Speakers

Laura Gibson-Lamothe is an accomplished technology and operations executive with over 18 years of experience in the banking, finance, and financial technology industries. She is the Executive Director of the Georgia Fintech Academy, a talent development collaboration between the University System of Georgia (USG), Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business, and all USG institutions.

As the Executive Director of the Georgia Fintech Academy, Laura oversees a comprehensive talent development initiative. The academy, based at Georgia State University’s Robinson College of Business, offers core curriculum offerings accessible to students at 26 USG colleges and universities. It encompasses academic talent development, experiential learning through student projects, job placement assistance, professional development opportunities, and innovation-driven research.

The Georgia Fintech Academy has made significant strides in educating and preparing students for careers in the financial services industry. More than 5,500 students from USG institutions have benefited from the academy’s programs, and over 1,800 students have been placed in financial services jobs.

Before joining the Georgia Fintech Academy, Laura worked at Protiviti, a global consulting firm specializing in the finance industry. As a leader in the firm’s payments consulting practice, she demonstrated her expertise in driving technology initiatives for financial institutions. Before that, Laura led U.S. Operations for Featurespace, an award-winning fraud and risk management platform headquartered in the UK. Her responsibilities encompassed strategic growth and business operations across North and Latin America.

Laura has shown a passion for technology-driven solutions and innovation throughout her career. She has successfully implemented complex, multi-channel technology solutions focusing on profitability, growth, and customer satisfaction. Her notable achievements include supporting high-profile mergers at Bank of America, contributing to the enterprise transition during the legacy Wachovia-Wells Fargo acquisition, and pivotal in launching a co-branded credit card product at Ally Bank, a renowned digital bank.

Laura’s expertise extends beyond her domain knowledge in banking and financial technology. She has a strong background in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Currently serving on the board of directors of PayTech Women (formerly Wnet), she actively contributes to fostering an inclusive environment within the fintech industry. She is also a board member of LaAmistad, a non-profit preparing Latino students and families for success through academic and life enrichment programs. In 2021, she was selected as a member of Money 20/20’s RiseUp program, which focuses on empowering inclusivity in leadership.

Laura Gibson-Lamothe’s extensive experience, passion for technology-driven innovation, commitment to diversity and inclusion, and dedication to talent development make her a remarkable leader in the fintech industry. Her contributions to her professional field and the community continue to shape the future of finance and empower individuals to achieve their fullest potential.

He has worked for large organizations like Citi, managing one of the largest credit card portfolios in the world, Intel, launching their graphics chip business, and Google, working on Google Wallet, as well for multiple startups with multiple exits.

He is an investor/advisor in several startups including TripleBlind, Tilli Software, Tutored by Teachers, MPOWER Financing, Hypercard, Silicon Islands, Draper Startup House Caricom, and Impact Analytics.

Sanjib has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management as well as Bachelors and Masters in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University, where he built lasers, electric cars, hi-fi audio systems, and AI systems for ECGs classification.

Thad Peterson is a senior analyst with Aite Group, focusing on the evolution of the payment space, the customer payment experience, and merchant acquiring.

Recognized as a global thought leader in payments, Thad has a proven track record of identifying and developing new opportunities and technologies in payments and financial services. He has relevant expertise in applying customer behavior to the payments ecosystem in both corporate and startup environments. Thad’s consulting background includes engagements on credit and debit cards, mobile payments, airline payment platforms, consumer and merchant loyalty, payment technology evolution, stored value, and product innovation. He holds patents in customer authentication and real-time mobile-enabled loyalty.

Prior to joining Aite Group, Thad led the mobile commerce practice at inCode Consulting and was managing director of Maritz Real-Time Rewards, leading the company’s mission to build a new industry standard at the nexus of transactional marketing and consumer engagement. While at Maritz, he also served as a division vice president, sector strategy, heading up strategy and solutions development for Maritz’s financial sector. Before joining Maritz, Thad was a partner with global financial services and payments firm Edgar, Dunn & Company, where he led the retail banking, loyalty, and emerging technology practice areas, working with retail banks, card issuers and processors, airline consortiums, new payment technology providers, payment associations, and prepaid card issuers. Thad has also worked as a C-level executive at retail banks and held positions in advertising and customer communications.

Thad served as an officer in the U.S. Navy for four years and holds a degree in Special Education from the University of Idaho.

Joshua Silver is founder and CEO of Rainforest, a Payments-as-a-service company that helps software platforms monetize payments and create robust financial experiences without onerous risk and compliance burdens.

Silver is a payments veteran and expert on credit card processing, ACH origination, remittance handling, alternative payments, payment facilitation, startup growth, and product development.

Prior, Silver founded LaunchPath Group, which advised software companies on payments strategies. Frustrated with the lack of providers that offered software platforms excellent service, reasonable pricing and fair contract terms, he launched Rainforest.

Earlier on, Silver co-founded VC-backed Patientco, which built a robust patient payments platform for health systems. It served 30 million+ patients and processed billions of dollars annually before a successful exit.

Silver is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology with a BS in Computer Science and lives in Atlanta.

Innovation Challenge Showcase
June 14 | 3:45PM | Room 205