Fintech HiveMind

Geert Van Kerckhoven, CEO and co-founder of Oper Credits, told his company its share price would be zero in three years unless it went AI-native. He and James Barker talk about faster bank sales cycles, betting the business on an AI agent called Herman, and why he'd hire slowly. Roughly 95% of Oper's code is now written by AI agents, and Geert thinks the CEO will be replaced before the account executive.

• Why he told his whole company their share price would be zero in three years if they didn't act

Fintech HiveMind is made by GTM Hive: conversations with the founders, CEOs and revenue leaders building technology companies that sell into regulated markets. More Fintech HiveMind episodes.

This series is sponsored by VC Innovations, who run the FTT Fintech Festival and the Future Identity Festival in London on 9 and 10 November. Find out more about the FTT Fintech Festival and Future Identity Festival.

Steve Lamb runs Kyckr, and he would rather make money than take money — hiring, in his words, is an absolute last resort. He argues the industry has automated its go-to-market in exactly the wrong order, and points at the AI labs themselves: the ones preaching full automation are busy hiring salespeople. Also: why verifying a business is still manual when verifying a person is nearly solved, and how few company registries worldwide actually work properly.

Fintech HiveMind is made by GTM Hive. More from GTM Hive.

This series is sponsored by VC Innovations — the FTT Fintech Festival and the Future Identity Festival. Find out more.

Kyckr

James Bushby is four months into the CRO job at Tuum, and he is blunt about the one thing AI will not do for you: cold-call its way into a core banking deal. He and James Barker get into why complex sales still turn on warm introductions and culture, why the date a bank puts on its decision is almost never the date it decides, and the red flags that say a prospect was never going to buy. Plus a quick-fire round on which channels are actually underrated in 2026.

James Bushby is Chief Revenue Officer at Tuum. He started out in the ATM industry, co-founded an independent ATM deployer that went into administration in the 2008 crash, and spent the years after that in large organisations including Mastercard, before moving to Mambu. He joined Tuum in 2026.

Watch the full Fintech HiveMind series and get the next episode when it drops

More on Tuum: tuum.com

Thanks to our sponsor, the FTT Fintech Festival by VC Innovations, the UK's largest fintech festival, in London on 9 and 10 November 2026: FTT Fintech Festival, London, 9 to 10 November

Most teams do not have a Challenger Sales problem. They have a problem applying it.

Matt Mills, CEO of Ripjar, joins James Barker to unpack what actually changes when you move into the CEO seat, why generic AI prospecting is already easy to spot, and how commercial leaders can use AI without compromising judgement, security or trust.

They cover why Challenger Sales is so often poorly executed, how to handle RFP-heavy enterprise buying, what an effective commercial team looks like around complex technology, and why AI needs real guardrails.

Explore more GTM HiveMind conversations

Find out more about the FTT Fintech Festival and Future Identity Festival: https://hubs.li/Q04tHm0w0

In this episode of Hivemind, Stephen Lemon, co-founder of Currency Cloud, shares insights from his entrepreneurial journey, discussing the challenges and triumphs of building a fintech company. He reflects on the importance of product market fit, the role of APIs in innovation, and the significance of strategic partnerships. Stephen also emphasizes the lessons learned from near failures, the value of organizational health, and the current trends in fintech investment, particularly in the context of AI and evolving business models.

00:00 The Journey of Currency Cloud

05:57 Navigating Growth Phases and Product Market Fit

12:05 The Role of APIs in Fintech Innovation

18:00 Building Strategic Partnerships

24:04 Lessons from Near Failures

30:03 Organizational Health and Team Dynamics

35:54 Current Trends in Fintech Investment

41:50 The Future of AI and Business Models

David Brear is the co-founder and CEO of 11:FS, the consultancy and venture builder reshaping how financial services think about digital. Known for his mantra that “banking is only 1% finished,” David is one of the most recognized voices in fintech, helping institutions reimagine products, services, and customer experience for a digital-first world.

David shares the story of leaving corporate life to start 11:FS at the height of the FinTech boom, bootstrapping the company, and building a multi-disciplinary business spanning consulting, product development, and media. The conversation dives into the challenges of scaling a startup while maintaining agility, why content and thought leadership became a growth engine for their early business, and how they use podcasts and storytelling to punch above their weight against incumbents like Deloitte and McKinsey.

Listeners will gain insight into:

The mindset shift from corporate to founder life

Bootstrapping versus raising capital and funding growth organically

Building a company culture based on empowerment and action

How content marketing and podcasting can become a powerful go-to-market strategy

The future of FinTech and why digital banking is “only 1% done”

This episode is perfect for founders, sales leaders, and anyone in financial services looking to understand how to scale a business, create an authentic brand voice, and build meaningful relationships with clients in a changing industry.

In this episode of Hivemind, host James Barker is joined by Goran Bosankić, former CEO of ABC Tech and co-founder of Field39. Together, they unpack the evolution of fintech, explore the fallout from the 2021 hype cycle, and dive deep into what’s next for digital banking platforms. Goran offers hard-won insights from building and leading tech companies through crises, speaks frankly about AI’s true impact on financial services, and shares cultural and strategic lessons from years of leadership.

