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Articles by W.B. King
Tech People in the Know: FI Works Keith Henkel
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with FI Works Founder and CEO Keith Henkel.The Little Rock, Ark.-based fintech bills itself as providing digital solutions that empower community banks and credit unions with smarter data, AI, and growth strategies.
New MoneyLIVE Report Cautions FIs on Overloading Consumers with Communication Channel Choices
By W.B. King Sometimes too many options can disrupt otherwise well-intended communication practices. This is among takeaways from MoneyLIVE’s recent report, From channels to context: a new era of banking personalization. “Over the past decade, retail banks have invested heavily in developing more advanced and feature-rich digital channels as they seek to keep pace with a host of digital-native challengers,” the report offered.
Tech People in the Know: NCR Atleos’ Maha Sivara
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with NCR Atleos’ Chief Data Officer Maha Sivara.With approximately 20,000 employees, the Atlanta-based fintech bills itself as providing an unrivalled ATM experience for financial institutions, retailers and self-service consumers.
Finopotamus: Tech People in the Know: NCR Atleos’ Maha Sivara
The following article was published by Finopotamus here. In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with NCR Atleos’ Chief Data Officer Maha Sivara. With approximately 20,000 employees, the Atlanta-based fintech bills itself as providing an unrivalled ATM experience for financial institutions, retailers and self-service consumers.
Service Credit Union Helps Launch New AI Development and Monetization Platform
By W.B. King With the goal of allowing users to build banking applications in minutes using artificial intelligence, Service Ventures, the independent venture capital arm of Service Credit Union, announced it is investing in Fias, Inc., an AI platform company. The Fias platform, which is currently in closed beta, will provide the required tools to develop, publish and monetize new, innovative applications.
JD Power Releases Inaugural Report on Banking Preferences of Millennials and Gen Z
By W.B. King To get a better handle on NextGen banking likings, JD Power recently released its inaugural U.S. Millennial & Gen Z Checking Satisfaction Study. Among takeaways, 67% of new primary accounts come from younger generation customers, online banks and fintechs deliver highest customer satisfaction scores, capturing 28% of new primary checking accounts, and seven of the top 10 highest-scoring accounts offer premium customer or rewards benefits.
MoneyLIVE Webinar Discusses Using AI to Build Context-Rich Conversations
By W.B. King During a recent MoneyLIVE webinar entitled “Beyond the Channel: Building Context-Rich Conversations in Banking,” panelists from NatWest, Quadient, Nordea, Standard Chartered and HSBC were presented with a question from Lindley Gooden, moderator and cheerleader-in-chief at the London-based Greenscreen: “What does genuinely personal customer engagement look like in the AI era?” Among responses was that simply investing in more channels is no longer the right strategy for financial...
Sibos to Host International Conference in Miami on AI-Driven Economies
By W.B. King Initially a banking operations seminar that gathered FI folks in 1978 in Brussels, Sibos’ annual conference, exhibition and networking event bills itself as the premier business forum for the global financial community. Attendees debate and collaborate on topics such as payments, securities, cash management and trade. This year’s conference, in partnership with SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication), will take place Sept. 28 to Oct.
New AI Supervisory Framework Aims to Assess Industry-Wide Use and Risks
By W.B. King With the goal of providing clarity on all things AI, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) released a “new supervisory resource” to support state examiners in assessing the use and risks at state-chartered banks and state-licensed nonbank financial institutions.
RS2 White Paper Investigates New Wave of ‘Intelligent’ Global Payments—Is Your FI Prepared?
By W.B. King Among takeaways from RS2 white paper, The Orchestration Imperative: Turning Payment Complexity into Strategic Advantage: The next phase of payments orchestration will be determined not by how many providers a business can connect to, but by how intelligently it can control and optimize what happens across those connections. “Connecting to multiple payment providers is no longer the difficult part.
Alkami Report Investigates Generational Divide in Banking—Bad Digital Experiences Send Consumers Packing
By W.B. King Eighty-five percent of consumers contend that digital experience quality is “essential or important” when choosing a new primary provider—with roughly one in two saying that they would switch providers for a better digital experience. These are among findings from the fourth annual Generational Trends in Digital Banking study, which was conducted by Alkami in partnership with The Center for Generational Kinetics.
Women in Technology: Constant AI’s Catherine York Powers
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Constant AI’s Founder and CEO Catherine York Powers. The Portland, Maine-based fintech bills itself as powering agentic artificial intelligence platforms that automate loan operations and servicing tasks for credit unions and community banks.
Women in Technology: AttainX’s Jill Robb
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with AttainX’s Founder Jill Robb. Based in Delaware and Belfast, the company offers fractional executive services aimed at enhancing fintech sales, marketing and public relations strategies.
