Investing in future Wales

In 2021, Wales was highlighted in the Kalifa review as one of the top 10 established fintech hubs in the United Kingdom. Since then, over 1000 jobs have been added to the sector with over 16,000 people working in fintech in Wales. Wales is home to many successfully scaling fintech companies and is increasingly attracting national challenger banks to its valleys. Starling, Monzo and now Tandem have all looked to Wales to grow their businesses.

The second annual Investing in Future Wales business showcase was an opportunity to bring together investors to hear about the strength of Wales’ fintech sector and directly connect to investment opportunities that Wales offers as one of the UK’s strongest fintech hubs.

The event was hosted by the Chair of Fintech Wales, Louise O’Shea, and featured speakers including: Lord Mayor Locum Tenens Sir William Russell who highlighted the work that City of London are doing to support our Welsh stakeholders through the UK Regions & Nations Strategy as well as setting the scene for the strength of the sector in Wales.

Lord Johnson, Minister of State for Investment, and Louis Taylor CEO of British Business Bank, spoke on what work is being done by the Department for Business and Trade and the British Business Bank to support companies looking to scale, and how investors can get directly involved in supporting this.

Charlotte Crosswell, Chair of the Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology spoke about the recent launch of the organisation and how its coalition model with regional hubs will work to support connectivity across the sector and drive forward solutions to challenges felt across the country such as the funding gap.

The panel discussion featured key players within the ecosystem, hosted by Sarah Williams Gardener from Fintech Wales.

• Yoello, Delio and Bikmo are successfully scaling in Wales
• Octopus Ventures are a London investor looking to Wales for the next big fintech investment
• Starling Bank are the UK’s fastest growing Fintech and have chosen Wales as a key geography for their growth

Seven high-growth potential fintech companies then pitched their ideas in front of an audience of investors and interested intermediaries: Driverly, Mazuma, Ethics Grade, Dynamo Cover, Voltric, Credit Canary, and ShipShape.

The event was a partnership between City of London, British Business Bank, the Department for Business & Trade and the Welsh Government.

Watch the speeches, panel, and pitches below.