A graduate of Techstars, Approva is building in Chattanooga's Brickyard.Kumar's Advice to Fintech founders: "Present your industry vision directly to potential customers to refine your product roadmap. Gathering more data points aligns your ideas with the needs of your audience. Founders often become overly optimistic about their product without validating customer interest. Months later, they launch their product, only to find lower demand than anticipated. While you may be a domain expert in your industry, your customer knows best. Make them a part of your process."
Jack Markwalter, Co-founder and CEO of Viva Finance
VIVA has built the go-to financial services platform for the overlooked consumer. The startup, which launched in 2019, helps consumers take control of their finances through access to affordable loans and credit-building products.
Markwalter’s Advice: “You don’t need a perfect product when you launch. It’s better to launch quickly and accelerate your learning curve than to build what you think is the perfect product and delay receiving your first customer feedback.”
Sebastian Builes, Co-founder and CEO of Arcum
Arcum is a merchant revenue and retention platform that won the 2022 Innovation Challenge at Fintech South. The team has recently found a footing with a new customer base, banks looking to expand their revenue opportunities.
Builes’ Advice: “Don’t focus on the big accounts first. Figure out the kinks before going after enterprise customers.