United Consumers Credit Union Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
St. Louis Community Credit Union Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
TruStage Ventures Discovery Fund Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
Addition Financial Credit Union Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
Holy Rosary Credit Union Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
Advia Credit Union Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
Red Rocks Credit Union Nabs the 2026 Applied AI Tekkie Award
By W.B. King A traditional bot that simply follows rigid, pre-programmed rules and scripts wasn’t the answer for Red Rocks Credit Union. So, in November 2025, the $360 million Littleton, Colo.-based credit union introduced its 18,000-plus membership to something special: Roxie. “Over the last several years, we have been intentional about building an institution that serves members well today and is prepared to serve them well in the future.
NET Credit Union Shares First-Place Honors for the 2026 Tekkie Award for People Helping People
By W.B. King True to the credit union mission, the Finopotamus Tekkie Award for People Helping People recognizes an initiative, program, or team effort that significantly improved the lives of members or the community in 2025.
2026 Tekkie Award Winner for CUSO of the Year: Payfinia
By W.B. King With the U.S. instant payment transaction volume forecasted to reach 2.29 billion by 2031, marking a 38% annual growth from 2024 to 2030, consumers and businesses alike are seeking to adopt the latest and greatest in instant payments. The Portland, Ore.-based CUSO Payfinia caught the attention of Finopotamus Tekkies Award judges for building a better mousetrap. “I was in my office when the email came through, and I'll admit it stopped me mid-task.
JD Power Report Finds AI in Tight Competition with Traditional Financial Advising
By W.B. King Consumers have long sought financial advice during times when affordability is a leading issue, but the JD Power Banking and Payments Intelligent Report, released in July, found more people are turning to artificial intelligence for guidance. “Overall, 40% of consumers say they have sought help from AI to manage their personal finances, with 27% having found AI somewhat or significantly helpful.
Tech People in the Know: Mahalo Banking’s Denny Howell
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited Mahalo Banking’s Co-Founder and COODenny Howell. The Troy, Mich.-based company provides online and mobile banking solutions for credit unions. By W.B. King As Denny Howell began his career in the mid-1990s, he was fascinated by a tech-driven edict: removing friction from people’s lives.
Silverflow Study Shines Light on Payments Landscape
By W.B. King During the 2026 Money 20/20 Europe conference, a collaboration with FXC Intelligence, 250 senior payments and fintech leaders were surveyed by Silverflow. Among findings: 92% said data visibility is “important” or “extremely important” to their business decision-making, with 64% rating it “extremely important.” Silverflow, based in Amsterdam, where the conference took place in June, provides a cloud-native solution with a single API to the card networks.
Longstanding Technology Consulting Firm Samaha & Associates Announces Succession Plan
By W.B. King Grown from a small entrepreneurial venture into a respected industry leader under Sabeh Samaha’s leadership, the Miami-based Samaha & Associates announced a strategic leadership transition to support the company's continued growth and long-term vision. “When I started this firm, my goal was to provide stellar technology consulting services to the credit union’s ‘people helping people’ movement.
Women in Technology: Sun Community Federal Credit Union’s Clarissa Morales
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Sun Community Federal Credit Union’s Business Applications and Intelligence Manager Clarissa Morales. The $900 million El Centro, Calif.-based credit union supports more than 55,000 members at nine branches (soon to be 10).
Women in Technology: Four Eyes Financial’s Lori Weir
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Four Eyes Financial’s CEO and Co-Founder Lori Weir. Based in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, Four Eyes Financial bills itself as a pioneering force within wealth management.
Tech People in the Know: Casca’s Serhii Nechyporchuk
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with Casca’s Founding Machine Learning Engineer Serhii Nechyporchuk. The San Francisco-based fintech bills itself as offering FIs business loan application processing with 90% less manual effort and 300% higher conversion rates.
New Survey on AI Adoption Rates in FIs Points to a Generational Divide
By W.B. King Sixty-eight percent of credit union and banking C-level executives are in the early stages of AI adoption (either exploring or piloting at 36% or using it internally at 32%) and 35% believe AI will significantly increase banker productivity within three years. These are among findings from the 2026 The State of Artificial Intelligence – U.S. Bank & Credit Union Survey.
Bank of England Announces New Stablecoin Regulations
By W.B. King In what marks a key milestone in establishing the UK’s stablecoin regime, in late June, Bank of England published its policy statement and draft Code of Practice (i.e., rules) for systemic stablecoin issuers. “The framework supports safe innovation, enabling UK-issued stablecoins to develop as trusted forms of digital money,” The Bank of England, the central bank of the United Kingdom, noted in a June 22 statement.
Canadian Credit Union Association’s Annual Conference Calls for Collaboration and Modernization
By W.B. King During Canadian Credit Union Association annual national conference held May 10-13 in Ottawa, Ontario, a theme emerged across keynote sessions, merger case studies, and technology panels: “Canadian credit unions are entering a period where scale, collaboration, and modernization are becoming essential for long-term competitiveness.” This was among takeaways from a MorningStar DBRS brief, Canadian Credit Union Association's 2026 National Conference: Credit Unions Focus on Scale,...
Women in Technology: Acumen Financial Advantage’s Samantha Paxson
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Acumen Financial Advantage’s Chief Growth Officer Samantha Paxson.
