We only take on 4 clients per month. Join our October cohort. 1 spot left.
Conversation
Highlights
Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech’s most innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Stephany Kirkpatrick, CEO and Founder of Orum, an API integration platform for instant payouts that aims to solve the “time to money” problem and empower a better financial system. The company has raised over $85 million in funding to date.
Key topics discussed in this episode:
- Stephany’s background as the daughter of an immigrant, growing up in the Pacific Northwest with a love for the outdoors, and her journey from financial planner to tech entrepreneur.
- The admiration for Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb, and his ability to build a visionary, flawless product while overcoming complex regulatory challenges and fostering a strong company culture.
- The influence of books like “Essentialism” by Greg McKeown, which emphasizes the disciplined pursuit of less and the importance of focusing on the right things at the right time, both in business and personal life.
- Orum’s origin story, rooted in Stephany’s experience as a financial planner, her desire to close the wealth gap and solve the “time to money” problem, and her realization that innovating the financial infrastructure could enable wholly new financial services products.
- The company’s mission to be the simplest API integration for instant payouts, helping businesses deliver funds across various bank rails and optimize for speed, risk, and cost, while providing expertise and support.
Actionable
Takeaways
Address the Root Causes of Underrepresentation:
While there is increased intent to fund female-founded startups, Stephany believes that the lack of women in tech entrepreneurship stems from a deeper supply problem. To create generational change, we need to invest in exposing girls to STEM, computer science, and technology from an early age, enabling them to become future founders and leaders.
Build a Complete Solution Before Going to Market:
In the payments space, having a minimum viable product (MVP) is not enough. Customers need to experience a fully functioning solution before they are willing to switch providers. Focus on building a complete offering that demonstrates your unique value proposition and differentiates you from competitors.
Adapt Your Go-to-Market Strategy to the B2B Landscape:
Coming from a consumer background, Stephany had to learn and iterate on her approach to B2B sales and marketing. From creating compelling demos that showcase the customer experience to structuring flexible pricing models, founders need to continuously adapt to the needs of their target market.
Enable New Categories Through Infrastructure Innovation:
While Orum currently sits at the intersection of payments infrastructure and financial services infrastructure, the company's long-term vision is to enable entirely new categories of innovation by rewriting the underlying infrastructure layer. By solving fundamental constraints, they aim to empower their clients to build groundbreaking products and services.
Pursue a Vision of Empowerment and Inclusion:
Orum's ultimate goal is to power a better financial system where everyone has the freedom to build to their potential. By providing the scaffolding for a new financial infrastructure, they seek to inspire new habits and possibilities, embolden their partners and users, and create a more inclusive framework for financial services.
Recommended Founder
Interviews
Iris Pfeifer
VP of Growth of Wisetack
Iris Pfeifer, VP of Growth at Wisetack: Mastering B2B Marketing Through Sales Alignment and Product Strategy
Kalpesh Kapadia
CEO and Founder of Deserve
Kalpesh Kapadia, CEO and Founder of Deserve: $50 Million Raised to Build the Future of Credit Cards
Sohaib Zahid
CEO and Co-Founder of Railz
Sohaib Zahid, CEO and Co-Founder of Railz: $15 Million Raised to Build to Accounting Data as a Service Category
John Lunn
CEO and Founder of Gr4vy
John Lunn, CEO and Founder of Gr4vy: $27 Million Raised to Build the Future of Payments Infrastructure
Florian Wimmer
Co-Founder & CEO of Blockpit
Florian Wimmer, Co-Founder & CEO of Blockpit: $15 Million Raised to Power the Future of Crypto Tax Management
Julio Martínez
Co-Founder and CEO of Abacum
Julio Martínez, Co-Founder and CEO at Abacum: $40 Million Raised to Build the Future of FP&A
Olga Chin
CEO and Founder of InterPrice Technologies
Olga Chin, CEO and Founder of InterPrice Technologies: Over $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Capital Markets Treasury Management
Jonas Overgaard
CEO of Anyday.io
Jonas Overgaard, CEO of Anyday.io: $4M Raised to Transform the Buy Now Pay Later Market
Yasmin Graeml
Marketing & Communication Leader of Flourish Fi
Yasmin, Marketing & Communication Leader at Flourish Fi: Driving Financial Engagement with Innovative Tech
Steven Greene
CEO of Standard Practice
