As the payments industry moves through its most significant transformation in decades, few executives combine economic training, data‑science expertise, and hands-on fintech experience as directly as Lasma Kuhtarska, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of the open banking platform Noda. The platform operates as the public-facing payment brand of NaudaPay Limited, the London-registered company behind the service.
Lasma Kuhtarska received her foundational training in economic modelling at the Stockholm School of Economics, later complementing it with a data‑science programme at Harvard Business School focused on statistical reasoning and experimental design. This dual background shapes how she approaches risk, product priorities, and market pattern recognition.
Noda’s co-founder Lasma Kuhtarska emphasises that reliable, secure infrastructure must precede rapid scaling—a principle often overlooked in high‑growth fintech. Noda typically enters new markets only after meeting core security and certification thresholds, avoiding the premature “pilot first, compliance later” model common among younger firms.
Lasma Kuhtarska’s NaudaPay on AI’s potential in payment processing
Within the broader ecosystem of NaudaPay, Lasma Kuhtarska explains, Noda illustrates how artificial intelligence is reshaping digital transactions. Case studies across the industry show that AI can streamline fraud detection, route payments through the lowest‑cost channels, and forecast liquidity demands with greater accuracy than manual processes.
Many fintechs already use machine‑learning models trained on historical chargeback data to reduce manual review loads. Looking forward, AI could also personalize checkout flows by predicting the payment method each customer is most likely to select.
Early research suggests this dynamic sequencing can reduce checkout time by several seconds—an eternity in e‑commerce terms. Still, privacy requirements demand explicit user consent before behavioural data can shape UI elements. Providers that store sensitive features client‑side rather than on centralized servers may strike the right balance between regulatory compliance and performance optimization.
Managing regulatory divergence across Europe
Open banking in Europe is often described as a single market, but the regulatory reality is far more fragmented. The United Kingdom operates under its own domestic framework, while Continental Europe aligns with PSD2—and soon PSD3. For fintech founders, this divergence creates both operational complexity and strategic opportunity.
Kuhtarska often underscores the importance of modular consent flows—architectures flexible enough to switch between different Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) requirements without restructuring the entire product stack. Market analysts note that companies able to reuse roughly 90% of their codebase across jurisdictions report significantly lower maintenance and compliance overhead.
Anticipated PSD3 updates may demand faster API response times and more comprehensive data fields. Fintechs preparing ahead of the curve by stress‑testing latency, encrypting larger payloads, and documenting detailed fallback procedures can avoid costly, last‑minute rebuilds. Noda’s co-founder Lasma Kuhtarska consistently points to a “compliance‑first, deadlines‑second” mindset—a stance increasingly associated with operational durability in payments.
What consumer behaviour reveals about the future of checkout
Payment preferences vary sharply across Europe, and Noda’s co-founder Lasma Kuhtarska often points out that any unified strategy must account for these regional habits. In the UK, bank‑to‑bank payments are accelerating thanks to strong mobile‑banking adoption. By contrast, consumers in Southern Europe continue to favour cards and digital wallets.
Noda’s approach—offering a wide range of methods and using small incentives to guide customers toward lower‑fee options—is gaining traction among merchants seeking better margins without sacrificing conversion. The model resembles airline seat‑selection: customers see all available choices but receive subtle cues that highlight value.
Local trust signals also heavily influence conversion rates. In Germany, for example, placing a recognizable bank logo next to an open banking option can significantly increase click‑through rates. In the Nordics, speed is paramount; customers frequently abandon sessions if confirmation screens take more than a few seconds. As a result, providers aiming for pan‑European coverage are now building adaptive front ends that adjust visual cues based on device locale, issuer BIN ranges, or even session context.
Capital allocation in a higher‑rate environment
Rising interest rates have reshaped investor expectations across the fintech sector. The era of subsidized, loss‑heavy expansion is fading. Executives now evaluate new product modules not just by projected gross volume but by time‑to‑profit and contribution margin.
This shift toward financial discipline is prompting many platforms—including Noda and the company NaudaPay, Lasma Kuhtarska adds—to diversify revenue streams. While transaction-based fees remain the primary revenue source, platforms are looking at developing complementary tools and services to enhance their value proposition.
NaudaPay’s Lasma Kuhtarska and other payment‑oriented leaders are well positioned for this environment. Their fluency in model‑driven forecasting allows them to calibrate investment levels, stress‑test downside scenarios, and demonstrate operational efficiency to increasingly cautious investors.
