Episode description

Lex chats with  Luke Voiles, the CEO of Pipe - a modern capital platform built to connect business owners to fast, frictionless, dilution-free funding. Luke kicks off discussing his experience in the FinTech industry. He talks about his transition from being an investor to working in FinTech. Luke shares his background in distressed credit investing and how it led him to focus on lending money to other lenders. He then discusses his role at Intuit, where he helped build QuickBooks Capital and gained valuable experience in tech, leadership, and product development. Luke also talks about his time at Square and Square Banking, where he learned about being a true CEO and P&L owner. He then joined Pipe and discusses the stage at which the company was when he joined and the core concept of revenue-based financing. Luke explains the differences between revenue-based financing, invoice factoring, and other fixed income instruments. He also talks about the pivot that Pipe made and the focus on Pipe Capital as a service. Luke discusses the importance of platforms and embedded finance in reaching small businesses and explains how Pipe works with SaaS vertical software providers. He emphasizes the value of giving small businesses access to credit and criticizes other FinTechs that have made mistakes in scaling their businesses. Luke concludes by providing contact information for himself and Pipe.

MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION

Pipe's Website: https://bit.ly/3WGQrJN

Luke's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/4dpDh9P

Topics: Fintech, revenue-based finance, embedded finance, unicorn, SaaS, entrepreneur, lending, capital

Tags: Pipe, Square, Stripe, PayPal, Intuit, OnDeck, Alloy, Increase

ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT

🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2

🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV

👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin

TIMESTAMPS

1’07: From Distressed Credit to FinTech Leadership: Luke's Journey from Sixth Street Partners to Intuit and Beyond

7’17: Square Banking and the Evolution of Leadership: Navigating Single-Threaded and Functional Structures

14’53: Pipe's Transformation: Joining and Steering one of the Fastest Unicorns in History

18’46: Understanding Revenue-Based Financing: Defining Factoring, Merchant Cash Advances, and More

26’39: The Power of Storytelling: How Pipe's Vision and Innovation Led to Unicorn Status

28’39: Pivoting Pipe: Adapting Strategy and Overcoming Growth Challenges

37’25: The Future of Small Business Banking: Embedded Finance and SaaS Vertical Platforms

41’35: Navigating Regulatory Challenges: Pipe's Embedded Finance and Compliance Strategy

46’23: The channels used to connect with Luke & learn more about Pipe

Disclaimer here — this newsletter does not provide investment advice and represents solely the views and opinions of FINTECH BLUEPRINT LTD.

Contributors: Lex, Laurence, Matt, Farhad, Mike, Daniella

Want to discuss? Stop by our Discord and reach out here with questions.