FinTech trends from the frontline: Bridging the gap between startups and banks

By: Fabian Vandenreydt

Twitter: @FVandenreydt

Note: This entry has been made under the success story chapter of the FinTech book. As a result the founder(s) and its company name may be used to illustrate their story.

As an integral part of SWIFT, Innotribe has a unique position within FinTech innovation — identifying key trends and opportunities, leveraging talent and ensuring that the financial services ecosystem benefits from fresh thinking from startups.

Leveraging SWIFT’s worldwide network, Innotribe collaborates with investors, venture capitalists, strategists, banks and financial institutions. Innotribe also supports the growth of FinTech innovation globally with its Startup Challenge programme, strategic partnerships, thought leadership, and its forum at Sibos.

FinTech has changed beyond recognition since Innotribe was launched five years ago, and the number of key players is ever-increasing. We see this in the exponential growth of our Startup Challenge for which applications have more than doubled in just two years.

We also see the development of new startup hubs in markets fertile for innovation. Africa, for example, produced an impressive 13% of all Startup Challenge applications in 2015. Building on this momentum, Innotribe launched its first African showcase in Cape Town this year, drawing attention to innovation happening on the ground outside of the traditionally-recognised areas such as London, New York and Singapore.

Overall, we’ve seen the range of startup topics mature rapidly, reaching deep into the core of banking and seeking solutions in everything from lending to payments. The debates and discussions that drive our programme mirror the wider shifts occurring in financial services.

With an alumni network of more than 650 startups, we hope to empower the ecosystem to work together on specific areas of innovation that truly add value for financial institutions. We believe it is essential for companies to identify opportunities to work together, share experiences and learnings, and debate common challenges and opportunities. If we want to move forward as an industry, collaboration across the various FinTech communities is more important than ever. As technological innovation evolves, Innotribe will continue to bring the startup ecosystem and financial services expertise together.

Editors Notes: This entry has been submitted to the FINTECH Book, the world’s 1st globally crowd-sourced book on FINTECH. Readers that enjoyed this initial abstract are invited to share and like it so that it may be featured in a longer version.

The FINTECH Book is due to be released in April 2016 and is available for Pre-Order on Amazon.