Prepaid Financial Services: One of the World’s Leading FinTechs
Already in 2019, Noel Moran, Chief Executive Officer at Prepaid Financial Services has been honoured with three CEO awards, two of which are international. The current European Entrepreneur of the Year was showcased at the prestigious World Economic Forum meeting in Davos in January. His company, PFS, is one of the world’s leading FinTechs. Recently, it acquired the Barclays prepaid portfolio in what can only be interpreted as a power payments industry move.
You recently reported on a 30% increase in employee numbers – in what ways do you encourage this growth at Prepaid Financial Services (PFS)?
Imagine having a birds-eye view within PFS’ four offices in three countries. There is a dazzling amount of activity in an environment that is literally buzzing with life. The Malta Development team in PFS’ vibrant tech labs have just moved into a stunning new landmark building in the FinTech-friendly island nation in the Mediterranean. The increase in business being experienced by the company continues to gain pace. This has created an urgent need for more staff. PFS is currently busily hiring another 50 new staff for an immediate start date. The sky is the limit for a company that has successfully recorded 10 consecutive years of profits – one of the only FinTechs ever to do so.
“PFS is a fast-paced, innovative, dynamic organisation. We have a broad client base and we are experiencing rapid growth levels. In a complicated ecosystem, we aim to constantly develop the capabilities within the business to deliver world-class client solutions to the FinTech sector. A clear competitive advantage and strength is our ability to deliver solutions to clients quickly. We are constantly looking at ways to improve performance and processes across the entire organisation using a structured and systematic approach,” said Steven Dillon, Head of Software Development at PFS.
Of what importance is female leadership to PFS? How do you facilitate this, especially in the field of tech?
PFS walks its talk in relation to the global Women In Tech conversation. Valerie Moran, Head of Operations & Client Relations at PFS says it best. “On International Women’s Day, we revealed that one of our Development Teams is comprised of 66% women. I would love to see these stats replicated across Tech and FinTech.”
In addition, PFS’s CFO is Suzanne Dunne. Chief Financial Officer is the highlight of her career following previous roles as a Financial Controller and a Group Financial Controller. “What I like is that there are universal themes in finance, and it is all about the process. I am thrilled to be here. I have known Noel and Valerie Moran and Lee Britton just a short time, but my goodness, I find them amazing and I have so much to learn from them. I look forward to an exciting 2019 with the entire PFS family. This company just keeps steaming forward.”
An inclusive ethos is also evident internally. PFS’ percentage of ethnic females versus the total number of female employees is close to 40%. The Financial Times inaugural “FT Future 100” 2018 list highlighted PFS’ impact in the sector with the qualitative categories code “ESG” – denoting companies seeking to make a positive impact via their Environmental, Social and Governance policies, or promoting diversity, or disrupting their industry. Also on International Women’s Day, PFS’ female PR & Comms lead, Marie O’Riordan, was listed as the No.2 Female Game Changer in Ireland and happens to be a double minority working in the company.
PFS plans to launch an IPO on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM in Q4 2019. This could revolutionise the timeline of the already hot FinTech.
