Inaugural Women in Fintech Awards -Paisabazaar Fintegrate Zone 2019

The 3rd edition of Fintegrate Zone had several new elements, compared to previous years; and none more-so than the “Women in FinTech” track that included a Demo Night and an awards ceremony.  The Women in FinTech Awards (WIFA) in particular, aspires to raise awareness around women’s contribution to the ecosystem, and encouraging other women to bring a real change.

Amidst a gathering of over 1,000 participants, including 180 speakers, over 50  leading corporates, 100-plus emerging fintechs, and several international delegates; Women in Fintech space making a dent in the ecosystem were recognized. The categories of WIFA includes entrepreneurs, industry leaders, investors, ecosystem enablers and policy makers. The awards were presided over by Naveen Surya, Chairman Emeritus, Payments Council of India and Annie Dube, Consul General of Canada in Mumbai.

The awardees were chosen from an application and nomination process that was vetted through a two-level process, covering their application and a research on their contribution to the ecosystem.

Here is the  list of the influential “Women in Fintech”:

1. Chirutha Dalal, Co-Founder, Pay1
2. Khushboo Jain, Co-Founder, Imapact Guru
3. Lizzie Chapman, Co-Founder and CEO, Zest Money
4. Mabel Chacko, Co-Founder and COO, Open
5. Meghna Suryakumar, Founder and CEO, Crediwatch
6. Priyanka Kanwar, Founder and Director, Kite
7. Sayali Karanjkar, Co-Founder, Paysense
8. Shweta Aprameya, Co-Founder, Happy
9. Simmi Sareen, Founder and CEO, Loans4ME
10. Sucharita Mukherjee, Co-founder and CEO, Kaleidofin
11. Chetna Sinha, Founder, Mann Deshi
12. Smita Aggarwal, Director-Investments, Omidyar Network
13. Julie Lake, CEO/Co-Founder, Fintech50
14. Mirna Seiman, Founder and CEO, Fintech Galaxy
15. Suniti Nanda, FinTech Officer, Government of Maharashtra
16. Radhika Binani, Chief Product Officer, Paisabazaar.com
17. Smita Bhagat, Senior Executive Vice President, HDFC Bank
18. Sujatha Mohan, Head-Digital and New Initiatives, RBL Bank
19. Tina Singh,Chief Digital Officer, Mahindra Finance
20. Shanti Mohan, Cofounder, LetsVenture

Says Annie Dube, Consul General of Canada in Mumbai “

“Canada continues to support the very dynamic and successful EMPOWER program, which is India’s 1st technology accelerator focused on women entrepreneurs. I was really happy to meet & felicitate all the winners of the Women in Fintech awards last evening. Canada is a world leader and a hub for innovation and technology, especially in financial technology and artificial intelligence. We are excited to be sponsoring Fintegrate Zone, India’s largest FinTech conclave, as an opportunity to bring the Canadian and Indian ecosystems together.  I am confident this event will advance collaboration between Indian and Canadian businesses. I look forward to witnessing more Indian companies investing in Canada, as well as increasing the role of innovation in advancing shared bilateral goals between both countries.”

“Wonderful and inspiring to be part of a forum like Fintegrate Zone solidly backing women with dreams and ambition. Its great to be part of this super accomplished group of women in fintech, many of us working with and supporting each other. Too few women working in fintech space in India, initiatives like Women in Fintech will certainly encourage others to bring their perspectives, play pivotal role in shaping the industry ” says Sucharita Mukherjee, Co-founder and CEO, Kaleidofin.