How to sell to CTOs at Fintech companies in United States
CTOs in fintech companies are primarily measured on system uptime and security compliance. They respond positively when outreach demonstrates an understanding of their specific tech stack challenges, such as integrating new payment solutions without disrupting existing services. Showing familiarity with their current projects can prompt a reply.
Written and maintained by the SoloRiff team, who build outbound software and run outbound with it. The figures below are our own: we measured 570 fintech company domains over public DNS on 2026-09-03. Last updated 2026-09-03.
What actually hurts
- system downtime complaints
- security audit stress
- integration complexity
- regulatory deadline pressure
The playbook
- 01
Identify recent platform outages
Search for news articles or reports detailing outages or security breaches in fintech companies. Use Google News with keywords like 'fintech outage' or 'payment system failure' to find recent incidents. This information can help you tailor your outreach to address their immediate concerns.
- 02
Analyze tech stack changes
Utilize tools like BuiltWith or StackShare to identify any recent changes in a company's technology stack. Look for companies that have recently adopted new payment technologies or security protocols. This indicates potential readiness for discussions about enhancements or integrations.
- 03
Leverage industry regulations
Monitor updates on regulatory changes affecting fintech, such as new compliance requirements for payment processing. Use resources like Finextra or the CFPB website to stay informed. Reference these regulations in your outreach to show your understanding of their compliance pressures.
- 04
Address integration challenges directly
In your messaging, pinpoint specific integration challenges that CTOs face when implementing new systems. Mention common pain points like data migration or API compatibility. This specificity demonstrates that you understand their role and the technical hurdles they encounter.
- 05
Follow up after major product launches
Set reminders to follow up with CTOs shortly after they launch new products or features. Use tools like LinkedIn or company press releases to track these launches. Timing your outreach just after a launch can increase your chances of engagement, as they may be evaluating the success of the rollout.
Can fintech companies even receive your mail?
We measured the DNS of 570 fintech companies, sampled evenly across company sizes, to see how many authenticate their own email. It matters in both directions: a domain that does not authenticate is a domain whose team is used to mail going missing — and if your own domain is in the gap, yours is the mail going missing.
Publishes a DMARC policy of quarantine or reject — the domain actually asks receivers to act on failures.
The gap is the finding: 34.3% of 1–10-person companies against 92.2% of the largest — 58 points apart. Small companies are where the unauthenticated domains are, and small companies are who most cold outreach is aimed at.
Where does your domain sit?
Same three lookups, run live against your domain. Nothing is stored and nothing is emailed to you.
How this was measured
Company domains were sampled within employee-count bands, then queried over public DNS for SPF (TXT at the apex), DMARC (TXT at _dmarc.) and MX. One domain per company, deduplicated. Anyone can reproduce any single row of this with dig.
DKIM is deliberately absent. A DKIM key lives under a selector that cannot be enumerated from outside the domain, so a company with flawless DKIM under a name we did not guess would be counted as having none. That would measure our guess list, not the industry.
Domains with no MX record are excluded rather than counted as failures — parked and redirect-only domains would otherwise drag every figure down and make the result an artefact of the sample.
Sampled within bands, so this describes the population of companies, not of employees: a 10-person company counts once, as does a 10,000-person one. Each band is at least 60 domains; bands below that are not published. Figures are percentages of the sample, not of the whole industry, and we publish no company names — only counts.
Measured 2026-09-03. Re-measured monthly.
The full census across every industry — sortable, with sample sizes, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0.
Subject lines that fit
- Improving your system uptime
- Navigating fintech compliance challenges
- Addressing integration issues effectively
Questions
- Why do fintech CTOs prioritize security over new features?
- Fintech CTOs often prioritize security because a single breach can lead to significant financial loss and damage to reputation. Compliance with industry regulations is also critical, making security a core focus. They need to ensure that any new features do not compromise existing security measures.
- What common objections do CTOs have to new tech solutions?
- CTOs frequently object to new tech solutions due to concerns about integration with existing systems, potential downtime during implementation, and the overall cost of transition. They may also worry about the learning curve for their teams and the impact on current projects.
- How can I get a response from a busy CTO?
- To engage a busy CTO, focus on their immediate challenges and demonstrate how your solution can alleviate specific pain points. Use concise messaging and highlight relevant case studies or success stories that resonate with their situation. Timing your outreach after known industry events can also increase your chances.
- What role does compliance play in a fintech CTO's decision-making?
- Compliance plays a crucial role in a fintech CTO's decision-making because they must ensure that all technology solutions adhere to regulatory standards. Non-compliance can lead to hefty fines and legal issues, so CTOs prioritize solutions that enhance compliance and reduce risk.
Or have it run itself
SoloRiff does every step above on its own — finds the companies, finds the people, writes each of them individually, and handles the replies. Drop your URL and watch it work before you sign up for anything.
Try it on your site