Whether you’re selling into banks or navigating the complexities of product-market fit in fintech, this episode delivers clarity, candor, and strategy from someone who’s been on the inside.

00:00 – Introduction

02:00 – Fintech’s evolution post-2021: hype vs reality

06:30 – Building a digital bank: vendor chaos & regulatory landmines

10:30 – AI in banking: transformative tech or dangerous shortcut?

18:00 – Data quality & AI hallucinations

23:00 – Are “out-of-the-box” digital banking platforms still viable?

32:00 – Regulatory priorities and why innovation takes a backseat

35:00 – Taking over ABC Tech at the start of COVID: a leadership trial by fire

39:00 – Remote work: hybrid wins in the long run

42:00 – Painful lessons in leadership: saying no, cutting “oak trees”

51:00 – Sales vs marketing: where to invest when selling to banks

In this conversation, Irene Sandler, CMO of Mechanical Orchard, discusses the importance of understanding market fit and the critical problems that need solving for startups. She emphasizes the role of AI in modernizing legacy systems and the need for clear messaging to target audiences. The discussion also covers the challenges of B2B marketing in the age of AI, the evolution of LinkedIn, and the significance of advocacy in building trust. Sandler highlights the changing landscape of SEO and the importance of clear communication in marketing. The conversation concludes with insights on the attention economy and the challenges marketers face in the coming year.

Chapters

What happens when a D&D-playing data scientist decides the banking industry needs a developer-first overhaul? In this episode of The Hivemind, I speak with David Jarvis, co-founder and CEO of Griffin, the UK’s platform bank built for fintech builders.

We dive deep into David’s unconventional path to becoming a founder—from flunked coding interviews to launching one of the most talked-about infrastructure banks in Europe. We unpack Griffin’s self-serve product philosophy, the future of embedded finance, and why David thinks salespeople are optional (but helpful).

For fintech operators, B2B SaaS founders, and anyone scaling in a regulated space, this one’s full of sharp takes, hard-won insights, and no-BS stories from the trenches.

Timestamps / Chapters:

00:00 – Cold Open: “If you describe yourself as a game changer…”

01:20 – Meet David Jarvis: Fintech operator, failed coder, founder

03:40 – Griffin’s origin story and early pivots

06:38 – Why “the bank you can build on” is evolving

08:20 – Building for developers: No demos, just APIs

10:00 – The self-serve roadmap: Stripe-style onboarding for fintech

14:50 – Branding, tribes, and ClearBank shade

17:00 – Griffin’s ideal customer profile (and who’s not)

20:15 – Why mature financial firms are slow adopters

22:15 – Climbing the credibility ladder

24:45 – The role of luck (and regulation) in early traction

27:40 – Fundraising lessons and investor shoutouts

32:20 – CEO lessons: Overpromising, board friction, and trusting your gut

34:17 – Final thoughts: resilience and responsibility

Discover how Simon Rogerson, co-founder of Octopus Group, turned 15,000 cold calls into a £13 billion financial powerhouse by challenging industry norms. Insights on entrepreneurship, purpose-driven leadership, and scaling innovation.

In this episode of James Barker’s Studio, we sit down with Simon Rogerson, the entrepreneurial force behind Octopus Group—one of the UK’s most innovative financial services companies, now managing over £13 billion in assets.

Simon shares how he and his co-founders launched Octopus with a mission to challenge the stale, self-serving norms of the financial industry. You’ll hear how they:

Started out with a rebellious mindset and zero industry baggage

Built a purpose-led culture that underpins every Octopus venture

Scaled their impact across energy, healthcare, and real estate sectors

From venture capital to ethical investing, Simon breaks down what it really takes to build a fast-growth company without losing your soul.

Keywords: Simon Rogerson, Octopus Group, UK fintech, financial services innovation, startup culture, ethical investing, purpose-driven leadership, scale-up story, James Barker podcast

Listen if you want to learn:

How to disrupt a legacy industry

Why purpose beats profit in the long run

The secrets behind Octopus’s startup-to-scaleup journey

00:00 – Intro & Context – Meet Simon Rogerson and the radical mindset behind Octopus.

04:12 – Starting Octopus with No Experience – Why inexperience was their greatest advantage.

10:45 – Culture as a Superpower – The no-assholes hiring rule and why culture trumps strategy.

17:30 – Scaling with Purpose – Growth driven by impact, not just profits.

25:40 – Innovation at Octopus – How Octopus keeps launching bold new ventures.

32:50 – Why Most Companies Are Scared of Standing for Something – The business risk of playing it safe.

38:15 – Advice to Founders – Building something meaningful instead of just big.

45:00 – The Future of Octopus – What’s next for the group’s ever-growing ambitions.

48:33 – Closing Reflections – Simon’s personal philosophy on leadership and legacy.