Vinod Paul, President of Align Managed Services, has been named Technology Leader of the Year in the 2026 FTF News Technology Innovation Awards. It's the second major industry honor for Paul in under a year, following a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 MSP 501 Gala Dinner hosted by Channel Futures — and another marker of Align's growing footprint across the alternative investment technology space.
A Recognition Built for Capital Markets Innovation
The FTF News Technology Innovation Awards honor the leaders, innovators and organisations driving operational excellence across financial services. This particular award recognises an executive who has shown clear vision in building technology that helps shape the future of capital markets — a category Paul earned through his work scaling Align's managed services platform for hedge funds, private equity firms and digital asset managers.
Align now supports clients across 24 states and 21 countries, with a specialised focus on firms navigating increasingly complex operational, cybersecurity and regulatory demands.
"What we've built here is unique — a deep technical expertise combined with a genuine understanding of how alternative investment firms operate."— Vinod Paul, President, Align Managed Services
Embedding AI Across Managed Services
Under Paul's leadership, Align has moved through what the company calls a pivotal era of platform evolution — weaving artificial intelligence into its Managed Services offerings just as the alternative investment industry works out how to adopt AI safely and responsibly. That has meant expanding cybersecurity, cloud, compliance and advisory capabilities into a single integrated platform built for modern investment operations.
At the center of that platform sits Align Cybersecurity™, the firm's risk management solution, alongside a growing set of AI-driven tools that help clients automate workflows, sharpen threat detection, and keep pace with tightening regulatory expectations.
Leadership Recognised by Peers
Jim Dooling, CEO of Align, said the award reflects the impact Paul delivers daily for clients and the company, pointing to his ability to turn industry foresight into scalable solutions that have driven growth across Align's Managed Services business.
Maureen Lowe, founder and editor-in-chief of FTF News, framed the win within a milestone year for the awards program, noting that 2026 marks both 20 years of FTF and 15 years of its awards. Align was honoured at the FTF News ceremony in New York City on 16 June 2026.