Meet Tony Sneedon, Roam’s new Chief Operating Officer
With deep experience in scaling people, processes, and technology, Tony Sneedon joins Roam as COO at an important moment in the company’s growth. In this Q&A, he reflects on his background, leadership approach, and the opportunities he sees ahead as Roam continues to build for the future.
1. Can you tell us a little about your background and the journey that led you to Roam?
I actually started out as a software engineer many years ago, moved into managing engineering teams, and then transitioned into operational roles. There I’ve had the opportunity to lead large, diverse teams at several high growth companies that scaled quickly in rapidly changing environments.
Recently I’ve spent 6 and a half years in the crypto industry which has made such an impact on making investing more accessible to everyday people. That combination of technical roots, operational scaling experience, and loving operating in dynamic markets is exactly what drew me to Roam.
2. You’ve worked in fast-moving, high-growth environments, including being the VP of Operations at Luno. What are some of the biggest lessons from that experience that you bring into this role?
From my time in fast-moving, high-growth environments, the biggest lesson I’ve learned, and one I bring into every role, is that it’s your people that make everything possible. You have to invest heavily in them, create an environment in which they will thrive, and then give them the space and autonomy to grow. Early in my career a mentor told me something that resonates to this day: “Your job as a leader is to sell a dream, and once you’ve sold that dream make sure you get out of their way!”
The second key lesson is the importance of a strong foundation. You cannot scale on a fragile foundation, the pressure of rapid growth will always expose your weaknesses and will cause things to break. So I always focus first on building solid systems, processes, and structures before shifting quickly into high-velocity execution and growth mode.
These two principles around people-first leadership and rock-solid operational foundations are exactly what I’m excited to bring to this role at Roam.
3. Operations is often what keeps a business moving behind the scenes. What does strong operational leadership mean to you?
To me strong operational leadership means deeply understanding the core mechanics of how the business actually works, and identifying the levers that drive growth and efficiency. To me, it starts with building well-defined, repeatable processes that form the reliable ‘engine’ of the business, while deliberately carving out space for innovation to push boundaries and stay competitive.
At its heart, I view a business as an interconnected system. Strong operational leaders apply systems thinking to anticipate the ripple effects of change, identify risks, and make decisions that strengthen the entire operation rather than optimizing one part at the expense of others.
4. What was it about Roam that stood out to you, and what made you excited to join the business at this stage of its journey?
What stood out to me most about Roam is the combination of three things.
- First, the space itself is genuinely exciting. Managing multi-currency payments is complex and messy, and Roam is solving a real, painful problem for businesses and their customers in a smart way. It’s extremely difficult to take complexity and make it simple.
- Second, after speaking with the founders, it was clear they have a bold, ambitious vision for the company. They’ve already built a successful business, they value their people, and now they’re at the perfect inflection point to scale significantly.
- Third, this role feels like an ideal fit for me. It gives me the opportunity to bring everything I’ve learned across engineering, operations, and high-growth environments, to help Roam take that next big step in its journey.
Overall, the problem, the vision, the culture, and the timing made Roam stand out as a place I’m truly excited to join.
5. Roam operates at the intersection of travel, payments, and Africa’s growing global tourism economy. What excites you most about that space?
What excites me most about Roam is exactly that powerful intersection of payments, travel, and Africa’s growing global tourism economy.
Payments is one of the most dynamic spaces right now, it’s ripe for disruption, and recent technology advances are finally allowing companies like Roam to bring real simplicity to an incredibly complex, fragmented industry.
What excites me even more is the travel and tourism side. Africa has extraordinary natural beauty and incredibly welcoming people, and tourism has the power to be genuinely transformative. It directly benefits, and often changes the lives of ordinary people who work in the sector. While so many industries face disruptive technology in ways that can strain economies with limited access to education and opportunity, travel and tourism stands out as one with huge potential to drive broad-based economic growth and create meaningful, positive impact.
Bringing modern, seamless payments infrastructure into this high-growth sector feels like a rare high-impact opportunity. That combination is what makes me genuinely excited to join Roam at this stage of its journey.
6. Looking ahead, what kind of impact do you hope Roam will have on the travel industry in Africa over the next few years?
Looking ahead, I hope Roam becomes a key enabler that helps unlock the full potential of Africa’s travel and tourism industry.
Booking an experience in Africa is often a big, high-stakes decision for travelers. It should be a lifelong highlight, not start with friction or frustration. Roam can make that journey delightful from the very first step by letting travelers pay securely in their own local currency, with total transparency, no hidden fees, and zero payment headaches.
At the same time, Roam simplifies life for the travel providers themselves. They no longer have to wrestle with costly and complex foreign exchange conversions or complicated payment processes. Roam frees them up to focus on delivering incredible experiences.
By removing these barriers on both sides, Roam can drive more bookings, more seamless transactions, and ultimately help more travelers discover the beauty and warmth of Africa. That’s the kind of meaningful, scalable impact I’m excited to help create over the next few years.
As Roam enters its next phase of growth, Tony’s leadership will play an important role in shaping the systems, people, and processes behind that journey. With deep operational experience and a clear focus on scale, he joins the business at an exciting time for both Roam and the wider travel payments space.
