FinTech North Makes Its Mancunian Debut
Jake Fox / 14th May 2018
The second in the series of three FinTech North events is taking place in Manchester this month, bringing together policy and decision makers across public and private sector, alongside some of the region’s most well established business, media, financial services and tech firms.
Taking place on Tuesday 22nd May at Whitworth Art Gallery in partnership with the University of Manchester, the event will focus on the skills, resources, innovation and economic strength of the FinTech community in the north, as well as exploring opportunities for further growth.
The event, which is a first for the city, will be showcasing the growing FinTech scene in Manchester and sharing expertise with its counterparts in Yorkshire, where there has been a 30% growth in the sector in the last five years.
The conference will hear from representatives from Government and the Northern Powerhouse, high street and investment banks, entrepreneurs and academics, industry regulators, alongside home-grown FinTech firms.
The University of Manchester will lead on the FinTech skills and research session with a keynote speech from Dame Nancy Rothwell, the University’s President and Vice-Chancellor.
Tim Newns, chief executive officer, MIDAS, Manchester’s inward investment, explained why there are major opportunities for Manchester’s growing FinTech scene:
“We are really proud to be hosting the FinTech North conference for the first time when it comes to Manchester this month. The sector has grown immensely over the last five years with companies such as Bankifi, Adyen and Ebury setting up offices here, so it’s timely to be bringing the best of FinTech companies together in Manchester.
“A recent report commissioned by Prolific North stated that tech companies in the North have attracted investment at a faster rate than anywhere else in Europe. A high number of companies are being attracted to Manchester as the UK’s second largest hub for FinTech and financial services, the latter of which accounts for 20 per cent of the economy.
“Manchester is an energetic, innovative city where multiple capabilities combine. Strong tech, financial services and media / e-commerce sectors converge in the city, providing a platform for FinTech entrepreneurs to collaborate and grow.”
Now in its third year, FinTech North was established in 2016 by Whitecap Consulting and White Label Crowdfunding to reinforce the UK’s Northern Powerhouse region as a centre of excellence for FinTech.
Luke Freeman, director of Whitecap Consulting, co-founder of FinTech North said, “At last month’s conference in Leeds, policymakers declared that the future of the North depended on FinTech, and Manchester – at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse – has a critical role to play. Greater Manchester’s FinTech scene benefits from a nurturing eco-system and a hotbed of talent with its four Universities, and this is why we were so keen to expand FinTech North to Manchester for the first time. There are some exciting home-grown firms in Manchester and we want to help showcase the brilliant work they are doing.”
FinTech North Manchester 2018 is proudly sponsored by: AJ Bell, Australian Trade & Investment Commission, BJSS, Canadian High Commission, Computershare, Department for International Trade, DLA Piper, Equiniti Credit Services, FinTech Futrues, Innovate Finance, The University of Manchester, MIDAS, Open Banking Expo, ProCo, Whitecap Consulting and White Label Crowdfunding.
The first FinTech North conference took place in Leeds on 26th April, Manchester’s takes place on 22nd May and the final conference is in Liverpool on 12th June.
View the full agenda and register for Manchester here:
