Women in Technology: Payfinia’s Lisa St. Germain

In what is a recurring feature, Finopotamus spotlights innovative women who are positively impacting technology applications in the credit union industry, and beyond. For this issue, we visited with Payfinia’s Vice President of Client Success Lisa St. Germain.

By W.B. King

Subscribing to the “the road less traveled” philosophy popularized in M. Scott Pecks 1978 best selling book by the same name, Lisa St. Germain told Finopotamus she has been “fearless” in her professional pursuits.

“At my core, I am a continuous learner. My career in tech began in 2005 following more than two decades of working in the community financial space. There, I gained amazing knowledge and experience in lending, deposits and branching,” she continued. “However, you often reach a point in your personal life where you want to do more to impact banking, so I dove headfirst into a new venture: fintech.”

Lisa St. Germain

Prior to joining Payfinia in early 2025 as its vice president of client services, St. Germain served as vice president of product management at Fiserv for nine years, and then joined Engage FI in a similar role for three years. Over time, she has noticed and embraced change.

“Credit unions can no longer wait for their members to tell them what they want. They must look at emerging tools outside of traditional banking systems, like Venmo, PayPal and others, and ask how we can integrate those innovative services into our credit union,” she noted. “On the technology side, I have had the privilege of witnessing the shift from isolated, siloed processes to integrated experiences to automatic. Members want embedded experiences.”

The Portland, Ore.-based Payfinia, a CUSO, offers secure, real-time payment solutions designed to enhance the growth, collaboration, and operational efficiency.

“My responsibilities are for the entire customer journey, from the presale cycle through go-live, providing continuous support for our customers. I love being an advocate for financial institutions throughout their journey of implementing innovative technology,” said St. Germain, who also spent nearly 15 years as an assistant branch manager at People’s Bank. “It’s like getting to be an ambassador and advocate for both sides. operational efficiency of financial institutions.”

An Open Invite for Women

Changes within the financial service space aren’t limited to operations and technology, she shared, noting that more women work in the space today. 

“Other women have pioneered the industry and have opened doors for their successors. Today, there are more groups to support women in fintech, payments and credit unions that bring more people and ideas to the table, generating better solutions for the industry,” she said. “We are no longer battling each other for two coveted seats. Now, we are inviting more women to join us.”

Among the early mentors in her career was Kristina Lengyel. These types of relationships, she said, need to be built organically over time. Initially, St. Germain conceded that she was naive and idealistic. “I had this image of a perfect leader, and I didn't really look at leaders as actual humans. When I started seeing them that way – as people just doing the best they can, imperfections and all – that’s when it clicked how crucial mentorship really is.”

Learning from mentors, she added, was a key to her future success—an experience she always looks to pay forward. “Honestly, nothing makes me happier than finding someone with potential who might be overlooked–a 'diamond in the rough'–and helping them develop their talents and get past their limitations,” she shared. “It makes me believe that the best mentees aren't necessarily the ones with a flawless resume, but the ones who show real persistence and tenacity in what they do.”

Transforiming Views

Calling instant payments an industry equalizer, St. Germain said credit unions, no matter their size or reach, have the ability to compete in this ever-evolving space. “It can be a struggle for smaller institutions to be engaged in technology, from the costs, maintenance and resources to deploying and overseeing new tools,” she continued. “With instant payments, credit unions can add a capability that members want, and it takes very little lift, while helping them continue to thrive.”

Also describing instant payments as a “revolutionary trend,” St. Germain said there is an energy around building a tool that can transform the way consumers, businesses and institutions view payments.

“I joined Payfinia because it was evident from day one that the team is thinking about the next paradigm shift in payments and how to make it cost effective and easy for credit unions to deploy,” she said, adding that the fintech’s secure instant payments framework enables use cases that are fully embedded within existing digital experiences for members.

“This simplifies payments orchestration, leverages a suite of layered fraud controls and unifies real-time send and receive capabilities. We have several live clients who are experiencing negligible fraud, high adoption and diverse use cases at their institutions,” she noted. “Additionally, we have several partnerships, such as with blockchain technology provider Metallicus, and wealth tech provider TAPP Engine, that are expanding instant payments capabilities to new avenues.”

Common Goals and Shared Success

St. Germain is such a firm believer in credit unions that she asked both her children to be active, lifelong members in the “people helping people” movement. “A key characteristic of credit unions is their deep care for members, often placing individual needs ahead of profit considerations. Their members are paramount,” she continued. “In times of financial difficulty, having a credit union partner can make a significant difference, as they are known for helping members find solutions and navigate tough times.”

Credit unions, she added, are greatly aided when collaborating with compatible fintechs and CUSOs. “When credit unions and fintechs share common goals, partnership leads to shared success,” St. Germain said. “We offer credit unions our services plus a voice in our product roadmap. By partnering with a CUSO, credit unions gain influence and can ensure they get the exact tools needed to best support their members.”