Ever wonder who’s quietly rigging the game for fintech’s next big leaps?
Money20/20 Money Awards 2026 jury just got unveiled, and it’s not your garden-variety list of logos. This crew—from C-suite bankers at U.S. Bank and ING to VC heavyweights at Tiger Global and NYCA Partners—hints at a seismic recalibration. They’re not just nodding at AI pilots or blockchain buzzwords anymore. No, they’re laser-focused on stuff that scales, embeds, and actually moves money in the wild.
Look, Money20/20’s been the fintech circus where deals get done for years. But this jury? It’s their sharpest signal yet on excellence. Last year’s bash pulled entries from 41 countries, crowned 27 winners in Vegas. Now, with categories like Startup Early & Growth, Banking, Payments, Partnerships, and the crown-jewel Diamond Award, they’re expanding. Why? Because fintech’s converging—banks partnering with startups, payments dissolving into everything.
Who’s on the Money20/20 Money Awards 2026 Jury?
Jury presidents set the tone. Osama Bedier from NYCA Partners helms Startups—guy who’s backed mobile money plays that stuck. Shruti Patel, U.S. Bank’s EVP for Business Banking, leads Banking; she’s knee-deep in product fights against nimble fintechs. Dave Excell, Featurespace founder (now Visa-backed), owns Payments—fraud detection wizard in a world drowning in scams.
Then the members. Ankit Sud at NewView Capital, Sara Eadie from Tiger Global—VCs who bet big on growth stories. Blair Cohen evangelizing biometrics at Incode. CEOs like Chris Yeo of DOKU in Indonesia, Murtaza Ali running JazzCash in Pakistan. Even central bankers: Lee Chen Choong from Malaysia’s central bank. It’s global, gritty, operational.
“The Money Awards were created with a single purpose: to set a global benchmark for excellence in fintech,” said Grania Chesterton, VP of Awards at Money20/20. “What truly defines them is who’s behind the decisions. Being recognised by these Awards signals that a company’s work is making a genuine impact.”
Chesterton’s right—it’s the judges that matter. But here’s my dig: this lineup screams ‘embedded everything.’ No pure crypto bros or DeFi moonboys. Instead, operational beasts from Banorte, Absa, J.P. Morgan. They’re judging utility over unicorn vaporware.
And.
That’s the shift.
Short version: fintech’s ditching solo heroes for ecosystem glue.
Why Does This Jury Matter for Fintech Founders?
Founders, listen up. Entries hit a multi-stage grind—independent scores, then jury huddles. Fair? Transparent? They claim merit-based. But with presidents like Bedier—who’s seen startups flame out on hype—this jury won’t touch your MVP without proven traction.
Take the Startup category. Gwera Kiwana from Sling Money (cross-border remittances), Monika Liikamaa building Enfuce (card issuing as-a-service). They’re not theorists. They’ve shipped. Prediction: expect winners in B2B payments rails, bank-fintech hybrids. Why? Because that’s where VCs like Visa Kannan at Saison Capital are deploying amid Asia’s boom.
Banking jury? Daniele Tonella, ING’s CTO—bank that’s rewired core systems for APIs. Rafael Fragoso at Banorte, Latin America’s digital banking surge. They’re eyeing partners who fix legacy pains, not disrupt for disruption’s sake.
Payments side—Gary Conroy’s TransferMate does global FX at scale. Iana Dimitrova’s OpenPayd virtual accounts for Europe. Paul Meng’s SUN? Cross-border B2B. Fraud fighters like Tamas Kadar at SEON. It’s all about pipes that don’t leak.
But here’s the unique angle nobody’s yelling about yet—a parallel to the early Webby Awards in ‘96. Back then, Tim Berners-Lee types judged not flash sites, but ones that worked across browsers, scaled users. Money20/20’s doing the same for money: not sexy tokens, but rails that banks and startups co-own. Bold call: this jury births the ‘Finweb Consortium’ era, where awards crown collaborative kings, not lone wolves. By 2028, Diamond winners? They’ll be the architects of universal payment APIs.
Skeptical? Fair. Money20/20’s no outsider—it’s Informa’s beast, tied to the industry. Jury’s insider-heavy (how many pure disruptors?). Still, their track record—hundreds of entries vetted—lends cred. Corporate spin? Sure, but the roster’s too diverse for pure fluff.
Is the Money Awards 2026 Jury Too Bank-Heavy?
Glance down: U.S. Bank, ING, J.P. Morgan, Absa, Banorte. Central banks even. Startups get Bedier, but banking/payments presidents from incumbents. Why the tilt? Fintech’s maturing—90% fail on distribution, not tech. These judges know channels, regs, scale.
Critique their PR: ‘global powerhouse’—yeah, but mostly English-speaking power centers. DOKU, JazzCash add EM flavor, yet Africa’s Tendai Dube (Absa) fights uphill. Prediction: underrepresented regions like MENA or deep Africa submit bolder, snag upsets.
Wander a bit—remember TechCrunch Disrupt? Early judges hyped moonshots; winners often busted. Money20/20 learned: operational heft first. That’s why entries exploded last year.
Deep dive on process. Independent scoring weeds weak hands. Jury deliberates—clash of views from VCs (growth obsession) vs bankers (risk aversion). Sparks fly, real winners emerge.
Expansions? New categories nod to partnerships—think banks allying with fintechs on embedded finance. Diamond? Transformative, global-scale. Expect climate fintech or AI-risk tools, but only if they deploy.
So, ecosystem players: submit if you’ve got pilots turning profit. Hype alone? Pass.
This jury’s architecture exposes fintech’s pivot—from ‘move fast, break things’ to ‘integrate deep, scale safe.’ Incumbents aren’t dinosaurs; they’re the new APIs. Startups win by plugging in.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What are the categories for Money20/20 Money Awards 2026? Startup Early & Growth Stage, Banking, Payments, Partnerships & Strategic Alliance, and the Diamond Award for top transformation.
Who are the jury presidents for The Money Awards 2026? Osama Bedier (NYCA Partners) for Startups, Shruti Patel (U.S. Bank) for Banking, Dave Excell (Featurespace/Visa) for Payments.
How do entries get judged in Money Awards 2026? Multi-stage: independent scoring first, then jury collaboration for fair, merit-based picks.
