EYEON Fintech: Compliance Is Your Competitive Advantage in 2026

Sarah:
Welcome everyone. And thank you for joining us for another in our series of FinWise Eye on Podcasts. I’m Sarah Grotta, your host and Deputy Chief FinTech Officer at FinWise Bank. In this edition, we’re keeping an eye on how organizations and financial services are looking to really leverage their investment in compliance as a competitive advantage. And to provide us some insight on that topic, we have Dana, one of those important voices in the financial services industry right here with us at the mic. So Dana is VP, go‑to‑market strategy and customer relationships at Themis. So thank you so much for joining us today.

Dana:
Sarah, thank you so much for having me. And I’m just honored that we’re talking about compliance right at the beginning of 2026. It does. It does. I’m pretty excited.

Sarah:
It just seems right.

Well, you know, the way I wanted to kind of kick this off is to hear a little bit about your background, because, you know, with so many of us, it’s not like when we were in grade school and it was career day and we said, you know, what I want to do when I grow up is to be a bank compliance officer as my dream occupation, right? So can you give us a little insight into your career path? Because I think people will find this kind of interesting.

Dana:
Absolutely. And you know, maybe we can change that. And maybe in 2026, some child somewhere will be like, I want to be a compliance officer for a bank. But to your point.

Sarah:
Here we go.

Dana:
I had never heard about compliance officers or anything in that kind of governance space when I was younger. I graduated from college in 2003. And wow, the mortgage industry was booming at that time. I don’t know if you remember where you were in the early 2000s, but it was a very active market and I had a degree in finance. So I entered the mortgage space and I worked in that period of time where business was booming. Everyone was selling mortgages and to be honest, some of the business practices were maybe a little bit questionable, but it was just so widespread that kind of everyone was doing it.

And fast forward to maybe the end of 2007, 2008, the whole thing kind of fell apart. It was, in retrospect, maybe a combination of a lot of different factors. But at that point in time, I was working at a community bank and I saw the writing on the wall and was like, okay, I don’t know if mortgage is going to be a great long‑term home. Why don’t I do some job shadowing?

And I think the HR person was like, okay, well, do you want to go interview with finance? Do you want to go interview with lending? And then we also have this thing called internal audit, which I was like, audit — that like the IRS? Also not on the childhood career day.

And that was my entry point. I ended up being exposed to it and got some opportunity there. And that is kind of what opened my world to this whole underbelly of banking, which was the governance, the risk management and compliance side of the house.

And why I stuck with it over the years was, as I worked in internal audit and risk management and even compliance during that period where we were dealing with the impacts of the housing crash, I saw how important risk management was, how important compliance was in helping everyday people. We had people impacted during that time not getting their business loans renewed, not being able to pay the mortgage on their homes, and really just seeing the face of what could happen if there was poor risk management. So that really stuck with me.

And I also think there’s a lot of good career opportunity in these areas that, again, it’s not taught about in career day at school, but there’s a lot of good career growth.

And in 2014, I got to work for one of the early challenger neobanks called Simple. I set up an internal audit function, led their compliance, AML, all that kind of risk management type stuff, and just got absolutely hooked on being present for the building of new financial technology and also being the compliance lens in the room.

That informed everything I’ve done subsequently — working on the fintech side, leading bank‑fintech partnerships at a community bank, and then most recently joining Themis. And I just celebrated my three‑month workversary. So happy to be here.

Sarah:
Fantastic.

Fantastic. You know, I think it’s interesting how it wasn’t really the boom period necessarily that set you off on your career path. It was that timeframe of market stress that created that. I see that a lot because that’s when people need to pivot, whether it’s of their own volition or they get forced into it.

You know, I did something similar. I was working for a bank, the financial crisis hit, I went to go work for a fintech. Of course, that made plenty of sense. But it’s interesting that it’s the right time to make those kinds of decisions.

Dana:
I never thought about that.

So that was kind of your pivot.

And maybe it’s the silver lining where, whether intentional or not, it happened. For me, moving from mortgage to another type of job was the first time I realized the challenges of making a career pivot. And it was early in my career, but my experience was mortgage — how could I show I was serious about something different?

I had to get very intentional, really clear on what I wanted, and make it make sense that I could do internal audit. That was another learning and silver lining. So I have a lot of empathy for people making career pivots, because those skills can transfer very successfully. But sometimes on a resume, it doesn’t immediately click with someone who has one second to look at it.

Sarah:
Mm‑hmm. Yeah, understood.

