Wharton FinTech Podcast

The Future of Mortgage Tech

In this episode of the Wharton FinTech Podcast, host Meaghan McGowan sits down with Mike Yu, CEO and Co-founder of Vesta, to explore the modernization of the mortgage technology stack. Mike shares Vesta’s origin story and how he and his team are rebuilding the loan origination system to be flexible, automated, and API-first. The episode explores: - How modern workflows, partner integrations, and recent developments, including Vesta’s partnership with Pennymac, are reshaping lender operations - Macro trends, the growing role of AI, and how lenders are rethinking their technology stacks - The future of “self-driving” origination, and - Advice for founders building in regulated financial infrastructure

The API Layer for Latin America

In this episode, Jackson sits down with Jimena, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Prometeo, to discuss the future of financial infrastructure in Latin America. Jimena shares her journey from tech journalism to entrepreneurship, the inspiration behind building Prometeo, and how the company is creating a unified API layer across the Americas to power open banking, real-time payments, and next-generation financial innovation. In this episode, you’ll learn: - How Prometeo became one of LatAm’s leading open banking infrastructure platforms - The challenges of building across highly fragmented regulatory and technical environments - Why true financial inclusion requires more than just account access - How real-time payments, cross-border rails, and agentic financial services are reshaping the region - Prometeo’s philosophy on trust, cybersecurity, and building long-term infrastructure “legacy”

Licensed to Tokenize: Where Blockchain Meets Regulation

In this episode of the Wharton FinTech Podcast, host Ruhi Jain sits down with Aaron Kaplan, Co-CEO of Prometheum, Inc., for a deep dive into the digitization of capital markets and the future of fully regulated digital assets. Aaron shares his journey from securities attorney to fintech founder, why he believes U.S. federal securities laws offer the most resilient pathway for blockchain innovation and how Prometheum’s end-to-end infrastructure aims to reshape how digital assets are issued, traded, custodied, and settled. Together, Ruhi and Aaron explore: - Why the regulatory lens is essential in building blockchain-based financial infrastructure - Efficiency gains blockchain can unlock across settlement, transparency, capital usage and market structure - and what this means for both institutions and retail investors - A forward-looking view into the future of capital markets, the evolving role of intermediaries and the “wild-card” risks Aaron believes the industry is overlooking A must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of blockchain, securities regulation and the next decade of digital market infrastructure.

The Past & Future of Fintech Regulation with Michele Alt

In this episode, Wharton FinTech’s Abhi Chadha sits down with Michele Alt, Co-Founder of The Klaros Group and former OCC regulator, to unpack the evolving relationship between fintechs and the U.S. banking system. Michele shares her insights from two decades at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and her current work helping non-banks pursue bank charters. They discuss the shifting regulatory climate across administrations - from the OCC’s early fintech charter attempts, to the Biden-era freeze, and now a renewed openness under Trump 2.0. Michele explains the nuances of charter types like industrial loan companies (ILCs) and national trust banks. The conversation explores: - The history and future of fintech chartering - Differences among OCC, FDIC, and Fed oversight - How U.S. fintech regulation compares to Europe and the U.K. - Challenges foreign fintechs face when entering the U.S. market - How Michele’s OCC experience helps startups navigate complex regulatory processes Michele also shares her perspective on the cyclical nature of financial regulation - from deregulatory “sugar highs” to inevitable crackdowns - and offers advice for those eager to build a career in fintech regulation and compliance.

Finster AI and the Future of Financial Workflows

In this episode of the Wharton Fintech Podcast, Jackson Ellis sits down with Sid Jayakumar, founder and CEO of FinsterAI. Sid shares his journey from a background in engineering to founding FinsterAI, a company redefining how financial professionals interact with data. The conversation dives into: - The vision behind Finster: an intelligent platform that leverages AI to streamline financial analysis, automate research, and improve decision-making - What differentiates Finster in a crowded AI and fintech landscape - How Finster enhances workflows for analysts and investors - The strategic challenges of scaling an AI-driven financial product - How Finster navigates the evolving regulatory environment for AI in finance and what the future holds for intelligent financial systems