Women in Technology Movemint’s Gabrielle Champine
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Movemint’s Head of Growth and Client SuccessGabrielle Champine. The Madison, Wis.-fintech, formerly Digital Storefront, bills itself as driving growth for financial institutions through digital marketing and embedded finance solutions.
Tech People in the Know: Acumen Financial Advantage’s Troy Kind
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with Acumen Financial Advantage’s Director of Information Technology Troy Kind. The Boston-based fintech bills itself as helping organizations, including credit unions, strengthen financial performance, reinforce leadership continuity, and steward resources for long-term value.
Women in Technology: Informed.IQ’s Jessica Gonzalez
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Informed.IQ’s General Manager of Auto and Vice President of Customer Success Jessica Gonzalez.
Women in Technology: Casca’s Sarah Koulogeorge
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Casca’s Director of Business Development Sarah Koulogeorge.
Women in Technology: Commonwealth Credit Union’s Jaynel Christensen
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with Commonwealth Credit Union’sExecutive Vice PresidentJaynel Christensen. The $2.8 billion Frankfort, Ky.-based credit union supports 146,000 members and 18 branches.
Commonwealth CU’s Longstanding Partnership With Movemint Continues to Generate Big Loan Numbers
W.B. King a few seconds ago 4 min read By W.B. King In 2017, Commonwealth Credit Union recognized that members were increasingly expecting seamless, personalized digital experiences, explained Jaynel Christensen, EVP of the $2.7 billion, Frankfort, Ky.-based Commonwealth. This was also a time when traditional lending felt disconnected and cumbersome, she told Finopotamus.
Plaid’s Upcoming NYC Conference Builds on 2026 Predictions; Focus on AI, Fraud and Intelligent Banking
By W.B. King As Plaid prepares for its hybrid conference on May 21 at Cipriani in New York City, Finopotamus revisited Plaid’s annual Fintech Predictions, which were published earlier this year. Co-Founder, CEO and report author Zach Perret (along with authors CTO Will Robinson and Chief Product Lead Michelle Young) noted that in 2025 fraud moved to the top of the agenda, while AI shifted “novelty” to infrastructure.
Cornerstone Advisor’s Latest Report Shows CUs How to Mind the ROI Gap in Marketing
By W.B. King Credit union and fintech marketing leaders who are unsure of how best to budget for campaigns aren’t alone. Nearly six in 10 of the senior marketing executives said their core or CRM system limits the ability to measure marketing’s ROI. These are among findings in Cornerstone Advisors’ latest report, The Marketing ROI Gap in Banking: How Financial Institutions Spend, Measure, and (Struggle to) Prove Marketing’s Value.
Tech People in the Know: Quinte Financial Technologies’ Swami Bhaskaran
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited Quinte Financial Technologies’ SVP of Product and Technology Swami Bhaskaran. The New York City-based fintech provides AI-driven, cloud-based workflow automation and case management solutions for banks, credit unions, and other fintechs.
Tech People in the Know: Saris AI’s CEO Danial Jameel
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with Saris AI Co-Founder and CEO Danial Jameel. The San Francisco-based fintech, with offices in Montreal, provides AI agents for back-office operations at banks and credit unions. The company bills itself as recovering millions of dollars every year by automating back-office workflows and banking operations.
To Promote Digital Collaboration and Enhance Member Satisfaction, Metamo Launches CU-Tech in Ireland
By W.B. King With the tagline, “By Credit Unions For Credit Unions,” the Killorglin, County Kerry, Ireland-based Metamo was founded in 2019 by a partnership between 16 large Irish credit unions and Fexco Group, a financial services company. In March, the Dublin-based Metamo launched “CU-Tech,” a technology and infrastructure initiative designed to accelerate digital transformation in the Emerald Isle’s credit union space. “Are we doing enough, are we moving fast enough?
Tech People in the Know: ValidiFI’s Apoorva Patel
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with ValidiFI’s CTO Apoorva Patel. The Alpharetta, Ga.-based fintech bills itself as an analytics and technology company that connects bank account and payment insights to create more confident, trustworthy and transparent transactions.
Agentic AI Leaders Met in London During MoneyLive 2026 Delivering a Stern Message: Adopt Now or Risk Being Left Behind
By W.B. King During MoneyLive Summitt 2026, which took place at the Business Design Centre in London, England on March 9-10, Lindley Gooden moderated a panel on agentic artificial intelligence (AI) and how it is rapidly transforming the way financial institutions design and deploy applications, promise faster development cycles, improve quality and greater operational efficiency. AI-driven capabilities, however, introduce new considerations around risk, resilience and governance.
Tech People in the Know: CheckAlt’s Satish Thopte
In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus profiles interesting and intriguing tech professionals who are positively impacting the credit union industry. For this issue, we visited with CheckAlt CTO Satish Thopte. With the goal of simplifying business-to-business (B2B) and consumer-to-business (C2B) payments, the New York City-based fintech bills itself as providing traditional lockbox, advanced electronic lockbox, ACH, credit and debit card payments solutions.
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