Remitly CEO Matt Oppenheimer to speak at Bank Innovation Ignite

Matt Oppenheimer, CEO and co-founder of Remitly, will speak at Bank Innovation Ignite on March 2-3 in Seattle on a panel titled “Embedded finance: The automation of everything financial.” It will focus on bringing together divergent products, the role of humans and the effects of automation.

Before Remitly, Oppenheimer spent nearly two years at Barclays, including 11 months as the head of mobile and internet banking initiatives at Barclays Bank Kenya. After seeing firsthand how difficult it can be to send money overseas, he co-founded Remitly in Seattle in 2011.

“Because I joined [Barclays] in the U.K., I was getting paid in British pounds, living off Kenyan shillings and had to get money back in U.S. dollars,” Oppenheimer recently told Bank Innovation. “What was more painful and complex was the fact that a lot of my Kenyan friends were getting their basic living expenses from remittances.”

Since Oppenheimer co-founded the remittance startup, it has grown to a company that moves $6 billion in funds a year, up from $1 billion in 2016. Remitly has about 1,000 employees working in offices in Seattle, London, the Philippines and Nicaragua. The company raised $220 million this summer to expand its global reach and financial services. Customers can send from 16 countries to recipients in 44 countries. 

Bank Innovation Ignite, which will take place on March 2-3 in Seattle, is a must-attend industry event for professionals overseeing financial technologies, product experiences and services. Other agenda items include brainstorming the next big fintech idea, lessons from big tech and the future of banking customer experience. This is an exclusive, invitation-only event for executives eager to learn about the latest innovations. Request your invitation.