Threefold jump in Scottish fintechs as Fintech Scotland celebrates first year

Scotland's financial technology sector is booming with the number of businesses focused on fintech growing threefold in the last year.

The sector has attracted major investment in recent years. Picture: Contributed

There are now more than 80 fintech-focused small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) based in Scotland, according to FinTech Scotland.

The news comes on the first anniversary since the formation of the organisation, which is a joint initiative by a number of financial services firms, the University of Edinburgh and the Scottish Government.

The explosion in the number of fintech enterprises focused on reinventing financial services has been driven by both start-ups and existing fintech firms moving to Scotland.

The sector has attracted tens of millions of pounds in investment in recent years as more and more people use their smartphones and apps to manage their finances, and is home to companies such as Nucleus, LendingCrowd and Money Dashboard.

The number of firms operating in the arena has been bolstered by early stage Scottish tech firms expanding their proposition into financial services.

Commenting on the first year, Stephen Ingledew, chief executive of Fintech Scotland, said: “It has been a privilege over this last 12 months to lead the FinTech Scotland team and galvanise the broad range of support from across Scotland to support the growth of innovative fintech enterprises in this last year.

“Our progressive, collaborative and inclusive agenda is certainly establishing Scotland as a major global fintech centre which can contribute to Scotland’s economic and social ambitions.

“One year on there is still much to do but with a very supportive board and strategic partners plus a range of stakeholders from private sector, government and academia actively participating we can achieve the top ranking global fintech status.”

Graeme Jones, Scottish Financial Enterprise chief executive, said: “FinTech Scotland has made a significant impact over the past 12 months by raising awareness of Scotland’s fintech capabilities and the opportunities available for new and existing businesses.

“Scotland’s financial services industry has always been at the forefront of innovation and I’m pleased to see this momentum continue.”

Digital economy minister Kate Forbes added: “Congratulations to FinTech Scotland for an immensely successful year.

“With Stephen Ingledew at the helm, FinTech Scotland has galvanised collaboration between Scotland’s universities, financial industry and public sector. Together, we are building Scotland’s reputation as a major global fintech centre.”