After growing up in Colombia, a journey through law school in the U.K. not only brought the benefits of Wise (formerly TransferWise) to the forefront for Diana Avila; it ultimately helped her land an important job at the company and set the stage to give back to her homeland.
Avila has been the global head of banking and expansion the past two years at Wise, where she has worked for five years after previously being a financial lawyer.
"I originally moved to the U.K. to study and came across TransferWise as a way to pay my student loans back in Colombia," said Avila, a 2021 Most Influential Women in Payments honoree. "As I began looking for jobs post studying, I was excited by TransferWise's mission of 'money without borders' and wanted to contribute to the country and bring the service to other parts of the world where it is needed."
With that motivation, Avila ultimately landed a job at Wise, with her first project being the expansion of the company's cross-border money transfer services into Latin America. Her success with that task set the stage for her to head the company's global expansion team.
"One of the first markets I worked to help TransferWise expand into was my home country of Colombia," said Avila, who grew up in Bogota. "Given my experience with the market and my strong understanding of local regulations, I was able to kickstart the process for TransferWise to send money to Colombia."
Avila knew her way around Colombia's ecosystem, enabling her to solve problems and better serve customers in her home country.
"This was a pivotal moment for me in my professional experience as it was during this project that I realized the value I bring to the table," Avila said. "It also helped me discover the leadership and mentorship I bring to my colleagues."
The global pandemic has brought the importance of cross-border remittances to the forefront.
"Though many people are suffering economically, they still support their families with remittances," Avila noted. "It's disheartening to know that many people are paying unnecessarily high exchange rates and other fees because of a lack of transparency within the remittance market."
Still, the pandemic has accelerated many advancements in the payments industry, particularly in digital payments.
"We've seen greater adoption of digital solutions as people are accessing more convenient services," Avila said.
From a personal standpoint, the pandemic has helped Avila stick to a regimen that might not otherwise have been established in her work and home settings.
"One thing that helps me maintain productivity, and sanity, is to have a very disciplined routine," she said. "I work across many time zones in my role, and I am regimented in terms of which days I start early and which days I start and end later."
Avila goes through a meal-prep routine for her lunches and gets "dressed for work" even though she doesn't leave her home. She always sets aside time for exercise, as it helps keep her energized and "ensures I get outside," she added.
When asked to share a time management tip, Avila was quick to note "I do not have meetings on Mondays." Instead, she uses that day for "deep work" that requires a lot of time and focus and frees up time for meetings the other days of the week.
Avila embraces a social cause that doesn't directly affect her work or the payments industry. She supports programs that help prisoners develop new skills and receive the type of guidance to give them a second chance.
"As humans, we all make mistakes and can use these shortfalls as an opportunity to learn and improve," Avila said. "It's important to take social responsibility for individuals that are being left behind. Social and economic differences put people in vulnerable situations that sometimes end up in crime."
Providing a second chance means "we are also taking part and responsibility in rebuilding a better community," she noted.
Passion in work, home life or social causes always has roots. In being the youngest of four children, Avila says she learned by watching her older sisters study and navigate a path to universities.
"I developed a strong intellectual curiosity at a young age," she said. "My family's focus on education propelled me to achieve an advanced degree and a career as a lawyer, which ultimately led to my job at TransferWise."
