March marks Women’s History Month, a time to recognize the contributions of women across industries and leadership roles. In FinTech, female Chief Information Security Officers are helping secure digital payments, trust platforms, compliance systems, and financial applications that sit at the center of modern commerce.
FinTech companies operate in one of the most security-sensitive corners of the digital economy. From payments and embedded finance to trust automation and lending platforms, these organizations depend on cybersecurity leaders who can balance speed, innovation, compliance, and resilience. The following leaders represent women helping shape cybersecurity strategy across the FinTech landscape.
Jadee Hanson — Chief Information Security Officer, Vanta
Jadee Hanson serves as Chief Information Security Officer at Vanta, where she oversees security, privacy, and governance, risk, and compliance functions for the trust management and compliance automation platform. Her role places her at the intersection of product security, enterprise trust, and customer assurance in a fast-growing software environment closely tied to modern digital business operations.
Hanson brings about two decades of experience across cybersecurity, IT strategy, and risk leadership. Before joining Vanta, she served as Chief Information Officer and Chief Information Security Officer at Code42, where she helped transform security into a business enabler, expanded detection and response capabilities, and contributed to the company’s insider risk strategy. Earlier in her career, she held senior information security roles at Target and Deloitte. Hanson is also widely recognized as a thought leader, with industry recognition from Forbes, The Software Report, and Cyber Defense Magazine.
Heather Gantt-Evans — Chief Information Security Officer & Senior Vice President of Cybersecurity, Marqeta
Heather Gantt-Evans serves as Chief Information Security Officer and Senior Vice President of Cybersecurity at Marqeta, where she leads security strategy for a FinTech company known for powering modern card and payment experiences. In her role, she is responsible for securing Marqeta’s corporate environment, products, customers, employees, and partners.
Gantt-Evans brings broad experience across cybersecurity, digital transformation, resilience, privacy, and compliance. Before joining Marqeta, she served as CISO at SailPoint and previously held senior security leadership roles at The Home Depot, where she oversaw security operations, application security, vulnerability management, and cyber resilience functions. Earlier in her career, she supported Air Force Cyber Command and spent several years at EY advising Fortune 100 companies on security operations centers and cyber exercise programs. She is especially known for connecting cybersecurity programs to broader enterprise resilience and preparedness efforts.
Barbara Cousins — Chief Information Officer & Chief Information Security Officer, Flywire
Barbara Cousins serves as Chief Information Officer and Chief Information Security Officer at Flywire, where she leads both enterprise technology and cybersecurity strategy for the global payments company. Her role reflects the growing convergence of IT, security, and trust in modern FinTech infrastructure.
Cousins has held the CISO role at Flywire since 2017 and later expanded into the CIO position, giving her leadership responsibility across both operational technology and information security. Before joining Flywire, she served in senior IT risk and information security roles at Devonshire Investors/Fidelity and spent more than a decade in security leadership positions at KPMG and KPMG International. Her background gives her deep experience in risk management, enterprise security governance, and the technology controls required in financial environments.
Shannon Zheng — Chief Information Security Officer & Senior Vice President of IT, OppFi
Shannon Zheng serves as Chief Information Security Officer and Senior Vice President of IT at OppFi, where she leads both information security and broader IT functions for the FinTech lender. Her role centers on building scalable, trusted technology and security foundations in a highly regulated financial environment.
Zheng is known for building IT and security functions from the ground up, especially in high-growth organizations navigating complex compliance and operational demands. At OppFi, she built and scaled the information security program while helping guide the company through its transition from startup to public company. Her leadership philosophy emphasizes practical solutions, trust-centered security strategy, and mentoring others entering technology and security careers.
Female Cybersecurity Leadership in FinTech
FinTech companies rely on strong cybersecurity leadership to protect digital payments, customer data, compliance operations, and platform integrity in fast-moving and highly regulated environments. Female CISOs in this space are helping define how modern financial technology companies approach resilience, governance, and secure innovation.
The leaders featured here represent women helping strengthen trust across the FinTech sector. Their work supports not only the security of their own organizations, but also the broader digital financial ecosystem that consumers and businesses increasingly depend on every day.
For more profiles of women leading cybersecurity across sectors, visit our Female CISOs to Watch in Higher Education feature.