So here you are, currently with Themis. In your role, you’re talking to banks, fintechs, and financial service providers across the industry. How should they be thinking about compliance relative to their overall business strategy?

Dana:
I think in the last couple of years we’ve had a loud drumbeat of consent orders. That really highlighted that if you don’t have successful compliance and risk management outcomes, it can materially impact your business.

As we head into 2026, we’ve also seen regulators clearly say they are open to innovation, doing things differently, and streamlining. That has raised questions around deregulation and whether compliance still matters. And my answer is: regardless of where the regulatory pendulum swings, you still need to protect your business, your customers, your brand.

There may be areas where scrutiny is rolled back, but paired with the emphasis on AI and digital assets, now is not the time to cut compliance teams or put the compliance binder in the garage. It’s time to take advantage of these opportunities in a smart way.

Sarah:
Yeah, absolutely. Compliance is your brand. I love that.

In my role in sales and marketing at FinWise, people ask if I sell compliance — and in a way, I do. Compliance makes the business resilient. It lets your platform stand the test of time, beyond the current administration and into future environments.

Dana:
Exactly. And protecting your business against things we can’t fully anticipate yet with AI and digital assets.

Sarah, I’m curious — has the conversation shifted for you? Are fintech partners valuing compliance more?

Sarah:
It really has. We now get questions from prospects asking if we’re in good standing with regulators or how we handle compliance issues. We love those questions because it signals smoother implementations.

When prospects actually value compliance, the partnership tends to work better.

Dana:
Exactly. It’s almost whiplash compared to a few years ago when speed to launch was everything. That’s not the selling point it once was.

Sarah:
True — although I still see products that look great until we dig into the details and realize they might be illegal. Sometimes we have to say no.

Do you think more consent orders are coming?

Dana:
There’s been a lot of collective learning. I think banks that’ve been doing fintech partnerships for years have learned a lot. There may still be newer entrants that haven’t. And when smaller community banks take on fintech partnerships, even if they’re under a few billion in assets, it dramatically increases complexity.

Sarah:
I agree. Some issues might not surface immediately, but they could show up years from now.

Dana:
Absolutely. I’m also very curious to see how digital assets unfold in 2026. With stablecoin legislation and proposed digital asset frameworks, boards are pushing initiatives fast — sometimes faster than the collective understanding of the risks.

That gap makes me nervous.

Sarah:
Understandably.

Dana:
That’s why compliance and risk management cannot be separated from brand or leadership responsibility.

I also wanted to discuss why compliance teams get labeled the Department of No, and how organizations can foster better collaboration.

Sarah:
Yes — that’s a great segue. Please talk about that.

Dana:
No one enjoys being audited — including me — but it doesn’t have to be adversarial. Compliance roles carry enormous responsibility, including personal liability in some cases.

Empathy matters. Tone at the top matters. Compliance officers want to collaborate but don’t want to put the bank at risk.

I’ve found success by sitting on the same side of the table as business teams, understanding their goals, and working through solutions together. Sometimes people realize the effort required and decide not to proceed — and that’s okay.

Sarah:
I completely agree. Regular communication between compliance and business teams helps bridge that gap.

Dana:
At the end of the day, we all care about avoiding negative outcomes and creating positive ones for the business.

Sarah:
Exactly. Building those relationships makes tough conversations easier.

Let’s do a quick grab bag of topics. First — the proposed 10% credit card rate cap. Thoughts?

Dana:
Honestly, I don’t even have a prediction. So much unexpected happened in 2025.

Sarah:
Fair enough.

What about fintech charters — ILCs, payments charters, or others?

Dana:
It depends on the business model. Some fintechs never need a charter. Others want more control and already have the infrastructure. For them — go get it. It’ll be fascinating to see what sticks over the next couple years.

Sarah:
Agreed.

What about open banking and Section 1033?

Dana:
It will add another layer, but until it’s final and written, I reserve judgment. Change management is the bigger challenge, and AI tools may help.

Sarah:
Makes sense.

Any final advice for 2026?

Dana:
Take care of yourself. Invest in in‑person community. Even working remotely, those face‑to‑face connections matter. It keeps everything grounded.

Sarah:
That’s great advice.

Before we wrap — where can folks find you this spring?

Dana:
I’m Portland‑based and always open to coffee. I’ll be at Acquire or Be Acquired in Phoenix, DC credit union events, and some fintech meetups — possibly even Utah.

Sarah:
Fantastic.

I really enjoyed this conversation, and I know our listeners will too. Thanks for sharing your insights.

Dana:
Thank you so much. Take care, everyone.