In this episode of tell.talks, we're joined by Jim Wadsworth, Chief Revenue Officer at Invela and former leader of Mastercard's open banking strategy. As open banking evolves into open finance, innovation continues to accelerate. But while the industry focuses on growth, who is taking responsibility for risk?

Jim shares why fragmented accountability, complex third-party ecosystems and inconsistent risk management could become one of the biggest challenges facing the industry.

From trust and liability to regulation and collective responsibility, he explores what happens when innovation moves faster than the safeguards designed to protect it.

Could a single major incident undermine years of progress?

Twenty years ago, fintech looked completely different.

Before smartphones, instant payments and digital wallets, payments relied on cheques, manual reconciliation and physical currency.

Rob Darby from IDT Finance joins tell.talks to discuss how the industry evolved from prepaid cards into modern fintech, why consumer expectations changed everything, and why strong foundations still matter in an industry obsessed with speed.

We also discuss:

• how the payments landscape changed after the iPhone
• why disruption alone isn’t enough
• the importance of timing in fintech
• how partnerships create longevity
• and what 20 years in payments teaches you about building sustainable businesses

Cash is disappearing, only 9% of UK retail transactions are now cash, and the workers who've always relied on tips are quietly losing out. Hotel cleaners, gym trainers, bar staff, mechanics: people giving great service in industries where there's no bill at the end to add a tip to.

In this episode of tell.talks, Alan Smith, CEO of Rebel Tip, joins David to explain why he's built a digital tipping platform that bypasses employers entirely and goes straight to the worker. 100% of the tip, no POS integration, no admin overhead, it's just a QR code in an Apple or Google Wallet.

Alan argues that hospitality tipping isn't broken, the bill works fine. It's everywhere else that needs fixing. We get into the rise of the "tippler society," why pooled tipping drags strong performers down, what's gone wrong with tipping culture in America, and why a fintech background matters when you're navigating FCA rules, card scheme compliance, and client money regulation behind a deliberately simple consumer product.

Topics covered: digital tipping, cashless economy, fintech UK, worker-first payments, QR code payments, FCA compliance, embedded finance, service economy, hospitality vs gig economy tipping.

Listen to tell.talks for honest conversations with the people shaping the our digital economy.