The Financial Technology Report with RJ Lumba

Real-Estate Guru: Roofstock’s Doug Brien

In this episode, we speak with Doug Brien, President of Roofstock and Co-Founder and CEO of Mynd.  
Roofstock is building the world’s leading single-family real estate investment platform. It has surpassed $6 billion in transactions and continues to disrupt the industry, deploying technology and innovation to build a vibrant, data-rich service for real estate investing.
Doug is a former professional athlete turned entrepreneur on a mission to make investing in single-family real estate simple and accessible for all. He began his career as a NFL placekicker, playing for twelve seasons and winning one Super Bowl.
Doug supports Rivet. To learn more about this organization click here.
I am your host RJ Lumba. We hope you enjoy the show. If you like the episode click to follow.

Powering Specialty Lending: Octane’s Jason Guss

In this episode, we speak with Jason Guss, Co-Founder and CEO of Octane, a financing platform assisting fast and confident powersports purchases by making financing as easy as cash and creating access through fair credit products.
Under Jason’s leadership, Octane has raised both debt and equity amounting to approximately  $2.6 billion.  Prior to Octane, Jason worked at Capital One in Corporate Strategy. 
Since 2014, Octane has partnered with dozens of manufacturers and thousands of powersports dealerships to help drive more sales with their platform. They are backed by Valar Ventures, Contour Venture Partners, IA Ventures, DreamIt Ventures, FinTech Collective, Third Prime Ventures and Citi Ventures.
Jason supports Baby2Baby. To learn more about this organization click here.
I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

Transforming B2B Payments: Paystand’s Jeremy Almond

In this episode. we speak with Jeremy Almond, the Founder and CEO of Paystand, whose software makes it possible to digitize receivables, automate processing, reduce time-to-cash, eliminate transaction fees, and enable new revenue.
In 2013, Jeremy was on a mission to create a more open financial system, starting with B2B payments. Using blockchain and cloud technology, Paystand pioneered Payments-as-a-Service to digitize and automate the entire cash lifecycle.
Jeremy has spent the last 15 years in the tech-industry as a serial entrepreneur, startup adviser, and occasional investor. He led global ERP implementation at nanotech startup Digital Instruments, where he got his first glimpse into the challenges of enterprise payments.
I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

B2B Payments Maestro: Tipalti’s Chen Amit

In this episode, we speak with Chen Amit, the Co-founder and CEO of Tipalti, the only global payables automation solution to streamline all phases of the accounts payable and payment management workflow in one holistic cloud platform.
In 2010, Chen Amit and Orez Zeev created Tipalti to transform global payables with true, end-to-end automation that removes the pains and risks of paying suppliers around the world.  Tipalti has raised over $700 million from notable investors including Durable Capital Partners, G Squared and others.
Prior to Tipalti, Chen was CEO of Atrica, a Carrier Ethernet company that Nokia-Siemens acquired. Before Atrica, Chen was co-founder and CEO of Verix, a provider of business intelligence software.
I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

Bringing Efficiency To Residential Real Estate Investing: Avenue One’s Bill Martiner

In this episode, we speak with Bill Martiner, the Co-Founder and CTO of Avenue One, a technology service platform and investment marketplace for institutional owners, buyers, and sellers of residential rental real estate.
With deep experience in driving growth and innovation for the financial services industry, Bill co-created Avenue One in 2020. The company’s platform connects local experts to institutional capital, making investing in housing debt and equity more efficient for institutions, while also supporting local businesses. 
With a highly impressive technical background, Bill was previously Head of Enterprise Technology at Compass, CTO at York Capital Management, a Founding Partner at VenturePM, and the Head of IT and Operations Strategy for Nomura Securities. 
Bill supports Electronic Frontier Foundation. To learn more about this organization click here.
I am your host RJ Lumba. We hope you enjoy the show. If you like the episode click to follow.

Enabling Efficient Investing: Public.com’s Leif Abraham

In this episode, we speak with the Co-founder and Co-CEO at Public.com, Leif Abraham. Public.com is an investing platform that helps people become better investors. Members can build a diverse portfolio of stocks, funds, and crypto within a single platform.
Launched in 2019, Leif and his team’s main vision started by introducing the world to fractional investing. Public.com became the first broker-dealer to introduce commission-free, real-time investing. Then, they set their sights on creating a new kind of multi-asset investing experience. They offer the tools, data, and AI-powered insights customers need to make informed investment decisions.
Prior to Public.com, Leif was the Co-Founder and CEO of AND.CO, which was acquired by Fiverr in 2019.
I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

Global FinTech Infrastructure Leader: Jeeves Founder Dileep Thazhmon

In this episode, we speak with Dileep Thazhmon, the Founder and CEO of Jeeves, an all-in-one corporate spend and expense management platform for businesses in global markets. The platform allows clients to open multi-currency accounts, issue corporate cards, send cross-border payments, and manage expenses.
More than 3000 companies across the world trust Jeeves with their financial payment stack. Jeeves has raised $380 million from Andreesen Horowitz, CRV, GIC, and other notable investors.
Previously, Dileep was the Co-Founder & COO at Jeeng/PowerInbox, which he exited at $100 million.
I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

Credit FinTech Powerhouse: Avant Co-Founder Paul Zhang

In this episode, we speak with Paul Zhang, the Co-Founder and leader of technology of Avant, a credit-first financial technology company that provides access to innovative financial solutions, including personal loans and credit cards.
Since its founding in 2012, the company has connected almost 3 million customers to $8 billion in loans and 1 million credit cards.  Avant has raised over $600 million of equity capital.
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Leading Cloud Software for Insurance: Applied Systems’ Taylor Rhodes

In this episode, we speak with Taylor Rhodes, CEO of Applied Systems, the leading global provider of cloud-based software that powers the business of insurance. Recognized as a pioneer in insurance automation and an innovation leader, Applied is the world’s largest provider of agency and brokerage management systems.
Taylor joined Applied in 2019 after serving as Chief Executive Officer of SMS Assist, the leading cloud-based software platform for multi-site property management. Previously, he was CEO of Rackspace, where he led the company’s growth from a cloud pioneer to an industry leader with more than two billion dollars in revenue.
Taylor was recognized as one of the Top 50 SaaS CEOs of 2023 by The Software Report.
Taylor supports World Vision. To learn more about this organization click here.
I am your host RJ Lumba. We hope you enjoy the show. If you like the episode click to follow.

Tech Entrepreneur Polymath: Figment’s Lorien Gabel

In this episode, we speak with Lorien Gabel, Co-founder and CEO of Figment, the leading provider of blockchain infrastructure. The company has raised over $150 million and is backed by Thoma Bravo, B Capital, Two Sigma, and other notable investors.
Figment provides comprehensive staking solutions for over 250 institutional clients. The world’s largest asset managers, custodians, exchanges, foundations, and token holders leverage Figment’s infrastructure and APIs to earn staking rewards. Staking is a process in which token holders can earn rewards by helping to secure a blockchain network.
Before Co-Founding Figment, Lorien was both a serial entrepreneur and corporate executive.  Along with his brother, Lorien founded three companies - 1) pingg.com, which was acquired by 1800-Flowers, 2) Bird on a Wire Networks, which was acquired by AT&T Canada and 3) Interlog, one of Canada’s first commercial ISPs, which was acquired by a large multinational telecommunications provider.
Lorien also spearheaded the exponential U.S. growth of UK-based tech company MessageLabs as Global VP Business Development, ran a division of Fortune 500 company Micron, and has served on the advisory board of a number of start-ups.
Lorien supports The Murph Challenge. To learn more about the annual event click here.
I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.