Bonus: How Monzo stays online when everyone else goes down - with CTO Matej Pfajfar

About this episode: On this episode of Fintech Insider, host David Barton-Grimley sits down with Matej Pfajfar, Group CTO at Monzo Bank, to talk about one of the fintech industry's least glamorous - but most critical - topics: outages. With banking apps now at the core of how we manage money, a few minutes of downtime can spark serious disruption. Back in February 2025, a wave of UK bank outages affected millions and it feels like the problem is only getting worse. So, how is Monzo planning to stay ahead? Enter Monzo Stand In, the bank’s behind-the-scenes solution designed to keep essential services running, even when things go wrong. On this episode we unpack what an outage actually means in modern banking, why they’re so hard to avoid, and how Monzo’s unique culture and architecture enabled them to build resilience into their platform by design. This week's guest: Matej Pfajfar - Group Chief Technology Officer, Monzo Bank Advertisements: If you're running an early-stage business with Seed or Series A funding, Tide’s new savings account offers rates up to 4.48% (AER), with instant access to your money. Plus, get the best rates for free for 12 months at tide.co/insider. -- Links to check out: Join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp community,⁠⁠ where you can get the inside track on all all things 11:FS, as well as having your say on the things we should be paying attention to. ⁠⁠Open Mic Night Amsterdam tickets⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Support our charity partner School-Home Support ⁠⁠ -- About Fintech Insider: Fintech Insider by 11:FS is a bi-weekly podcast that covers everything from finance and banking to technology and the latest trends in financial services. Our expert hosts, with hands-on industry experience, are joined by key decision-makers, VCs, and top reporters from across the financial landscape, including guests from companies like Stripe, Revolut, Plaid, PayPal, and Monzo. Together, they break down the biggest news and innovations shaping the space. Our weekly news show drops every Monday, covering major stories like mergers, new product launches, regulatory shifts, and emerging tech trends. On Thursdays, our Insights show goes deeper into the hottest topics driving the future of finance, including AI in banking, decentralised finance, and the evolving landscape of embedded finance. Whether you're already in the fintech game or just starting to explore, this is the #1 podcast for you. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe and leave a review! Got a question for us? Email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices