Scaling a regional technology company into a global business comes down to a simple question, according to Lisa Miles-Heal, CEO of Corlytics: does your product solve a genuinely universal customer problem, better than anything that’s come before, or only a local one?
There’s nothing wrong with staying local, she says, but assuming success there will automatically translate elsewhere is “a pipe dream.” Answering the universality question honestly demands both self-awareness and external validation, drawing on existing customers, partners and government export agencies for a third-party view. Even when the answer is yes, Miles-Heal warns against trying to do everything at once.
The right approach is to test in one unfamiliar market first, and only expand into others once that market proves itself, with roadmaps built to support both experimentation and accountability. Scaling without those proven wins, she notes, strains a business on three fronts: strategically, through a lack of buy-in to the value of global expansion; financially, through the cost of relearning the same lessons in every new market; and operationally, in a word, through risk.
At Corlytics, that calculation looks different from the outset. The company isn’t transitioning a regional product to global, she explains, but was built as a fundamentally global product from day one, serving Tier-1 banks operating across multiple jurisdictions simultaneously, since regulation itself doesn’t stop at borders.
You’ve spoken about testing new markets carefully instead of assuming a product will scale automatically. What does that actually look like in practice, and what should companies expect to get wrong along the way?
As the saying goes, “success is a poor teacher,” and many successful home market companies are ill-prepared for new market failure.
Teams need to build a new skill: resilience. I’ve seen salespeople become frustrated with low conversion ratios after slick and formerly effective product demos, lamenting, “customers here just don’t seem to get it.” This isn’t failure; it’s learning. While the product may be universal, go-to-market approaches for the new territory aren’t and need to evolve.
Finally, companies need to think hard about scaling the operating model while still leveraging centralised functions. I’ve set this up with “on market” before “in market” teams: small multi-functional groups, marketing, sales, product and Cx, focused on the full GTM motion of a new market.
It’s new market immersion at lower risk and cost, with new market teams establishing lines of independence, autonomy, alignment and interconnectedness, while still aboard, and supported by, the mothership.
What does sustainable growth look like for fintech companies in today’s market?
Strategically, we need complete understanding of competitive advantage and value propositions. In a business environment moving at far greater pace than it was even five years ago, we need to refresh long-term strategies, target markets and GTM stances more frequently.
I鈥檓 a fan of the Rule of 40, where growth rate and profit margin combine to equal at least 40%. A business knows the cash it needs to get profitability and growth targets working in harmony. As an aside, it鈥檚 important to ensure the Board is aligned with that position if it鈥檚 to succeed.
Yet growth can鈥檛 be measured purely in financial terms. We know that customer retention and growth through expansion revenue are highly efficient. Further, we know the proven linkage between employee engagement and customer engagement. Consequently, Product NPS, Net Revenue Retention and Employee NPS are equally important indicators.
Sustainable growth in RegTech has a particular shape. With 45 or more regulatory changes issued every day, the complexity of regulation only ever increases. It鈥檚 an environment where growth demands Corlytics stays ahead of that complexity, not simply keeps pace.
How can CEOs appeal to investors at different stages of business development?
I鈥檓 convinced you appeal to investors by creating and running a good business that attracts buyers; not being focused on building a business to sell.
It might sound like a subtle difference, but it really isn鈥檛. Yes, it鈥檚 helpful to keep in mind and have a long-term view of your exit scenarios 鈥� but these should never be the primary drivers.
Open communication is key, so deliver effective investor updates (while assuming they鈥檒l also be seen by non-investors) that are honest about progress, while confident and optimistic in tone. Be known for having strong leaders, a clear strategy, being good with the data, running a 鈥榗lean set of numbers鈥� and close customer connections.
It鈥檚 an approach I apply at Corlytics. Verdane has backed a successful business: recognised as a Category Leader in the 2025 Chartis RiskTech Quadrant for Regulatory Intelligence Solutions; the first RegTech in the world to achieve ISO/IEC 42001 AI governance certification; and trusted by 40% of the world鈥檚 30 top banks. It鈥檚 success that means Corlytics builds a business which attracts buyers and not one that’s built to sell.
What do investors look for from early-stage fintech companies compared with more established businesses?
In the early stages, it鈥檚 all about growth potential and a unique value proposition, how the company solves a big problem that customers care about. Here, proof points and customer voices are powerful investment motivations. Essentially, investors look for an idea worth betting on.
In more established businesses, product potential is a given, so investors now want to see the ability to run and scale the business. Can you: hire and grow talent density; and manage risk, opportunity and returns in a thoughtful and intentional way? To put that another way, do you have a strategy and are you executing it effectively? Perfection isn鈥檛 required, but accountability is.
It鈥檚 a transition that Corlytics has already made, and made well, as we鈥檝e built the platform, partnerships and leadership team to execute at scale.
Can you tell us about your own journey to become a tech CEO?
I started in technology in the product space as a Business Analyst. Shifting to a 鈥榮pecialist generalist鈥� 鈥� I became a strong operator across virtually every function in a SaaS business.
I鈥檓 from New Zealand. It鈥檚 a place known for its innovation, but geographical remoteness means we need to think globally if we鈥檙e going to grow. It鈥檚 seen me work in New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the US before moving to Europe and the UK in 2018.
On the path to CEO, I鈥檝e worked as a CTO, CPO and COO, where I鈥檝e been lucky enough to help scale product centric, vertical software companies from local heroes to international success stories, realising great outcomes for founders and shareholders.
I shouldn鈥檛 admit this, but I never wanted to be a CEO, least of all a 鈥楶E CEO鈥�, but it鈥檚 a natural progression because I love to grow businesses and their people. My most recent roles were with two fantastic PE firms, HG Capital and Verdane, with the latter the majority investor in Corlytics, the company I now run.
The calibre of the people at Corlytics, what John Byrne and the team have built and the power and potential of the platform, drew me here. The opportunity to take that foundation and push it further: more AI value, deeper enterprise integration, broader international reach. It鈥檚 what really drives me.
