Security leadership with clear ownership
Fractional CISO Services for FinTech and Payments Companies
When bank partners, enterprise customers, or your board expect more from security, NTD Consulting provides experienced leadership to establish priorities and lead agreed improvements.
Build a security program that supports the business, with clear responsibilities, credible evidence, and reporting leadership can act on.
When Security Needs a Dedicated Leader
Growing companies often place security alongside the CTO's or IT team's other responsibilities. A fractional CISO adds executive ownership when that arrangement no longer meets the business's needs.
Bank or customer diligence
Security requirements need credible answers, supporting evidence, and a coordinated response.
Audit preparation
Policies, controls, evidence, and remediation need consistent ownership.
Capacity and accountability
The CTO or CIO needs a security leader who can turn competing requirements into an achievable plan.
Board visibility
Leadership needs to understand material risks, progress, and decisions requiring attention.
Our primary focus is growing FinTech, payments, and financial-services businesses with internal technical resources but insufficient dedicated security leadership.
What NTD Takes Responsibility For
Each engagement defines a designated security leader, agreed priorities, and decision-making responsibilities.
Program priorities and investment
Assess the current program, maintain the risk register, and lead the security roadmap and investment recommendations.
Readiness and evidence
Coordinate SOC 2 or PCI DSS preparation, bank diligence, and customer reviews with your teams and qualified assessors.
Executive reporting
Explain risk, remediation progress, dependencies, and decisions in business terms.
Operational governance
Coordinate cloud, identity, vendor, AI, and incident-readiness priorities according to the agreed scope.
How We Work With Your Team
NTD leads priorities and coordinates execution. Your internal teams and service providers implement assigned technical changes. Management retains approval of budgets and risk acceptance unless specific authority is delegated.
Capacity, access, meeting cadence, escalation arrangements, and client resources are defined before work begins. Technical testing and specialist assessments are scoped separately when needed.
Your First 90 Days
The initial plan depends on your immediate requirements, existing program, and available resources. An ongoing engagement typically follows this sequence:
Days 1–30: Understand and Prioritize
Review business priorities, critical services, obligations, controls, and evidence. Agree the top risks and urgent decisions.
Outputs: Current-state assessment, risk register, and prioritized 90-day roadmap.
Days 31–60: Coordinate Improvements
Assign remediation owners, address agreed priority gaps, and establish evidence and reporting routines.
Outputs: Tracked actions, supporting evidence, and an initial executive dashboard.
Days 61–90: Review and Sustain
Review progress, unresolved dependencies, and residual risks. Agree the next quarter's priorities.
Outputs: Executive briefing, decision log, and updated roadmap.
Implementation timing depends on scope, access, and client resources. Audit or customer approval is determined by the relevant external party.
An Operating Perspective, Applied to Your Business
NTD's approach draws on experience leading technology and cybersecurity inside financial-services operating companies, including public-company FinTech.
We connect security decisions to customer trust, service availability, business priorities, and the requirements of counterparties and leadership.
Two Ways to Engage NTD
Ongoing Fractional CISO Leadership
For businesses that need sustained security ownership, a practical roadmap, and regular executive reporting.
- Designated security leader and agreed capacity
- Security roadmap and risk-decision support
- Coordination with internal teams and providers
- Executive and board reporting on an agreed cadence
Monthly retainer: Scope and responsibilities agreed before engagement.
Security Readiness Sprint
For a defined bank diligence request, customer security review, audit preparation, or board assessment.
- Requirements and evidence review
- Prioritized gaps and assigned actions
- Coordination of agreed improvements
- Readiness summary and remaining-risk assessment
Fixed scope and fee: Deliverables, timing, and dependencies defined together.
Specialist Oversight for Digital Assets and AI
Digital-Asset Security
Executive oversight of custody arrangements, transaction authorization, privileged access, provider dependencies, and incident readiness.
AI Governance
Establish visibility into AI use, data exposure, vendor dependencies, risk ownership, and appropriate approval and oversight processes.
Either specialty can support ongoing leadership or a separately scoped advisory engagement.
Fractional CISO Questions
How is this different from a full-time CISO?
A fractional CISO supplies agreed executive leadership capacity without a full-time appointment. The right model depends on your operating complexity, internal resources, and required coverage. Compare fractional and full-time leadership.
Can NTD work with our MSP and existing vendors?
Yes. We coordinate security priorities and reporting with existing teams and providers, with responsibilities defined in the engagement.
How are services priced?
Ongoing engagements use a monthly retainer based on scope and capacity. Readiness sprints have an agreed project scope and fee. The introductory call helps establish which approach fits.
Does a retainer include 24/7 incident response?
Coverage and escalation arrangements are explicitly agreed. Around-the-clock response and specialist incident services require separate arrangements.
What Does Your Security Program Need to Address Next?
Tell us about the requirement, deadline, or leadership gap creating pressure. We will discuss your current security ownership and whether a focused sprint or ongoing fractional CISO engagement fits.
A conversation about your business and security priorities, with a clear next step if there is a fit.