Startup Truths and Reality Checks

Welcome back to the Fintech Takes podcast. I’m Alex Johnson, joined by David Roos, Partner at Core Innovation Capital — an early-stage fintech investor (founded in 2010) that backs scalable businesses built to drive financial inclusion for low- and middle-income consumers. We dig into how Core really sizes up founders and business models, what’s shifted since the 2021 boom-and-bust, and how open banking and AI are reshaping incentives. Highlights include: How the venture market split after 2021 (mega-funds tossing out risky option bets vs. specialist funds focused on seed) while the IPO bar climbed to nearly $1B in revenue, keeping exits mostly to M&A Why JPMC’s push to charge for data access shows the tug-of-war over who controls customer information, and why over time, closed-door banks may end up losing to those that open up How AI is reshaping startups: small teams can now hit milestones that once took far more people and money, Series A investors expect closer to $3M in revenue, and how trust (earned through workflow integration and human oversight) still rules the day This episode is a reality check on what it takes to build in fintech today. And it’s a friendly reminder that alignment between founders, investors, and customers is what separates lasting companies from cautionary tales.  Enjoy!  Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/ And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page. Follow Dan Roos: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-roos-24632457/   Follow Alex Johnson:  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnsonX: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson