From Zero to 200,000 Businesses: How Novo Is Rebuilding Banking for Entrepreneurs Artwork

The Catching Fire Podcast

Any successful venture starts with great ideas, but it takes great marketing to make them stand out. In the Catching Fire Podcast, we delve into outstanding products and ideas that have gone to market and what it took to get there. Listen to conversations with inspiring startup founders and marketing leaders. Rethink your team’s approach to marketing in an increasingly crowded digital landscape. Learn how to make your ideas “catch fire.”

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The Catching Fire Podcast

From Zero to 200,000 Businesses: How Novo Is Rebuilding Banking for Entrepreneurs

March 19, 2025 • Bryan Karas

Why do some startups win, while others stall?

For Michael Rangel, Founder of Novo–the answer is clear: stay close to your customer and focus on real problems. In this episode of Catching Fire, Michael shares how he built Novo, a business banking platform now trusted by over 200,000 small businesses.

What you’ll take away:

🔥Why hiring full-time leaders too early will slow you down

🔥How part-time experts helped Novo move faster

🔥What Chime did to scale—and how Novo found a better approach

🔥The real reason customer focus beats watching your competitors

You’ll also hear why small businesses were being ignored by traditional banks—and how Novo took a different path by focusing on simple tools that save owners time and money.

This is an honest conversation about what it really takes to build something that lasts. If you’re building a company—or thinking about it—you’ll want to hear this.

Connect with Michael : https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rangel/

Connect with Bryan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryankaras/

https://bryankaras.com/

Looking for quality digital marketing talent? Connect with Bryan's team at GrowTal. https://www.growtal.com/

Looking to solve your toughest marketing challenges? Connect with Bryan's team at Playbook Media. https://www.playbookmedia.com/