AI, Payments Innovation Highlight FinovateFall Day One
The 2026 FinovateFall conference kicked off in New York City this week, with a focus on AI and its application in the highly regulated banking industry. The event, held at the Marriott Marquis Times Square, featured 36 fintech demos, keynote speeches, and panel discussions, attracting industry leaders and innovators.
Many presentations tackled challenges around data availability, payment execution, and integrating AI into existing banking systems. Each speaker had seven minutes to showcase their solutions to a panel of investors, banks, and potential clients, with the session ending abruptly with the sound of Finovate’s signature gong.
AI Takes Center Stage
Jim McCarthy, a former founding member of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), presented FSAi, a software system launched by his company, McCarthy Hatch, in June. FSAi analyzes text data from customer complaints, market news, and regulatory updates to identify potential legal and compliance risks for financial institutions. It goes beyond individual complaints, uncovering recurring patterns that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Nick Patrick, a former product manager at Foursquare and Microsoft, showcased Radar, an infrastructure platform backed by Insight Partners and Accel. Radar enables developers to integrate geofencing, mapping, and location-based tracking into apps and websites. Patrick highlighted its ability to detect location spoofing, identify VPN tampering, and prevent digital payment fraud in real time, ensuring secure transactions.
For banks and credit unions, Mick Oppy, a former Worldpay executive, demonstrated Neural Payments, a white-label software enabling peer-to-peer (P2P) money transfers within mobile apps. The platform routes payments instantly across networks like FedNow and uses the Visa Alias Directory Service to facilitate transfers via phone numbers or email addresses. Oppy revealed that Neural Payments processes “millions of dollars” monthly and is set to be adopted by 80 financial institutions in the next quarter.
In the lending sector, Arjun Sirrah presented Titan AI, an AI platform designed for banks, credit unions, and fintech companies. Titan AI uses proprietary language models trained on regulatory, auditing, and compliance structures to deploy AI agents securely, preventing sensitive data leaks. Sirrah cited HELOC loan processing as an example and noted Titan AI’s $3 million seed funding round led by Entropy Ventures.
Payments and Beyond
The event also highlighted innovations in wealth management and lending. Charles Marques demonstrated AdvisorHelpAI, a platform helping banks manage wealth divisions. It provides client data insights, portfolio rebalancing, and trade execution tools, treating all accounts equally regardless of asset size. Marques developed it to address compliance risks from unserviced accounts and reputational damage.
The Women in Fintech panel, a Finovate staple since 2019, discussed female leadership and AI’s impact on careers. Panelists noted the drop from 50-50 representation at entry level to 10-20% in senior roles. Wenni Wu emphasized the need for frameworks to support women’s advancement, while Mayerlin Garcia stressed top-level commitment and sponsorship for opportunities like P&L exposure.
Wenni Wu, chief growth officer at Piermont Bank, noted that senior leaders need to “build a framework” that equips more women to step into senior roles. Mayerlin Garcia, managing director at SenaHill, stated that change “has to be a commitment from the top,” emphasizing the importance of sponsors advocating for women and providing opportunities for P&L and client exposure.
The role of AI in shaping financial services was a recurring theme. Dimitri Masin, CEO of Gradient Labs, suggested AI could unlock new business models, such as profitable small business loans. However, he cautioned against over-reliance on AI, citing reduced quality when employees trust flawed models.
