International Women’s Day: 5 Most Inspirational Women in Fintech

With more and more women working in fintech as leaders and founders, they are being looked upon as role models by everyone. Let’s look at some exceptional women playing a significant role in shaping the financial technology sector.

Fintech is a revolutionary industry that is rapidly changing the face of financial sector companies. However, the industry seems to underrepresent women in the workplace as well as in leadership roles. According to recent statisticsOpens a new window , women only represent 30% of the fintech workforce, and only 12% of fintech founders are women. Gender inequality is prevalent in every field. However, some women have broken the barriers and risen through the ranks of the fintech industry. We’ll look at the journeys of a few of them in today’s article.  

Kathryn Petralia, Co-Founder & President, KabbageOpens a new window

Kathryn PetraliaOpens a new window is an entrepreneur of distinction who co-founded Kabbage in 2008. The company uses an automated lending platform to lend money directly to small businesses and consumers.

Petralia’s career was shaped by technology, payments, and ecommerce. After earning a BA degree in English Literature from Furman University (1986-1992), she landed in the lending market in the late 90s. During this period, she launched and co-launched several startups, including Worthknowing.com, which was later sold to CompuCredit and TransUnion.

After co-founding Kabbage, Petralia realized that the industry has very few women, especially venture capitalists. Despite the odds, her “say yes” approach helped her climb the ladder of success and stand out as a leader for women across industries. She was ranked 98th by Forbes in its 2017 ‘Most Powerful Women in the WorldOpens a new window ‘ list.

Inspirational words:Opens a new window “There’s more we can do to create equality if we wanted to. It goes back to saying yes. If there’s something you want to do, figure out a way to do it.

Snejina Zacharia, Founder and CEO, InsurifyOpens a new window

Insurance can be complicated to understand – policies, deductibles, auto insurance, and premiums can confuse consumers. Citing these issues, Snejina ZachariaOpens a new window co-founded Insurify in 2013.

Zacharia has more than 20 years of experience in entrepreneurship. She has worked with several enterprise software and consumer internet companies. Before founding Insurify, Snejina was part of Gartner, where she established and grew three businesses. Each business earned millions of annual revenue across the U.S. and Europe/Middle East/Asia (EMEA). Zacharia holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management. It was at MIT that Snejina set the ball rolling for Insurify. Insurify is a virtual insurance platform that utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing (NLP) to streamline the ordeal of shopping for insurance. Setting up such a hi-tech platform to address insurance issues needs a lot of hard work, and Zacharia has worked with passion, humility, leadership, and a team-centric attitude to achieve this success. Inspirational words:Opens a new window “Never behave as the smartest person in the room because you may miss some of the best ideas.”

Adena Hefets, Founder & CEO, DivvyHomesOpens a new window

Buying a home in the infamously cold finance world is complex yet very personal. Adena HefetsOpens a new window had a bitter experience with the industry, so she decided to approach it with an open mind. Her parents were denied a mortgage when they tried to buy a home. Taking a leaf out of the story, she wanted to improve upon the home buying experience and make it accessible to everyone.

Thus, Divvy was founded to bring order to the rent-to-own process and make homes available to more people. Owning a home was once identified as an ‘American’s dream’ but is now at everyone’s fingertips with a platform like Divvy. Before founding Divvy Homes, Hefets led fintech investing practice at early-stage companies like DFJ. She started her career as an operator, being one of the early product managers at Square, where she helped build and grow Square Capital, a merchant cash advance platform with over $2.5B in loans outstanding.  Before becoming a product manager, she was part of the strategy & finance team at Square, which focused on corporate planning. Before joining Square, Hefets was part of the large-cap buyout team at TPG, a private equity firm, where she helped diligence and purchase companies in the real estate sector.

Her journey from an operator to the founder of DivvyHomes is an inspirational one.

Inspirational WordsOpens a new window : “…having a purpose-driven mission is what motivates me to wake up each morning to build something that’s making a positive impact on the world.”

