In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Figure Technologies CFO Macrina Kgil to break down how Figure’s business model works, why traditional lending remains so bloated, and how speed in origination and funding flows through financial performance. They also cover stablecoins, blockchain as invisible infrastructure, AI in accounting, and scaling finance with fewer than 35 people.

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LINKS:

Mostly Talent: https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsN

Guest: https://www.linkedin.com/in/macrina/

Company: https://www.figure.com/

CJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/

Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com

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TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Preview and intro

3:10 Working for a CEO who's a former CFO

5:00 What Figure does and how it makes money

6:57 Blockchain's first commercial use case

8:17 50%+ margins, path to 60%

9:23 Sponsors — Brex | Aleph | RightRev

12:56 HELOC origination: 45 days to 5 days

14:26 Where the lending system is bloated

15:56 Credit and liquidity as core risks

17:06 Blockchain makes the marketplace transparent

18:10 Risk as a fintech CFO

19:49 Sponsors — Rillet | EY | SpendHound

22:58 Crypto on the balance sheet

24:12 Blockchain becomes invisible like cloud

25:44 Stablecoins explained

27:47 YLDS: Figure's yield-bearing stablecoin

29:02 Crawl, walk, run stablecoin strategy

34:32 IPO process: what got easier

35:03 What got harder: testing the waters

37:12 Blockchain KPIs and investor conversations

38:21 Finance team: 130 people down to 35

40:00 SEC engagement: storytelling not financials

40:49 IPO advice: pick durable KPIs

42:05 First earnings after IPO: don't miss

43:13 AI automation goal: 60% by 2026

46:11 Director of Finance Transformation hire

47:40 30-60-90 for the transformation role

48:58 Long-Ass Lightning Round

52:20 Credits

Figure CFO Macrina Kgil on Blockchain Lending, Stablecoins, and IPOs

Run the Numbers