FinTech Wales, the not-for-profit organisation aiming to make Wales a leading pillar of the global FinTech landscape, has started working on a 10-year roadmap for the sector. It has also secured £250,000 in seed funding from Cardiff Capital Region.
FinTech Wales is seeking the help of more than 150 companies from across the nation who play a role in the Welsh FinTech and Financial Services environment to help plot the roadmap. The roadmap will then define the next ten years of technology and skills development needs to secure, grow, and innovate in the FinTech sector in Wales, while supporting the wider UK ambition
The organisation has also been awarded £250,000 by Cardiff Capital Region to enable its vision of making Wales a global player in the FinTech and financial services sector – as well as making it the go-to destination for FinTech businesses, small or large. The seed funding allocation will allow a nine-month programme of essential work to be undertaken to establish and evidence the building blocks required to grow the FinTech sector’s sustainability in Wales.
Gavin Powell, General Secretary of FinTech Wales, said of the Cardiff Capital Region funding: “As a not for profit membership organisation we are thrilled that Cardiff Capital Region has awarded us this funding, allowing us to further support our members, as well as helping us plot an environment where FinTech and financial services businesses have a secure foundation in Wales.”
Kellie Beirne, Director of CR City Deal, said: “I am delighted that we are able to support Fintech Wales. The Fintech sector has a significant role to play in helping the economic recovery from Covid-19, not just in Financial Services, but also in its ability to make a transformational contribution to other sectors and initiatives such as net zero carbon, green economy, energy, and transport.
“This allocation represents the largest seed funding award provided by the CCR to date and evidences the importance of the sector within our Economic and Industrial plan. It also bears testament to the commitment of Fintech Wales and its corporate members to push forwards with developments that will be transformative for Wales and the region.”
Gavin continued: “This funding will now help FinTech Wales achieve its ambition of creating a collaborative and clear roadmap for the development of this sector in Wales. It’s arguably one of the most important pieces of work FinTech Wales has done to date and will secure Wales’ place as a globally competitive place for FinTech business.
“We are very focussed on creating the right conditions in which to innovate and grow, where all the actors and organisations have both a responsibility and role to play as a part of a wider connected and interdependent system. It’s very much the quality of this environment that will make Wales stand out globally. This coordinated approach demonstrates how progressive we are in this field and how we are at the forefront of locations for companies to start and scale operations and build resilience in this sector.”
FinTech Wales is now calling upon businesses across Wales to engage in the development of the roadmap and help identify the requirement of future skills, likely market disruptors and changes that need to be made to make Wales a proactive and innovative business environment that generates growth.
FinTech Wales member Matt Wintle, who is Head of Change, at Admiral Group, said: “I fully support the creation of a FinTech roadmap, we should be immensely proud of the FinTech community in South Wales. We have some great companies enjoying huge success largely powered by their technology capabilities. We now have a wonderful opportunity to be proactive in our development of the sector and the talent which supports it. I see every reason Wales can be a centre of technology excellence in areas such as analytics and digital, if we can just be a little more organised and forward thinking, and to shout about how proud we are of what we already achieve”.
Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates, said: “The publication of the FinTech Road-Map is the latest milestone on the journey to creating a financial and professional services environment in Wales with a reputation for excellence and a growing pool of talent.
“The tech sector is hugely important to Wales, with employment in it soaring by more than 120% in recent years and will be even more so as we recover from the impacts of coronavirus. Our flourishing FinTech ecosystem is central to this.
“The Welsh Government continues to support this thriving industry and our commitment to helping home grown business while attracting internationally-renowned companies to Wales is steadfast, helping to provide more high-quality and well-paid job opportunities.
“With the support of FinTech Wales we are creating a truly world class industry here, and that is something we should all be extremely proud of.”
Founded in 2019 as a not-for-profit, FinTech Wales exists as a global voice for Welsh-based FinTech and Financial Services. As well as nurturing and supporting those businesses already in Wales, it will develop the environment to help FinTech companies’ start-up or scale-up in Wales and aims to establish Wales as a rapidly emerging pillar of the global FinTech economy.
The association has established an Advisory Board of 20 people including representation from Welsh companies such as Credas, Confused.com, Admiral, The Principality and Capital Law. FinTech Wales will act as a global voice and advocate for FinTech, introducing the benefits to FinTech entrepreneurs and innovators of establishing a business in Wales, as well as nurturing and supporting those companies already in Wales.
More information about taking part in the roadmap development can be found at: www.fintechwales.org