Steven Greene, CEO & Co-Founder of Standard Practice (Previously Nibble Health): $8 Million Raised to Bring the Fintech Revolution to the World Healthcare Payments
Dan Beck
Dan Beck, CEO & Co-Founder of 401GO: $14 Million Raised to Build the Future of Retirement Benefits for Small Businesses
Eric Velasquez Frenkiel
Founder and CEO of Pomelo
Eric Velasquez Frenkiel, CEO of Pomelo: $70 Million Raised to Build the Future of Remittance
Arik Shtilman
CEO of Rapyd
Arik Shtilman, Rapyd: $15 Billion Valuation (Unicorn Builders)
Ben Borodach
Co-Founder and CEO of April
Ben Borodach, Co-Founder and CEO of April: $40 Million Raised to Embed Intelligent Tax Experiences
Ben Goldin
CEO and Founder of Plumery
Ben Goldin, CEO and Founder of Plumery: $4.5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Digital Engagement for Banks
Patrick Mollard
CEO & Co-Founder of Fipto
Patrick Mollard, CEO & Co-Founder of Fipto: $16 Million Raised to Build the Future of Blockchain Payments
Jack McDonald
CEO of PolySign
Jack McDonald, CEO of PolySign: $50 Million Raised to Power the Future of Digital Assets
Helen Chong
Head of Growth of Puzzle
Helen Chong, Head of Growth at Puzzle: Collaborating with Founders – Insights for Effective Marketing Alignment
Colin Luce
CEO & Co-Founder of Basis Theory
Colin Luce, CEO & Co-Founder of Basis Theory: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Payments Tokenization
Thibaut Sahagian
CEO of Multis
Thibaut Sahagian, CEO of Multis: $9 Million Raised to Build a New Category of Software Designed to Meet the Needs of Web3 Organizations
Don Muir
CEO of Arc
Don Muir, CEO of Arc: Over $180 Million Raised to Empower Startups with a Better Cash Management Experience
Jeremy Almond
CEO & Founder of Paystand
Jeremy Almond, CEO & Founder of Paystand: $100M Raised to Power the Future of B2B Payments
Ron Benegbi
CEO & Founder of Uplinq
Ron Benegbi, CEO & Founder at Uplinq: Over $5 Million Raised to Transform SMB Lender’s Existing Credit Evaluation Process
Rodney Reisdorf
Co-Founder & CEO of Co-Founder & CEO
Rodney Reisdorf, CEO of Verivend: $3 Million Raised Transform Private Capital Transactions
Brendan Playford
CEO of Pngme
Brendan Playford, CEO of Pngme: $18 Million Raised to Support Financial Inclusivity and Unlock Economic Potential Across the Developing World
Scott Dorey
Co-Founder of OpenPath
Scott Dorey, Co-Founder of OpenPath: $25 Million Raised to Build the Future of Payments
Swapnil Shinde
CEO and Co-Founder of Zeni
Swapnil Shinde, CEO and Co-Founder of Zeni: $47+ Million Raised to Build the Finance Operations Category
Daumantas Dvilinskas
CEO & Co-Founder of TransferGo
Daumantas Dvilinskas, CEO & Co-Founder of TransferGo: $125 Million Raised to Build the Future of Cross-Border Payments
Brian King
CEO of LODAS Markets
Brian King, CEO of LODAS Markets: $8.5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Alternative Investments
Rafael Loureiro
CEO of Wealth
Rafael Loureiro, CEO of Wealth: $16 Million Raised to Build the Future of Estate Planning
Wade Arnold
CEO and Founder of Moov
Wade Arnold, CEO and Founder of Moov: $77.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Embedded Payments
Ahmad Ibrahim
CEO of NeoTax
Ibrahim, CEO of NeoTax: $13 Million Raised to Build the Future of Tax Automation
Shamir Karkal
Co-founder and CSO of Sila
Shamir Karkal, CEO of Sila: $20+ Million Raised to Build the Money API For Fintech
Steve Pomfret
Steve Pomfret, CEO & Founder of Cygnetise: $8 Million Raised to Build the Future of Signatory Management
Fady Hawatmeh
Founder and CEO of Clockwork
Fady Hawatmeh, Founder and CEO of Clockwork: Nearly $3 Million Raised to Make Financial Modeling and Cash Flow Forecasting Easy
Daniel Grunstein
CEO and Co-Founder of Crowded
Daniel Grunstein, CEO and Co-Founder of Crowded: $6.4 Million Raised to Transform Nonprofit Financial Management
Reed Switzer
CEO of Hopscotch
Reed Switzer, CEO of Hopscotch: $10M to Build the Future of B2B Payments For SMBs
Kevin Hart
Founder and CEO of Green Check Verified
Kevin Hart, Founder and CEO of Green Check Verified: $16 Million Raised to Power the Future of the Cannabis Business
Laura Kornhauser
Co-Founder and CEO of Stratyfy
Laura Kornhauser, Co-Founder and CEO at Stratyfy: $10 Million Raised to Power the Future of Financial Inclusion
Nik Talreja
CEO & Co-Founder of Sydecar
Nik Talreja, CEO & Co-Founder of Sydecar: Over $16 Million Raised to Make Venture Deal Execution a Frictionless Process
Felix Rodriguez
CEO & Founder of Finally
Felix Rodriguez, CEO & Founder of Finally: $110 Million Raised to Power the Future of Finance Automation
Magali Chapuis
Marketing Manager of Embat
Magali Chapuis, Marketing Manager of Embat: Strategic Insights for Scaling Fintech Marketing Across Borders
Bob Suh
CEO of OnCorps
Bob Suh, CEO of OnCorps: $18M Raised to Help Large Financial Institutions Solve Operational Problems with AI
Ankit Ratan
Co-Founder and CEO of Signzy
Ankit Ratan, Co-Founder and CEO of Signzy: Over $38 Million Raised to Build the Future of Digital Onboarding Infrastructure