In an interview with The Fintech Times for its special Money20/20 edition, Galileo CEO Derek White explains how Galileo empowers creators and innovators to expand the financial frontier.
Helping people connect to their money has always been a passion for Galileo Financial Technologies CEO Derek White. In fact, it’s one of the reasons he took the helm of the Salt Lake City-based payments and fintech innovator in June 2021.
“My first real interaction with money was from the first business I started as a kid. My father was unemployed, and I handed over my paycheck as the only income for our family outside of unemployment," White says. “That was a pretty sobering experience. It had a huge impact on me and has been a big driver in my career and why I’ve focused on how to better connect people with their money."
As a veteran of global banking and ex-head of Google Cloud's financial services business, White brings an international perspective to his new role as well as an eagerness to help entrepreneurs and innovators build financial experiences that connect people and their money in unique and powerful new ways.
Galileo's platform and comprehensive, flexible APIs power some of the world's most successful fintechs with combined valuations exceeding $111 billion. Clients use the company's open APIs for everything from digital onboarding of new customers to restricting spend down to the individual merchant location level.
BUILDING THE FUTURE
Making dreams into reality is Galileo's speciality, with a platform that enables creators and, indeed, dreamers, to translate their ideas into sustainable businesses that solve problems and meet the evolving needs of consumers and businesses alike. “Galileo is for innovators who want to expand the financial frontier and build a better financial future for underserved populations or people who identify with a specific cause, or who want to embed financial services into their broader customer experience,” says White.
The platform offers a single connection to more than 55 endpoints of the financial services ecosystem—to networks, issuing banks, KYC providers, mobile wallets and more. By removing the complexity and lowering barriers to entry, Galileo lets these financial innovators build businesses that fulfill their mission and engage their customers in meaningful ways.
Read the entire issue.
Is SoFi’s Galileo the Future of Embedded Finance?
The embedded finance sector is experiencing unprecedented growth, projected to continue growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.8% through 2029. Leading the charge is Galileo, the B2B financial services arm of SoFi Technologies.
Debit Rewards Surge as Consumers Shift Spending Preferences
Debit rewards programs, which were significantly reduced by as much as 50% immediately after the Durbin Amendment capped fees on debit card payments, are now seeing new life. This comeback is fueled by the continued rise of debit as a preferred spending method.
Galileo Transforms SoFi Into the Backbone of Embedded Finance
Galileo, the B2B financial services arm of SoFi Technologies, Inc. SOFI, is emerging as a key engine of growth in the rapidly expanding embedded finance market. By offering seamless payment and lending integrations, Galileo enables financial and non-financial firms to embed banking capabilities directly into their platforms.
Virtual Cards Are Gaining Ground. Here’s What Banks Must Do Next
This shift highlights growing comfort with digital-first payments. But while usage is climbing, many banks and financial institutions still struggle to explain why virtual cards matter and how consumers can benefit from them.
One-Tap Payment Switch Gives Banks the Edge in Account Primacy
Prashant Shah, VP of product management at Galileo Financial Technologies, challenged the PYMNTS audience to remember a recent bill paying experience where updating a subscription meant having to chase down Netflix or Amazon — even the local power company — to log into each individual site to update payment details.
