About DARA
“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”
- MARK TWAIN
Financial services trailblazer and attorney Dara Tarkowski delivers expertise to companies harnessing innovation and technology to revolutionize financial services and highly regulated industries. Specializing in complex litigation and consumer finance law, Dara brings thought leadership to a rapidly transforming industry of diverse businesses, consumers and investors.
Thousands have tuned in to Dara’s podcast, Tech on Reg, hosted on the world’s number one fintech podcast platform, Provoke.fm Media. In each episode, industry leaders and game changers across sectors join Dara to explore topics such as AI, data privacy and security, fintech, sextech, and other disruptive technologies. She is also a regular contributor to the podcast, Breaking Banks, the world’s number one fintech podcast.
In only two years, Dara’s regtech enterprise, quointec, has brought two products to market that automate the delivery of legal and compliance services. Serving at the intersection of law, finance and technology through Actuate Law, a boutique law firm based in Chicago where she serves as Managing Partner, Dara counsels clients on complex regulatory matters, performs due diligence for private equity firms worth billions and has achieved courtroom victories for the fintech and non-bank financial services industry.
Innovate Finance named Dara to the Women in Fintech Powerlist 2019 in the Senior Leadership category and Dara showcased her work at Citi Innovation Lab’s 10th anniversary pitch challenge, Pitch To Progress: A Fintech Challenge for Transaction Banking, in Dublin, Ireland.
In 2022, Dara partnered with Keiser University to create the first full Masters Degree in Fintech through the university’s MBA program. And in 2023, American Banker named Dara one of the Most Influential Women in Fintech at their Digital Banking Conference.
Dara also serves as General Counsel for FinTEx, a trade association fueling innovation in financial services. She authors white papers for cutting edge technology companies, hosts webinars and moderates panels around the world. She is a go-to expert for companies disrupting traditional markets and an advocate for responsible innovation.
In 2019, Dara co-founded Illinois Women Vote, building a network of thousands of informed voters in Illinois. She is a proud alum of Northwestern University, Loyola University School of Law and Money20/20’s “Rise Up” program. Dara resides in Chicago, is a mother of three, and can always be seen wearing at least one piece of skull jewelry.
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Chief Innovation Strategist
Outside General Counsel
“Dara is one of the most energetic and professional specialists in the regulatory space today. not only does she bring a practioner’s perspective, but she has a pragmatic style that forces incumbent players to think hard about the emerging future. she’s also one of the best podcast hosts in our network.”
— Brett King, Bestselling Author of Augmented and The Rise of Technosocialism, Founder of Moven and Provoke Media
