Bud Financial has announced the appointment of two new senior leaders aimed at boosting their commercial growth and product innovation. The AI-powered data intelligence platform, which serves the financial services and banking industry, welcomes Rachel Fairhurst as VP of Credit Risk & Client Success, and Jakub Piotrowski as VP of Product.
Fairhurst brings over two decades of extensive experience in senior credit roles to Bud Financial. Her previous engagements span across Bank of America, Auden, Equifax, and Credit Kudos. Her role in Bud will be focused on driving the strategy and success of the company's Assess solution. This solution empowers clients in the financial services sector to bolster their affordability, enhance credit scoring and decisioning processes, and reduce risk across their portfolios, ultimately improving client experiences.
Equally passionate about financial inclusion, Fairhurst will work alongside the product department, led by newcomer Jakub Piotrowski. Piotrowski steps into the role of VP of Product with considerable experience as a commercially-focused product leader, having spent six years in the C-Suite at Meniga, a provider of digital banking solutions. He is tasked with expanding Bud's suite of AI-powered financial insights and data intelligence solutions, ensuring that the company continues its trajectory as a leading innovator in the sector.
Ed Maslaveckas, CEO, and George Dunning, COO, lead Bud’s strategy along with a stellar lineup of tech and finance experts with the goal to drive the company's hypergrowth ambitions and enhance their AI-powered data intelligence offerings. The firm's growth is powered by a strategic investment from TransUnion in 2023, following a robust Series B performance the previous year, securing $80m from an impressive group including HSBC, Goldman Sachs, Investecs INVC fund, ANZ, and InnoCells.
Speaking about her new role, Rachel Fairhurst says, "I'm very pleased to be joining a company I've long admired for its dedication to using open banking technology as the springboard for fairer, more accurate, and more accessible lending. Helping our clients to deploy and reap the full value of our solutions is one of my key priorities. I'm also excited to work with the product and commercial teams, bringing my passion for thriving high-performing teams into the strategic roadmap."
Jakub Piotrowski mirrored her sentiments, saying, "As the possibilities of AI and its applications in fintech grow, it's an exciting time to be joining one of the sector's forerunners. Bud is a highly ambitious innovator and it's a great pleasure to work towards achieving some truly game-changing goals with such an impressive team."
Over the last five years, Bud has made significant strides in the development and application of AI, machine learning, and natural language processing in banking and financial services. With over 50 billion transactions processed, Bud's capabilities unlock a wealth of insights for its clients, refining customer segmentation, improving marketing efforts, risk assessment, decision-making, and optimising business operations.