Global Fintech Interview with Radha Suvarna, Finastra

Radha Suvarna, Chief Product Officer of Payments at Finastra comments on the evolution of payment processing systems and how AI is making the way for more connected, intelligent methodologies in this Global Fintech interview:

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Hi Radha, share with us the highlights from your time in fintech?

With over 27 years in Banking and fintech, I’ve led product and business transformations across payments, cards, and consumer lending in both the U.S. and Asia. Currently, I serve as Chief Product Officer for Payments at Finastra, overseeing strategy and development for payment processing and financial messaging. Prior to this, I was EVP and Head of Enterprise Payments at Citizens Bank and chaired the Secure Token Exchange board at The Clearing House. I also spent over two decades at Citi in leadership roles spanning digital payments, lending, credit cards, and strategic partnerships with fintechs and big tech.

We’d love to know a little about Finastra’s platform and some of your latest product enhancements?

Finastra provides software and services to over 8,000 financial institutions (FIs), including 45 of the top 50 global banks, across lending, payments, treasury & capital markets, and universal banking. A recent example is our collaboration with Banco de Costa Rica, where we’re powering their International Trade Automation Project with our Payments To Go and Trade Innovation solutions, automating cross-border payments and trade processes to improve speed, security, and accessibility. We also recently hosted our US Payments Business Forum, where we highlighted key trends like the upcoming ISO 20022 migration deadline in July, payment infrastructure modernization, and the importance of cloud and SaaS migration, underscoring our commitment to equipping banks with the tools they need to compete in an evolving market. Our Global Payments Framework approach to modernization enables financial institutions of any size to transition from legacy systems to modular, API-driven, cloud-native payment architectures.

Finastra also closely collaborates with FIs on initiatives like FedNow and the ISO 20022 transition, efforts we’ve helped shape from the ground up as part of the Fed’s working group. This first-hand involvement allows us to support our customers with deeper insight, practical guidance, and proven solutions as they navigate the evolving real-time payments landscape and global messaging standards.

Can you share more about how payment processing systems are evolving today, how is AI impacting this?

Payment processing systems are evolving rapidly as banks move away from legacy infrastructure toward modern, cloud-based platforms that enable real-time capabilities, open APIs, and compliance with new standards. The adoption of ISO 20022 is a key milestone, providing richer, more structured data that improves payment transparency, reconciliation, and fraud prevention. At the same time, instant payment rails like FedNow are unveiling a clear split between institutions that can support real-time, 24/7 processing and those that can’t. As customer expectations for speed and transparency grow, FIs are being pushed to modernize their back-end systems, not just to send payments instantly, but to receive and process them with the same efficiency. AI is also accelerating this shift by automating manual tasks and reconciliation processes, enhancing fraud detection, and providing predictive insights to improve transaction routing and customer service. Together, these advancements are reshaping how FIs operate, driving greater efficiency, compliance, and competitiveness in a fast-moving market. Readiness is no longer optional; it’s a strategic imperative.

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What are some of the latest tech innovations in payments that have piqued your interest from around the world?

Some of the most exciting innovations in payments today center around modernization, standardization, and customer-centric solutions. A standout trend is the widespread preparation ahead of the ISO 20022 transition deadline, the global messaging standard that enables richer, more structured data in payments, improving transparency and compliance. This transition is crucial as FIs prepare for faster, more efficient cross-border and real-time payments ecosystems. At our recent US Payments Business Forum, industry leaders emphasized how banks, especially mid-tier institutions, are accelerating investments in cloud-based platforms to replace legacy systems and meet growing customer expectations for speed and seamless experiences. The forum also highlighted the importance of collaboration across fintech ecosystems to foster innovation, with a focus on moving from reactive to proactive strategies to capture corporate business spending. Ultimately, the modernization journey, powered by standards like ISO 20022 and enabled by partnerships and advanced technology, is about delivering faster, smarter, and more reliable payment experiences that keep the customer front and center and offer peace of mind.

How do you foresee the paytech and fintech landscape to shape up as technology becomes more embedded into these processes for businesses and end users?

As technology becomes increasingly embedded in paytech and fintech, we expect to see a more seamless, intelligent, and connected payments ecosystem that benefits both businesses and end users. Cloud platforms, supported by our partners like Microsoft, are enabling faster innovation cycles, greater scalability, and enhanced security. This evolution will empower businesses to automate and optimize their payment workflows while providing end users with real-time, personalized, and frictionless experiences. Moreover, collaboration across the fintech ecosystem, combining the strengths of traditional FIs, fintech startups, and technology partners, will drive new service offerings, improve financial inclusion, and accelerate the adoption of modern standards and real-time payment capabilities. Ultimately, technology will transform payments from a back-office necessity into a strategic driver of growth and customer engagement.

A few fintech innovators from around the world you’d like to shout out to in this Q&A?

We work with a number of partners, integrating their capabilities to offer value-added services that sit around payment processing. The categories include alternate cross-border payment providers like Visa Direct, Mastercard Move, and Thunes. Others offer fraud detection and sanctions screening leveraging machine learning and AI technologies, including Nice Actimize and Fincom. We are starting to look at partners who offer capabilities to include CBDCs as a method-of-payment within our Global PayPlus payment hub. We conducted a proof-of-concept with Ripple a number of years ago, and given the recent developments in this space, we are starting to look at other providers.

Five fintech takeaways you’d leave everyone in fintech with before we wrap up.

First, modernizing legacy systems by migrating to cloud-based and SaaS payment platforms is essential for staying agile and meeting ever-evolving customer expectations. Second, modernizing payment infrastructure, and driving to microservices-based architecture, is no longer optional; industry-wide initiatives like FedNow and ISO 20022 are driving the shift toward greater efficiency and future-ready systems. Third, keeping the customer at the center of innovation is critical, as speed, convenience, reliability, and transparency continue to drive adoption and loyalty. Fourth, collaboration across fintechs, banks, and technology partners is vital for building robust ecosystems that accelerate innovation and expand service offerings. Lastly, leveraging AI and automation transforms fraud prevention, operational efficiency, and personalized customer experiences, making these technologies a must-have to stay competitive in the fast-moving payments landscape.

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