A summary of the DIT & FCO FinTech Mission to Northern Powerhouse, which took place 5-7th November 2018.
From 5th – 7th November 2018, DIT & FCO hosted an international FinTech mission which saw 20 innovative FinTech firms from across Europe visit Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds. The mission was delivered by Whitecap Consulting, and was supported by HM Treasury FinTech Envoy Chris Sier. Throughout the mission the delegation had the opportunity to meet with and pitch to a UK audience from the financial services and tech sectors, facilitated via FinTech North showcase events which were hosted on each day of the visit.
In Liverpool, the delegation were welcomed to Sensor City, a global hub for the development of sensor technologies, where the first FinTech North event took place. The visiting delegation were joined by UK attendees and heard from Katherine Browne of the Financial Conduct Authority and Robert Thickett from the Building Societies Association, as well as being welcomed to the city by Invest Liverpool‘s Gavin Quinn, before each visiting FinTech delivered a 3 minute pitch to the audience. The delegation were taken on a tour of Baltic Creative by its managing direct, Mark Lawler. Baltic creative is a fascinating initiative that is now home to over 150 creative and digital businesses, with major expansion plans. In the afternoon the group headed to SciTech Daresbury, a national science and innovation campus and home to the UK’s first supercomputer, where they heard from John Leake and a number of expert speakers including Hartree Centre, IBM and Atos.
Moving on to Manchester, the delegation was welcomed with a drinks reception kindly hosted by Squire Patton Boggs, the international law firm. The following morning a FinTech North event was hosted at the newly opened Barclays Eagle Lab, which in addition to the 20 pitches included a session from Experian‘s Daniel Goldenberg focused on the opportunities arising from Open Banking. The delegation then visited The Vault at XYZ Building in Spinningfields, which has been created by Allied London under its co-work brand named All Work and Social. Here the groups spent time with Andrew Toolan, Rachel Eyre and Ed Bass from MIDAS and also Rachel Kenyon from University of Manchester, hearing about the digital and FinTech economy in the city and the opportunities available to them should they look to develop a base there. The afternoon concluded with a visit to the Dentsu Aegis Network offices, home to a team of approximately 500 creatives, where they were hosted by Mel Carey-Yard and Kate Pickering from Dentsu’s B2B agency Gyro, and also had the chance to meet other Dentsu agencies.
In Leeds, there was a pie and ale evening to welcome the visitors which was hosted by Bruntwood at Platform and attended by members of the local business and FinTech community. The final day’s FinTech North event the following morning took place at aql‘s iconic Salem Chapel, with support from Leeds City Council. The venue is also the Estonian Consulate to the North of England and the Isle of Man, and the Consul Adam Beaumont (CEO of aql) opened the event which included an Open Banking case study fromSam Flynn of first direct, an overview of the legal considerations of entering the UK by Paul Berwin of Berwins, and a sneak preview of what lies in store at Nexus, the new innovation centre at the University of Leeds, which was presented by Chelsea Hardy. In the afternoon the delegation was hosted for lunch at Squire Patton Boggs where they spent time with Jennie Frost and Tony Corby of Leeds City Region LEP discussing the opportunities for international FinTech firms in the region. The recent report into the Leeds City Region FinTech Ecosystem featured prominently in this session.
Many thanks to everyone who supported this FinTech Mission. There will be a further DIT/FCO mission in February 2019 and we will be announcing details of this shortly. If you would like to get involved, please contact us.
20 FinTechs from 9 countries – all seeking UK opportunities
Each visiting firm was an innovative FinTech looking to connect and collaborate with the UK tech and financial services ecosystem, including several who are seeking investment in their businesses:
Capcito (Sweden)Launched in 2014, Capcito is a web-based platform that takes invoice financing and SME lending to the next level through technology and data-driven decision making. Wants to connect with:Banks and invoice financing companies with an ambition to add new technology to improve customer onboarding, scoring, operations and monitoring to reduce costs and credit risks. Potential investors, i.e. strategic investors such as banks, VCs, larger angels or institutions. Potential partners, e.g. accounting providers. Both accounting firms and SaaS providers of invoicing and accounting applications. Contact:Michael Hansen, Founder, [email protected], www.capcito.com
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BizBot (Norway)Bizbot automates and digitises public reporting and legal documents. Through the platform, users gain an overview of all the relevant legal documents and processes surrounding their company. Wants to connect with:Investors, VC’s, Banks, FinTechs Contact:Didrik Martens, CEO, [email protected], www.bizbot.no
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Crassula (Latvia)Crassula is an open banking software infrastructure platform that allows companies to create their FinTech products as a White Label. Wants to connect with: Building societies, banks, insurance companies, card issuing companies, retailers, ecommerce companies Contact:Alexander Novozenov, Founding Partner, [email protected], crassula.io
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iconicchain (Finland)iconicchain is building a blockchain solution to automate regulatory compliance in real time, across the full scope of the business of the regulated company. Wants to connect with:Financial institutions planning/deploying e.g. securitisation solutions and related compliance solutions; auditors;. Contact:Andra Vajda, CEO, [email protected], iconicchain.com
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Wultra (Czech Republic)Wultra builds bridges between banking services, identity technologies and digital security solutions to introduce smart and useful products. Wants to connect with:Representatives from the local retail banks and bank like fintech companies. Contact:Petr Dvorak, CEO, [email protected], wultra.com
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LeanDev (Sweden)LeanDev provides deposit and credit software solutions into the financial services sector. Wants to connect with:potential clients within lending and savings, preferably building associations that are looking to digitise their business. Contact:Henrik Lindstrom, Sales Manager, [email protected], leandev.se
