Shows
The PR Podcast267. Alina Sysoeva, Drofa Comms, on Turning Industry Events into Trust and ReputationCompanies spend millions attending industry conferences and events, but are they getting a meaningful return on their investment?On this episode of The PR Podcast, we’re joined by Alina Sysoeva, Head of PR at Drofa Comms, to explore how companies can turn major industry events into opportunities to build trust, strengthen their reputations and influence key stakeholders.Alina shares strategies for preparing executives, developing messages that resonate with important audiences and measuring success beyond leads, meetings and media coverage. We also discuss why visibility doesn't always translate into credibility and how PR professionals can he...
2026-10-2624 min
Women Leading the WayScaling Digital Asset Infrastructure: What Traditional Banks Need to KnowBanks are getting serious about digital assets, but much of the infrastructure available today was built for small pilots instead of being prepared for the activity of institutions.Since stablecoins, tokenised funds and other digital assets make their way into traditional finance, the question is how banks can support them without relying on separate systems for every product?Anoosh Arevshatian has worked in both spheres. She began her career working with a German NGO in Zimbabwe, spent nearly a decade in enterprise risk and governance at Citi, and later went to digital assets. Today, she...
2026-10-1331 min
Women Leading the WayBuilding Trust in Digital Identity: Tackling AI Fraud and RegulationThe rules designed to protect consumers do not always work in real life the way regulators expect them to. This is the point made by Kat Cloud, the latest guest on the Women Leading the Way podcast by Drofa Comms.Kat began her career at the Financial Conduct Authority, where she helped write financial regulation, before moving into fintech and working with companies including Plaid and Yodlee. Today, she is Head of Government Relations at Sumsub, where her work sits at the intersection of digital identity, fraud prevention, technology and regulation.In this episode, host...
2026-09-2833 min
Women Leading the WayCultivating Influence in Web3: How to Lead in Media, Investment and AIInfluence in Web3 today is established through multiple channels, from media and investment to distribution and governance. Our latest guest, Nikita Sachdev, Founder and CEO of Luna Media Corporation, has spent years working in all of them. What began with Luna PR has since expanded into media ownership, investment, recruitment, events and broader work within the Web3 ecosystem.In this episode of the Women Leading the Way by Drofa Comms podcast, host Maria Tunikova speaks with Nikita about how those different parts of the business developed, and why many of them started as direct responses to gaps...
2026-09-0127 min
Women Leading the WaySmall Business Finance: How AI & Embedded Capital Changes FundingSmall businesses do not always know that they need financing until payroll, repairs or expansion put pressure on their cash flow. By that point, applying for a traditional loan may already take too long. Claurelle Rakipovic has spent much of her career working on this problem. She went from building international payments products at Amazon to leading Pipe, an embedded capital platform for small businesses.For this Women Leading the Way podcast episode, host Maria Tunikova sits down with Claurelle to discuss how AI, alternative data and embedded capital are changing small business finance. She explains how...
2026-08-0440 min
Women Leading the WayFintech’s Talent Gap: How AI Is Changing Jobs, Hiring and Career GrowthFintech's hiring boom is over, as teams are shrinking, roles are merging, and fewer people are doing more. As AI spreads, will entry-level jobs disappear, and where will the next generation of experienced professionals come from?Nadia Edwards-Dashti has watched these changes from inside recruitment since the mid-2000s. She co-founded Harrington Starr to move the industry away from quick placements and towards trust, long-term relationships and advocacy. Today, as its Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer, she sees fintech caught between the pressure to automate and the need to keep developing people.For this episode...
2026-07-1740 min
Women Leading the WayWeb3's Infrastructure Gap: Why Liquidity Was Just the BeginningAnnabelle Huang has spent the better part of a decade watching the institutional case for crypto build, and watching the technology fail to keep pace with it. She went from Deutsche Bank in New York to AirSwap, one of Ethereum's earliest DEXs, through the years building Amber Group's trading operations. Now she is a co-founder and CEO of Altius Labs, a blockchain infrastructure company working to close the gap she kept running into.Her thesis: liquidity is largely a solved problem. Infrastructure is not.In this episode of Women Leading the Way by...
2026-06-2231 min
Fintech NewscastEp 284- Drofa Comms Head of PR Alina SysoevaHow do companies handle bad news the right way? And when should a challenge become a pivot? We had a great conversation with Alina Sysoeva of Drofa Comms on PR, strategy, and smart communication. Plus the new Women Leading The Way podcast and community for female industry professionals and decision-makers
https://www.drofa-ra.com
https://womenlead.co.uk
Click Subscribe to keep up to date on the world of fintech! Reach us at info@fintechnewscast.com, BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/fintechnewscast.bsky.social or https://x.com/FinTechNewscast
2026-05-2838 minPodcast – Fintech NewscastEp 284- Drofa Comms Head of PR Alina Sysoeva
How do companies handle bad news the right way? And when should a challenge become a pivot? We had a great conversation with Alina Sysoeva of Drofa Comms on PR, strategy, and smart communication. Plus the new Women Leading The Way podcast and community for female industry professionals and decision-makers
https://www.drofa-ra.com
https://womenlead.co.uk
Click Subscribe to keep up to date on the world of fintech! Reach us at info@fintechnewscast.com, BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/fintechnewscast.bsky.social or https://x.com/FinTechNewscast
2026-05-2838 minFinTech NewscastEp 284- Drofa Comms Head of PR Alina Sysoeva
How do companies handle bad news the right way? And when should a challenge become a pivot? We had a great conversation with Alina Sysoeva of Drofa Comms on PR, strategy, and smart communication. Plus the new Women Leading The Way podcast and community for female industry professionals and decision-makers
https://www.drofa-ra.com
https://womenlead.co.uk
Click Subscribe to keep up to date on the world of fintech! Reach us at info@fintechnewscast.com, BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/fintechnewscast.bsky.social or https://x.com/FinTechNewscast
2026-05-2838 min
Women Leading the WayLegal in Web3: How to Deal With Crypto LawWhat happens when crypto regulation in Web3 develops faster than the law can follow? Ania Szpak knows firsthand.As Chief Legal Officer at Nexus Mutual, Ania handles legal strategy in investments, compliance, and data privacy. Since she is frequently the only lawyer in the room, she is often the first to face questions without legal precedent.In the third Women Leading the Way podcast episode, Ania and host Maria Tunikova address one of the biggest misconceptions in Web3: decentralisation means no regulation. It is a belief that leads founders to delay legal thinking. So, when...
2026-05-2742 min
Women Leading the WayCrisis Communications in Fintech: How Trust Is BuiltIn the second episode of Women Leading the Way, host Maria Tunikova sits down with Alina Sysoeva, Head of PR at Drofa Comms, to talk about one of the most demanding challenges in financial PR: crisis communications in fintech and crypto. When markets are unstable and trust is fragile, how fast you respond can shape a company's reputation for years.Alina breaks down the red flags she watches in real time, from a sudden spike in media mentions and negative tone to the risk no one talks about enough: founders posting without approval. She takes us through...
2026-04-1032 min
Women Leading the WayCommunity Is the Real Power in Web3In the premiere episode of Women Leading the Way, host Maria Tunikova speaks with Danielle Marie, founder of All Things Blockchain and creator of EvolveH3r, about why community — not hype — has become the real infrastructure of crypto.Danielle shares how building Web3 communities across regions has revealed a stark divide: in some countries, blockchain is still a curiosity; in others, it’s a practical response to broken financial systems. She explains why education around fundamentals — ownership, private keys, and core blockchain concepts — matters more than chasing trends, and how events and mentorship create long-term trust in an industr...
2026-03-1148 min