LEADERS TO WATCH · 2026
The Finance Power List
Finance leadership is usually done quietly, behind the numbers. These fourteen sitting Chief Financial Officers are the exception, operating at real scale while showing up publicly to share the craft of the role. Ranked by their LinkedIn presence, a balance of audience size and active, original posting, they are the finance leaders Counsel Collective is watching in 2026, from Fortune 500 mainstays to the CFOs defining the next generation of growth companies.
01
Gina Mastantuono
President & Chief Financial Officer · ServiceNow
45.6K followersLinkedIn
As president and chief financial officer of ServiceNow, Gina Mastantuono is the rare large-cap finance leader who shows up authentically on LinkedIn, not just at earnings. Named a 2026 CNBC Changemaker, she has expanded the CFO mandate to span strategy and operations at one of enterprise software’s defining companies. Her visible, human approach to leading finance at scale makes her the standout on this list, and a feature we would relish.
02
John David Rainey
EVP & Chief Financial Officer · Walmart
37.9K followers
John David Rainey holds one of the most demanding seats in corporate finance, chief financial officer of the largest company in the United States. Cited as a model for how modern finance chiefs engage publicly, he posts candidly about the consumer economy and the discipline of running Walmart’s numbers. His blend of scale, steadiness and willingness to communicate openly makes him a finance leader very much worth watching, and profiling.
03
Wassia Kamon
Chief Financial Officer · Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs
30.3K followersLinkedIn
Wassia Kamon is proof that a sitting CFO can also be a generous teacher. Named a 2025 CFO of the Year and host of “The Diary of a CFO,” she shares the unvarnished realities of leading mid-market finance with a fast-growing audience. Her mix of operating credibility and candid storytelling about the craft of the role makes her one of the most relatable finance leaders to watch, with much more to say.
04
Joy Mbanugo
Chief Financial Officer · CXApp
12.7K followersLinkedIn
Joy Mbanugo brings a uniquely cross-trained background to the CFO seat, with law, accounting and time at Google, BlackRock and EY behind her. Now finance chief at CXApp, she has become a clear voice on AI in finance and the modern qualified financial expert. Her governance-minded, forward-looking take on where the CFO role is heading makes her a first-time public-company CFO well worth watching closely.
05
Jamie Miller
Chief Financial & Operating Officer · PayPal
18.8K followersLinkedIn
Jamie Miller holds a rare dual mandate as chief financial and operating officer of PayPal, a household name in fintech. With a career spanning GE and EY, she brings deep operating range to one of the most scrutinized balance sheets in payments. Her combination of finance rigor and operational ownership at global scale makes her a finance leader whose full story is well worth telling.
06
Charly Kevers
Chief Financial Officer · Carta
9K followersLinkedIn
Charly Kevers helped scale Carta through its defining growth years and now leads the company’s finance organization with notable clarity. Articulate and long-tenured, he is a textbook example of the modern operating CFO, equally fluent in capital strategy and the realities of building a venture-backed business. His thoughtful perspective on finance leadership inside one of fintech’s most-watched companies makes him a strong addition to this list.
07
Lauren Pearl
Chief Financial Officer & Educator · North Pole Security
9K followersLinkedIn
Lauren Pearl is both a sitting startup CFO and an active educator, teaching financial modeling at NYU and co-hosting “The Growth-Minded CFO.” She writes “The Daily CFO” for a growing audience while running finance at a venture-backed security company. That blend of in-the-seat operating reality and a genuine teaching instinct makes her one of the more accessible early-stage finance leaders to watch, and to feature.
08
Kelly Steckelberg
Chief Financial Officer · Canva
8.7K followers
Kelly Steckelberg built her reputation taking Zoom public, and now leads finance at Canva as the design giant prepares its own next chapter. Few CFOs carry a more relevant playbook for scaling a beloved product into a public company. Her experience at the intersection of hypergrowth, IPO readiness and disciplined finance makes her one of the most consequential growth-company CFOs to watch right now.
09
Adam Swiecicki
Chief Financial Officer · Rippling
1.6K followers
Adam Swiecicki leads finance at Rippling, one of the most closely watched private companies in technology, after serving as CFO of Brex. He is a candid, operator-minded voice on building finance functions inside companies growing at extraordinary speed. Though his following is still growing, his vantage point on scaling modern finance, and his willingness to share it openly, makes him a leader to watch as his story unfolds.
10
Aneal Vallurupalli
Chief Financial Officer · Drata
2.7K followers
Aneal Vallurupalli recently stepped into the CFO seat at Drata, a fast-scaling security and compliance unicorn, after an operator’s path through finance leadership. He brings a builder’s sensibility to the role, framing finance as a partner to growth rather than a brake on it. His fresh mandate at a company in expansion mode makes him an emerging finance leader worth tracking, with a story still being written.
11
William Petrie
Chief Financial Officer · Ramp
2.7K followers
William Petrie leads finance at Ramp, one of fintech’s fastest-growing companies and a business built around making finance itself smarter. As a young CFO inside a company reshaping corporate spend, he sits at an unusually interesting vantage point on the future of the function. His seat at the center of fintech’s growth story makes him an emerging finance leader to watch, with much more ahead.
12
Charlie Wagner
EVP, CFO & COO · Vertex Pharmaceuticals
2.2K followers
Charlie Wagner helped guide Vertex Pharmaceuticals through a remarkable run, scaling the biotech from roughly three billion to thirteen billion in revenue as CFO and COO. He brings a portfolio-manager’s mindset to capital allocation in one of the most demanding sectors in finance. His track record steering finance and operations through sustained growth makes him a serious, substance-first leader whose full story merits a closer look.
13
Jamey Mock
Chief Financial Officer · Moderna
3.7K followers
Jamey Mock holds one of the most high-profile CFO seats in biotech as finance chief of Moderna, a company that became a household name almost overnight. He is recognized for engaging directly with investors and analysts, bringing transparency to a business defined by scientific and financial complexity. His steady hand on the numbers behind a generational company makes him a finance leader worth watching, and a compelling future feature.
14
Sruthi Lanka
Chief Financial Officer · Public.com
3.2K followers
Sruthi Lanka is the chief financial officer of Public.com, helping steer the finances of a consumer investing platform reshaping how a new generation builds wealth. A fintech finance leader cited for her perspective on the sector, she sits at the meeting point of capital markets and consumer technology. As her public voice grows, her vantage point on the future of investing makes her an emerging CFO to watch.
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