FinTech Alliance and FinTech Scotland seal tie-up to further boost sector growth

Stephen Ingledew, chief executive of FinTech Scotland, said the partnership is a further example of driving fintech innovation through collaborative relationships. Picture: Contributed

The agreement is part of FinTech Alliance’s mission to “bring together the strengths of the UK’s fintech ecosystem on one all-encompassing platform”, while supporting the continued growth of the industry.

In January, it emerged that Scotland had seen a 60 per cent surge in the number of fintech businesses in the past 12 months as the country establishes itself as a global hub for high-growth fintech firms.

FinTech Scotland said the number of “innovative” fintech SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) based north of the Border had grown from 72 to 119.

Recently, Scotland was recognised as a fintech cluster centre of excellence by the European cluster accreditation body which benchmarks the impact of innovation and collaboration across all sectors of the economy.

FinTech Alliance will also support FinTech Scotland throughout the next Scottish FinTech Festival, developing a programme of events, roundtables and discussions. FinTech Scotland’s content and activity will appear on its FinTech Alliance microsite and will be promoted by FinTech Alliance across social media platforms and newsletters.

Diversity

New features and initiatives are being added to FinTech Alliance’s platform on a regular basis, including a diversity hub and a mentoring hub which seek to build “a more inclusive fintech space” and offer support to those wishing to build a career in the sector.

FinTech Alliance launched last June in partnership with the Department for International Trade (DIT). More than 1,000 individuals and organisations have already signed up to the alliance, including Revolut, Thought Machine, OakNorth and CYBG.

Phil Vidler, chief executive of FinTech Alliance, said: “It is both exciting and important to have FinTech Scotland on board.

“This partnership cements FinTech Alliance’s commitment to, and support for, all firms across the UK. It also underlines the real spirit of collaboration we are seeing in the fintech sector – one that will help all involved grow and prosper.”

Stephen Ingledew, chief executive of FinTech Scotland, added: “This partnership is a further example of driving fintech innovation through collaborative relationships.

“We’re impressed by the progress made by Phil and the team in a short space of time and with our shared values of inclusion and diversity combined with a global mindset we aim to accelerate initiatives to support fintech enterprises.”

FinTech Alliance is open to individuals and companies.