Lissele Pratt is a driven entrepreneur with over eight years of experience in the financial services industry, specializing in fintech and payments. As the co-founder of Capitalixe, a rapidly growing fintech consultancy, she helps medium to high-risk industries secure market-leading fintech, payments, and banking solutions.
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The fintech industry is built on disruption, yet many of its structures still reflect the old-world biases of traditional finance. While progress has been made, women in fintech continue to face challenges in leadership, funding, and equal opportunities.
In this exclusive interview, Lissele Pratt, the founder of Capitalixe, shares her journey into fintech, the obstacles she overcame, and her mission to make financial services more inclusive—not just for businesses but for the women driving the industry forward.
From addressing the gender pay gap to challenging outdated workplace norms, she offers sharp insights into how fintech can lead the way in reshaping financial services for everyone.
On International Women’s Day, her message is clear: real change happens when we stop waiting for permission and start building something better.
R: What inspired you to pursue a career in fintech, and what were some of the biggest challenges you faced as a woman entering the industry?
L: I noticed a huge gap in the market. High-risk industries were being shut out of financial services, not because they were doing anything wrong, but because traditional banks didn’t understand their business models or didn’t want to deal with the complexity. These companies had massive potential but couldn’t access the banking and payments solutions they needed to grow. That didn’t sit right with me.
Of course, launching a fintech business as a young woman wasn’t exactly easy. This industry is still a boys’ club in many ways. I’ve had people assume I wasn’t the founder. I’ve walked into meetings where the credibility gap was obvious before I even spoke. But instead of letting that push me out, I made it part of my mission. Capitalixe is also about creating a space where women in fintech don’t have to fight twice as hard to be taken seriously. More than half of our leadership team are women.
Talent, ambition, and leadership aren’t gendered, but opportunity too often is. I wanted to build a company where women didn’t have to prove themselves ten times over just to get a seat at the table. I also mentor women breaking into the industry and speak up about the inequalities that still exist. I want to see more women in leadership, more female founders getting funded, and a fintech world that actually reflects the people it serves. If the system wasn’t built for us, then we build something better.
R: The gender pay gap remains a major issue in many industries, including finance and technology. From your perspective, how can fintech contribute to closing this gap and creating more opportunities for women?
L: The gender pay gap is still a massive problem, and honestly the fintech industry isn’t off the hook or immune to it. But if any industry can change things, it’s this one.
Fintech was built to shake up old systems, to innovate and do things differently. Traditional finance was designed by men, for men. That outdated way of thinking doesn’t belong here. This is a chance to build companies where pay is based on talent, not gender, and where women have the same shot at leadership, funding, and big opportunities.
But none of this happens by accident. More female-led startups need funding. More companies need to stop just talking about pay transparency and actually make it standard. More women need to be in boardrooms, making the calls.
Fintech has the power to drive that change. AI is already cutting bias out of hiring and salaries. Decentralized finance is opening up access to capital without the usual gatekeepers. And remote work? That’s already changing the game, making it easier for women to build serious careers without being boxed in by outdated corporate rules.
This is about building smarter, stronger businesses. The companies that get this will lead the future of fintech. The ones that don’t will likely be left behind.
R: As an entrepreneur, what have been the most valuable lessons you’ve learned along the way, and what advice would you give to women who want to build their own businesses?
L: The biggest lesson I’ve learned as an entrepreneur is that you don’t scale to millions just by grinding harder. You scale through systems, people, and positioning. Hustle culture will burn you out. Smart strategy and the right team will take you further than sheer effort ever could.
Trust your intuition. It knows what your mind doesn’t. Some of my best business decisions came from a gut feeling before I even had the logic to back them up.
And most importantly, choose your people wisely. The right people will elevate you, push you, and expand your vision. The wrong ones will drain you and keep you small. Build your empire with those who want to see it grow, not those who want to control it.
To women looking to start their own businesses: You are more capable than you think, and the world needs what you have to offer. Dream big, move boldly, and never dim your light to make others comfortable.
R: Many women in finance and technology face unconscious bias and barriers to leadership. Have you encountered these challenges, and what changes do you think need to happen to create a more inclusive industry?
L: Absolutely, I’ve encountered it. Every woman in this space has. Being talked over. Being second-guessed. Saying something in a meeting, only for a man to repeat it five minutes later and suddenly it’s a brilliant idea. The constant need to prove competence in ways men never have to can be exhausting, but also predictable.
To change this, I’d start by putting more women in actual decision-making roles. Women deserve more than a seat at the table, they need a voice that’s actually heard. That means putting them in leadership roles, not just middle management. It means stopping the cycle of hiring and promoting the same type of people while calling it merit.
Also, men in the industry need to do better. Speak up when a woman is ignored or interrupted. Amplify her ideas. Make room at the table instead of just saying you support equality. Bias won’t disappear overnight, but that doesn’t mean we sit back and accept it.
R: Data shows that one of the reasons women earn less is that they are more likely to take career breaks or work part-time due to caregiving responsibilities. If we strive for true parity in our professions, do you think women still have to choose between family and career?
L: I don’t believe that women earn less because they take career breaks. Women earn less because workplaces weren’t designed for them in the first place. The system assumes that when kids come along, it’s the mother who steps back. And then they punish them for doing so. Meanwhile men become fathers and it’s business as usual.
That’s not how it has to be. I run a completely remote, work-from-anywhere fintech advisory firm, and have seen firsthand how beneficial flexibility really is. The best people aren’t always in one city. The best ideas don’t happen just because someone’s at a desk from nine to five.
When you trust people to manage their own time, they deliver. Parents don’t have to choose between picking up their kids and having a career. No one has to hit pause on their ambitions.
We should also be questioning why women are expected to step back in the first place. Parental leave has to be equal across the board so caregiving isn’t just seen as a ‘women’s responsibility.’ Until that happens, women will keep paying the price for something that should be shared. Career breaks aren’t a women’s issue. They’re just a part of life."
R: Fintech is evolving rapidly with innovations that are reshaping financial services. How do you see the role of women changing in the industry over the next decade, and what excites you most about the future?
L: Fintech’s moving fast, and women are shaping the future. Tech is a great equaliser. Women who skill up in AI, blockchain, and digital payments will be leading the change.
The next decade belongs to those who innovate, collaborate, and refuse to play by outdated rules. Women in fintech are launching businesses, leading investments, and creating the products the industry should have had years ago.
And that’s what excites me most, finance finally working for women. More investment platforms designed with women in mind, better access to credit, smarter financial education. The more women we see in leadership, the more fintech will actually serve half the population.
R: On International Women’s Day, what message would you like to share with women who are working to break barriers in their careers and create meaningful change?
L: Stop waiting for permission. Take up space. Break the rules that were never made for you in the first place. Nothing about breaking barriers is easy. You’ll be underestimated, second-guessed, and sometimes outright ignored. Push through anyway.
Every time one of us refuses to shrink, refuses to settle, it cracks the door open for the next. Speak up. Demand more. Never be the woman who pulls the ladder up behind her. Real change happens when we drag the whole system forward, together.
And to the men, step up. Because when women win, everyone wins. And if you’re not actively part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.
