Plotting FinTech's Discourse
What's on the horizon as NY FinTech Week approaches? Grab your ticket before prices jump, tomorrow.
Thanks for coming back to the Empire Startups newsletter. New here? Subscribe to get our newsletter sent straight to your email.
Hi there,
With just six weeks left until NY FinTech Week and the Empire FinTech Conference, our team is buzzing with a mix of excitement, nerves, and everything in between. We're in the thick of it; navigating deadlines, finalizing details, and ensuring that when the curtain rises, we’re ready for the show.
However, let's take a moment to pull back the curtain.
NY FinTech Week has evolved into an integral part of the Empire story, but it’s hard to pinpoint exactly how NY FinTech Week became, well, NY FinTech Week. On calls, I’ll often say it’s a bit “nebulous” to say we created it. But today, it’s an arena in which the Empire team is proud to act as a platform; with our conference right in the middle.
Over the past decade, seeing the FinTech community grow into the strongest across every vertical in tech, has been an honor and privilege. We look forward to the event-filled week with workshops, discussions, happy hours, and opening parties, with the best and brightest coming together in NYC.
(👉 Pro tip: Anyone can host an event, and we’ll promote it to the masses. Learn more about how to get your event on our official NY FinTech Week calendar here.)
But beyond the logistical Tetris that is event planning, one of our more significant challenges is forecasting the topics that will dominate the industry conversation 6+ months down the road.
What themes are both timeless and timely? What strikes the perfect balance between broad discussion and a sprinkle of spicy details that will leave the audience thoroughly intrigued?
This year, we're thrilled to announce that our full agenda is live, and promises a diverse array of topics presented in various engaging formats:
Get ready to watch the Titans of NYC FinTech unveil the magic behind what makes this city the FinTech capital of the world.
Snag a front-row seat to a lively discussion around what a utopian FinTech policy may look like for this next administration.
Can AI Underwrite as well as ChatGPT writes? What will the state of digital identities look like in 2030?
And when it comes to the AI race, will FinTechs win, or the incumbents?
These are just some of the many questions we look forward to diving into.
As we count down the days, we invite you to secure your spot and be part of an unforgettable week that promises to shape the future of FinTech.
Get ready for a blend of insight, innovation, and a touch of friendly rivalry.
🎪 2024 Empire FinTech Conference
Don’t say we didn’t tell you so… But actually, we are very much telling you that tickets jump in price TOMORROW!
And in case you needed any more convincing, we’re excited to continue adding stellar thought leaders to our speaker lineup, including:
🎟 Featured FinTech Events
NEW YORK
OTHER CITIES
TORONTO
If your email client clips some of this newsletter, click below to see the rest.🗞🎧 The latest news in FinTech.
Reads
✍️ This Virginia bank wants to rewrite the rules for banking as a service | American Banker
MainStreet Bancshares in Fairfax says it can succeed where others have run into some thorny regulatory problems by cutting out the middleware and linking fintech partners directly to its core.
🚀 5 Reasons Launching A Fintech Startup Has Become So Challenging | Crunchbase
The fintech industry recorded its highest year ever in terms of investment value in 2021, but the market has been a lot more challenging for the past two years.
👩⚖️ Judge approves Binance $4.3 billion guilty plea as US seeks to modify founder Zhao's bond | Reuters
U.S. District Judge Richard Jones in Seattle approved the plea, which includes a $1.81 billion criminal fine and $2.51 billion of forfeiture, about an hour after the government proposed changes to Binance founder Changpeng Zhao's bond, drawing an objection from Zhao's lawyers.
🤷♂️ The hard questions raised by the ZIRP era | Axios
If stimulating the economy using low interest rates just creates a lot of wasteful spending and malinvestment, it should raise serious questions about central banks' main policy tool.
🏦 OCC Head Concerned About Bank-FinTech Collaboration | PYMNTS
CEO and acting comptroller Michael Hsu fears that if FinTechs continue to expand their menu of services without proper oversight, it could eventually undermine public confidence.
Listens
🗣 The Fintech OG Series: Max Levchin and Jackie Reses | This Week in Fintech Podcast
In episode number 2 of the Fintech OG series, we talk with Max Levchin, Co-Founder and CEO of PayPal, Affirm, and a number of other companies (Yelp, for instance) and Jackie Reses, best known for her time at Square helping Jack Dorsey's payments company get a banking license. Currently, she's the CEO of Lead Bank and sits on a number of company boards, including Nubank.
These two dove into how they got into fintech, their personal ups and downs (find out what sent Max to the floor in the early days of Affirm), and what they expect the biggest innovations to be over the next decade.
🦸 Killing It! – Leaving the Hero Complex of Foundership Behind, with Shamir Karkal, CEO of Sila | Fintech Takes
What happens when entrepreneurs have to face down the most difficult decision there is— knowing when it’s time to sell, shut down, or exit?
In this special crossover series, Alex joins Breaking Banks’ Jason Henrichs for candid conversations with fintech leaders who have experienced the loss of their company. This week, Alex and Jason talk with Shamir Karkal, CEO of Sila and former Co-Founder of Simple, which was acquired by BBVA in 2014.
🚀 Featured FinTech Funding
PRE-SEED
Spiral, $100K (Core Technology, New York)
SEED
Levr.ai, $1M (Lending, Vancouver)
Cambio, $3M (Personal Finance, Chicago)
Mia Share, $6.5M (Lending, Wilson)
Fordefi, $10M (Blockchain/Crypto, New York)
dub, $15M (Wealth Management, New York)
SERIES A
Linework, $2.3M (Blockchain/Crypto, Dover)
💼 Featured FinTech Jobs
New York
Growth Marketing Lead , Tifin
Product Manager, dub
Product Marketing Manager, Duetti
Strategic Finance Analyst , Orchard
Remote
Enterprise Customer Success Manager, LearnLux
Financial Wellness Education Specialist, BrightPlan
Sr. Dev Engineer, Handle
Manager, People Operations, SmartAsset
San Francisco
BizOps Lead, Shepherd
Regional Sales Director, Lively
Startups Account Executive, Brex
Customer Success Manager, Banyan Infrastructure Corporation
