Issuer processing powerhouse Enfuce has appointed Norwegian Paralympic Gold Medallist, Birgit Skarstein, as its first-ever Chief Inspiration Officer. Skarstein will bring her proven championship DNA to Enfuce’s award-winning business to motivate, inspire and challenge its teams, and the wider payments industry as a whole.
In this newly created role, Birgit will equip Enfucers with the resilience, grit and determination that she has demonstrated across sport and business during her career. In her role, Skarstein will bring her incredible story of resilience and experience defying limits to company training programmes, webinars and speaker series to create industry awareness around topics close to her and Enfuce’s heart to jointly drive meaningful change.
Skarstein has competed in rowing and cross-country skiing, winning a gold medal in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympics. She is also a six-time World Champion and three-time European Champion. Skarstein has not just excelled at sport, she is an influential advocate for accessibility and inclusion – serving as a sought-after public speaker at notable events like TEDx Talks and the World Economic Forum (WEF). Whether it’s competition, business or advocacy – Skarstein exhibits strength, adaptability and a spirit that transcends limitations.
Commenting on her appointment, Skarstein said: “It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with Enfuce. There’s something special about the people, the culture, the energy – it’s this amazing combination of staying humble while dreaming big. When I met Enfuce’s co-founders, Denise and Monika, I just knew this was meant to be. I can’t wait to work with all their incredible teams to share what I’ve learned about owning your success and what it takes to win big, while working to inspire broader change across the fintech industry.”
Skarstein is believed to be the first Chief Inspiration Officer of this kind within the financial services industry. Her appointment reflects Enfuce’s courage to do things differently in the B2B world and fits perfectly with its core value of going ‘beyond expectation’.
Denise Johansson, co-CEO and co-founder at Enfuce, explains: “Birgit perfectly embodies ‘sisu’ – the distinctly Finnish concept of extraordinary determination and resilience, even though she hails from our neighbouring Norway. Her ability to transform challenges into opportunities mirrors our own uncompromising spirit and drive to exceed the ordinary. We can’t think of anyone better to cultivate a winning mindset among our team and across the payments industry.”
Monika Liikamaa, co-CEO and co-founder at Enfuce, added: “Peak performance is peak performance – whether it’s in business or in sport. I’ve often said that as a CEO, I feel like an athlete and, meeting Birgit, she understood this right away. Every day brings a new goal to achieve, a new challenge to overcome. But what really excites me is the broader impact we can have together. Birgit’s story shows young people everywhere that barriers are meant to be broken, and that mindset is exactly what society needs right now.”
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