Scaling from one market to many without losing alignment

Scaling a company is hard. Scaling across markets is a completely different challenge. In this episode of The Global Nutcracker, we sit down with Mark Fairless, CEO of Clearbank, to talk about what really changes when a business moves from operating in one market to operating across many. From expanding beyond the UK into Europe to building teams in different countries, Mark shares how Clearbank approached international scale in a highly regulated industry — and why culture, operating models, and leadership alignment matter more than most founders expect. In this conversation, we cover: - How to scale from one market to multiple markets - The real challenges of global expansion in regulated industries - Why culture becomes harder — and more important — at scale - How to adapt operating models without losing speed or trust - Hiring across fintech and traditional banking backgrounds - How leaders measure culture as a business metric This episode is for founders, CEOs, and operators navigating international growth — especially in fintech, banking, or complex regulatory environments.