Happy July, and welcome back to Fintech & Friends!
After a few months’ hiatus following a gnarly surgery, it’s so good to be back in the saddle with a new and exciting fintech CEO showcase.
If you’ve ever run a small business, then you know one thing—cash flow isn’t just king, it’s everything. And for small businesses, it’s not just how much money you’re making, but how fast you’re able to get your hands on your cold, hard cash.
But what if small businesses didn’t have to wait months, weeks or even days for money to hit the account? To say this would be life-changing would be an understatement, especially considering that cash flow is easily the number one problem that fintech has yet to solve systematically for SMBs.
Luckily, that’s the problem that my guest, Ariel Blum, is tackling head-on.
Ariel is the founder and CEO of Receive, a modern, earned revenue access platform built for small- and medium-sized businesses. VC-backed and shaped by decades of fintech experience at places like American Express, Green Dot, and Melio, Ariel’s vision is simple yet bold—real-time access to the money you’ve already earned, for free.
(Yes. Really.)
Ariel and I had a meaningful conversation around the struggles that small businesses face, and why it’s so critical to solve the cash flow crisis. This episode was the perfect mashup of fintech innovation, purpose-driven leadership, and a shared love for supporting the SMBs that keep our economy rolling. We discuss his early days as a DJ, the lessons he learned about small business pain points from his hustle, and how legacy financial institutions are finally being forced to step up or step aside.
We also get into:
Why traditional financial products are failing small business owners
What “programmable money” actually means (and why it’s the future)
How Receive is helping underserved founders—including immigrants, women, and non-FICO-friendly entrepreneurs—scale even faster
And why access to cash isn’t just about fintech—it’s about equity.
This is one of my favorite conversations to date because it captures the essence of Fintech and Friends and my own, personal mission within it—to highlight founders who are using financial technology to unlock real freedom for the people who need it the most.
Give the episode a listen and let me know what you think! And of course, if you're a small business owner, I’d love to hear if cash flow has ever been your biggest pain point (because been there, done that!)
Check out the links below to connect with Ariel, learn more about Receive and support fintechs making it happen for SMBs
And of course, if you’ve not yet subscribed to Fintech & Friends, you know what to do!
Until next time,
Jenny
Learn more about Receive:
🌐 nowreceive.com
📩 ariel@receivecorp.com
🔗 Connect with Ariel on LinkedIn
