Blythe Masters, Founding Partner at Motive Partners — On the evolution of financial services
In today’s episode, I host Blythe Masters, Founding Partner at Motive Partners. Having had the pleasure of working with Blythe at Motive Partners this summer, I can guarantee this is will be a fascinating conversation.
In this episode, we discuss Blythe’s career that spans three decades within financial services. She discusses pivotal moments, from navigating through major mergers and market upheavals to becoming a mother at an early age. Addressing the evolving landscape of financial services, she delves into the transformative impact of AI and technology on Motive’s investment thesis, portfolio companies and day-to-day operations. Her experiences and observations provide a unique perspective on the industry’s past, present, and future.
Check out the episode on Spotify | SoundCloud | Apple
It would be inappropriate for me to rephrase Blythe’s words, as she expressed it most effectively. Here’s a preview of what you can anticipate in this conversation:
On her own career:
“I became a better mum for having a job throughout the period of being a parent… I evolved into being a better worker and coworker and probably boss for having been a mum at a young age because I had to learn the art of compromise.”
On career advice:
“Not every career zig and zag takes you linearly on a path to greatness, but what they do is teach you capacity to learn, to lead through change and to recognize that it’s part of the process — so embrace it rather than fear it”
On why financial services matter:
“Ultimately, financial services exist to drive capital, which ultimately is people’s savings into productive uses in the hands of firms that can productively use that capital. And that translates into growth, jobs, better products for consumers, choice, employability, tax dollars, and the ability for the public sector to fund the things that it needs to do.”
On what’s changed in financial services:
“A lot has changed. A lot has not changed. Financial services still fundamentally serve the same economic purpose. They do it with more efficiency, but they remain inefficient.”
On generative AI:
“This is going to be as significant a tipping point for the industry as the advent of the internet and mobile computing.”
About Blythe Masters
Blythe Masters joined Motive Partners in 2019 and is a Founding Partner. At Motive, Blythe sources and executes investment opportunities with a focus on strategy and growth for Motive portfolio companies, through her extensive experience as a financial services and technology executive. Blythe is Chair of Motive Ventures, the early-stage investment capability at Motive Partners.
Prior to joining Motive, Blythe was the CEO of Digital Asset Holdings, the leading enterprise blockchain fintech company responsible for the Australian Securities Exchange’s ground-breaking post-trade infrastructure replacement project. Previously, Blythe was a member of the Corporate and Investment Bank Operating Committee and firmwide Executive Committee at J.P. Morgan. Her J.P. Morgan career spanned 27 years, fulfilling several roles including head of global commodities, head of corporate and investment bank regulatory affairs, CFO of the investment bank, head of global credit portfolio and credit policy and strategy, and head of structured credit. Blythe is a graduate and Senior Scholar of Trinity College, Cambridge where she received a B.A. in Economics.
About Motive Partners
Motive Partners is a specialist private equity firm with offices in New York City, London and Berlin, focusing on growth equity and buyout investments in software and information services companies based in North America and Europe and serving five primary subsectors: Banking & Payments, Capital Markets, Data & Analytics, Investment Management and Insurance. Motive Partners brings differentiated expertise, connectivity and capabilities to create long-term value in financial technology companies. For more information, please visit www.motivepartners.com
About the Author
Rhea Advani is an MBA Candidate at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Rhea started her career at Barclays Investment Bank before transitioning to operating roles at Revolut and DoorDash. Her interest in fintech stems from her experiences across traditional financial services, neobanking, and technology, which has revealed numerous opportunities for innovation within the sector. Please reach out with questions, comments, feedback and opportunities at radvani@wharton.upenn.edu.
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