Leanne Kemp, Founder & CEO, EverledgerOpens a new window

Leanne KempOpens a new window has around 20 years of experience in technology. She founded Everledger in 2015, a digital transparency company that helps businesses surface and converge asset information through blockchain, AI, and intelligent labeling. The company thereby prevents fraud and money laundering. Kemp Opens a new window is one of the most respected personalities in the business world. Her background spans from the emerging technology sector to business development, jewelry, and insurance. She has worked in areas such as RFID tracking, supply chains, and advertising. She now sits on the board for IBM Blockchain Board of Advisors, World Trade Board, and World Economic Forum’s Blockchain council. In 2016, Kemp received the accolade of UK Business Insider’s 26 Coolest Women in Tech awardOpens a new window .

Her journey from a techie to the founder of Everledger and now a board member of various global forums and councils is nothing short of true inspiration.

Inspirational Words:Opens a new window “No one would ever give me a ‘real job’ because I think about things differently. I ask the question ‘why’ rather than ‘what’ or ‘how’ first.”

Anna Mongayt Counselman, Co-founder and Head of People and Operations, UpstartOpens a new window

Digital lending has become an integral part of our lives in recent years, and Upstart is emerging as a business leader. Anna Mongayt CounselmanOpens a new window helped the company grow from a small team of few employees to over 200 employees and $6 billion-plus of loan distribution. She has also received the White House Champion of Change awardOpens a new window to honor her work as an exemplary immigrant innovator.

She received an undergraduate degree from Boston University. One of the first graduates of SMG’s entrepreneurship programOpens a new window , she was determined to start her own business from the very beginning but eventually ran low on money and decided she’d better opt for a steady corporate paycheck. Before Upstart, Counselman was the manager for McMaster-Carr Supply Co. and manager-online sales & operations at Google LLC. Her journey from accepting corporate jobs due to lack of money to becoming a co-founder and head of operations at Upstart is a motivation to a lot of budding entrepreneurs. 

 

Inspirational WordsOpens a new window : “Feel the fear and do it anyway and trust that you’ll figure it out as you go.” 

Women Perform Well in Leadership Roles, But Gender Bias Prevails

Forbes released ‘The Forbes Fintech 50: The Most Innovative Fintech Companies in 2020′ in February last year. The list outlined successful players in the fintech space and 19 newcomers to watch out for. It mentioned notable private companies with significant operations or customers in the U.S., all with a common goal of making financial services faster, cheaper, and easier. 

Out of the 50 companies, only nine were founded or co-founded by women, representing only 18% of the list. All nine women are in leadership positions, with six sitting in the CEO’s corner office. These figures aren’t astonishing as fintech continues to stay an unbalanced industry.

Studies show that women perform exceedingly well in leadership roles. In a study published by the Harvard Business ReviewOpens a new window , women outscored men on 17 of the 19 measured capabilities. These capabilities drew a line between outstanding leaders from average to poor ones and included all the essentialities from resilience and drive for results to innovation and bold leadership in the fintech space.

Also read: Fintech Revolution Will Dominate the Post-COVID Era

The Future of Women in Fintech

Fintech is on the rise, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. The core principles of the fintech industry are vested in the significance of flexibility, ease of use, and speed of operation, which will, in all probability, continue to drive the industry. Women have proved themselves time and again and continue to stay invaluable players in the fintech space. 

Many fintech companies are looking up to women leaders to help the industry recoverOpens a new window from the pandemic. As businesses worldwide have taken a blow, characteristics that allow fintechs to shine will be all the more important. Besides, the astute leadership qualities of women will play a critical role in the economic growth of fintech firms post-pandemic. 

In conclusion

Women have to overcome several challenges to succeed in fintech. However, against all odds, notable figures continue to emerge who strive to change the industry’s landscape. This list of influential women leaders grows longer with every passing day. The coming months will see women playing a big role as the world recovers from the jolt of the pandemic. 

How are you celebrating international women’s day 2021? Comment below or let us know on LinkedInOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window . We’d love to hear from you!