Building Griffin: The Developer-First Bank Built by Engineers, with David Jarvis Founder of Griffin Bank

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