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AidHedge (Sweden)AidHedge provides financial analytics for development actors working in emerging markets. Our platform provide clients with transaction benchmarks and is a one-stop solution for financial risk management and financial reporting. Wants to connect with:Potential clients: UK charities or other international development organisations. UK government agencies working with int development (ex Dfid) or financial transactions (ex the DMO). Potential partners: UK FX-firms, banks and other financial institutions working with international organisations. Contact:Numi Ostlund, CEO, [email protected], aidhedge.org
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EveryPay (Estonia)EveryPay is a payment gateway platform for banks to service the next generation of digital transactions. Our best-in-class payment solution gives banks an access to a state-of-the-art and continuously improving payment gateway platform with all the relevant tools to manage the acquiring side of eCommerce; as well as a variety of necessary features for banks’ customers that allow them to benefit from adopting digital payment solutions. Wants to connect with:Banks and other financial institutions that offer acquiring services for merchants, and who are not satisfied with their current acquiring solutions. EveryPay makes banks more agile and relevant in the world of fast changing digital payments. Contact:Jane Aavik, Business Development Manager, [email protected], every-pay.com
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Bankish (Estonia)An innovative deposit and loan administration back-office solution for credit providers, including an end-customer self-service portal. Wants to connect with:The Association of Credit Unions, local credit unions and building societies, IT companies who could have interest in becoming a reseller of our loan management system Contact:Andrus Alber, Founder & Board Member, [email protected], bankish.eu
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Bokio (Sweden)Bokio serves as a pro-active assistant to SME companies and bases its recommendations on the customers accounting data. Bokio currently has 53000 customers in Sweden and are looking to expand into the UK. Wants to connect with:SMEs, SME organisations, potential partners with SMEs as customers. Contact:Viktor Stenssion, CEO, [email protected], bokio.se
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United Finance (Estonia & Finland)On the United Finance platform, users can create contracts with bundled products and services, helping to manage cash flows, bookkeeping and reporting of agreements. Wants to connect with:banks Contact:Tonis Vahesaar, Director, [email protected], ufinance.com
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Empower (Norway)A digital blockchain driven plastic waste deposit system, incentivising clean up and collection of plastic waste on a global scale. Wants to connect with:Retail, plastic users/producers, banks/international banks, w/cross border transfers growth in emerging markets. Contact:Willhelm Myrer, Founder, [email protected], empower.eco
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Enonic (Norway)Enonic XP is a complete web application platform and CMS for companies looking to create powerful digital experiences. Wants to connect with:Digital agencies and system integrators who deliver innovative and high-performance websites and applications. Contact:Casper Ninteman, Sales Partner Manager, [email protected], enonic.com
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Instant Factoring (Romania)Instant Factoring is a FinTech factoring platform providing liquidity to small entrepreneurs within 24 hours. Powered by robo-underwriting, blockchain technology , and machine learning based credit-risk algorithms. Wants to connect with:Investors Contact:Elisa Rusu, CEO, [email protected], instantfactoring.com
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Logicom Solutions (Cyprus)Logicom Solutions Ltd is a leading provider of total integrated IT solutions in Cyprus, Greece, Malta, UAE and the neighbouring countries. We specialize in the area of Systems Integration, Network Infrastructure, IT Infrastructure, Business Software, Collaboration, Management and Security Solutions. Contact:Nikolas Anastasiou, Head of Analytics, [email protected], logicomsolutions.com.cy
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ZoomCharts (Latvia)The next generation Data Visualisation technology that brings data perception, research and communication process to a whole new level. Enjoy data! Wants to connect with:Major business intelligence consultants, Major software development companies, Government institutions responsible for statistics, Innovative banks that are in pursuit of cutting-edge tech. Contact:Janis Volbergs, CEO, [email protected], zoomcharts.com
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Clareply (Denmark)Clareply is building a tool to ease the administrative burden for lawyers, accountants and real estate agents, who need to comply with anti-money laundering. Wants to connect with:Law firms specialising in M&A, AML (and GDPR) compliance managers, AML compliance authorities, Contact:Henrik Boensvang, CEO & Co-founder, [email protected], clareply.com
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Etronika (Lithuania)Etronika develops smart solutions for financial and retail institutions, working with companies that want to be a step ahead in the rapidly advancing worlds of banking, payments, and retail. Wants to connect with:Small to mid size banks, credit unions, FinTechs, Payment Institutions, Consumer finance companies, Convenience Retailers. Also those financial institutions who want to establish their presence and get banking license in Lithuania (Gateway to SEPA and Euro zone). Contact:Kestutis Gardziulis, Founder & Chief Innovation Officer, [email protected], etronika.com
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Monetor (Norway)We provide equal access to currency risk management. Through automation, we remove economic waste for our clients, and drive sustainable capitalism. Wants to connect with:Banks, Accounting/ERP firms, clients with FX exposure, investors Contact:Kevin Graeter, CEO, [email protected], monetaer.no
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ERNIT (Denmark)ERNIT is the world’s first kids friendly app connected to real bank accounts. In the app children can set goals, get rewards for doing chores and follow their longterm progress on their savings. Wants to connect with:Financial institutions that are looking to engage with the family segment, who have experience in integrating with third party developers. Contact:Soren Nielson, CEO, [email protected], ernit.com |
 
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