The FinTech Five – 14th January 2022 

Welcome to a friends edition of the FinTech Five! This week we are taking a closer look at five of our fantastic FinTech Wales Friend Members who continue to provide support, knowledge, and expertise to our region’s FinTech community.

1. FinTech Wales Foundry Accelerator Program 2022 Cohort Announced

First this week, The FinTech Wales Foundry, the flagship accelerator program by FinTech Wales, yesterday announced the eight FinTech startups accepted into its 2022 Accelerator.

The 12-week no equity program, titled The Foundry: Validate Raise & Scale, is the only accelerator of its kind in Wales, with an explicit focus on helping founders overcome the challenges of validating, fundraising, and scaling a new venture successfully.

After a rigorous interview process, the Foundry and its sponsors Principality Building Society, Admiral Financial Services (AFSL), and Cardiff Capital Region City Deal, extended offers to nine startups from across the UK and Europe, who will begin the programme on 26th of January. The accelerators format will safely combine intensive digital and in-person mentoring sessions with experienced industry leaders at the programme’s Cardiff hub, Covid restrictions allowing, before culminating in an event showcasing their progress at the accelerator’s end in mid-April.

Read our full blog on the announcement here. 

2. Deloitte release Financial Markets Regulatory Outlook 2022

Next, Deloitte have released their Financial Markets Regulatory Outlook 2022. 

The annual assessment from Deloitte’s EMEA Centre for Regulatory Strategy explores how major regulatory trends will affect the financial services industry across EMEA in the year ahead, and how leaders can anticipate and respond to them effectively.

The 2022 edition of the Financial Markets Regulatory Outlook identifies ten cross-sector themes of strategic significance, and takes an in-depth look at three related spotlight topics – credit risk, regulatory divergence and the future of regulation.

Click here for access to the full report from Deloitte. 

3. Law firm Pinsent Masons partners with Tech Nation’s Rising Stars competition to support UK early-stage tech scaleups

Next this week, International law firm Pinsent Masons has partnered with Tech Nation’s Rising Stars competition to support innovative early-stage scaleups across the UK.

Pinsent Masons will run two sessions open to all Rising Stars 4.0 applicants on topics including raising investment (with a focus on seed-stage). Additionally, a member of its team will help to judge the Rising Stars 4.0 Semi-Final.

A purpose-led professional services business with law at its core, Pinsent Masons recognises that its clients rarely have legal problems; they have commercial challenges and opportunities. That’s why it combines legal expertise with a wide range of complementary professional disciplines – enabled by processes and technology – to address its clients’ most pressing needs.

Rising Stars is the UK’s most exciting competition for innovative, early-stage tech companies. Following an initial application stage in September, Rising Stars 4.0’s Regional Winners were revealed last month as part of our latest ‘12 Days of Scaleups’ campaign.

Esme Caulfield, Tech Nation’s Competitions Lead, said: “We’re really excited to be working with Pinsent Masons on Rising Stars 4.0, as their expertise in the tech sector and passion for early-stage tech companies makes them the ideal partner for the competition.

“With Tech Nation’s Rising Stars competition now in its fourth year, it’s amazing to see so many inspiring companies innovating to change our world for the better. This year, we reached the milestone of 1000 applications to Rising Stars (and surpassed it). We had a record number of applications this year (380) and we also saw our first applications – and our first Regional Winner – from the spacetech sector (Elestial, from the Midlands) and agritech (Cropsafe, from Northern Ireland).

Click here to read the full announcement from Tech Nation. 

4. Josh Buis of Vantage Data Centers examines the latest developments in the global colocation data center market in recent issue of Inside Networks

Next, Josh Buis, Senior Vice President of International Business Development at Vantage Data Centers examines the latest developments in the global colocation data center market and looks at what the future has in store in Inside Network’s most recent issue. 

“We are seeing strong demand for high quality and scalable data center facilities across the globe. According to a recent report by Synergy Research Group, the number of hyperscale data centers has doubled over the last five years to around 700. The average data center size is also increasing, with total hyperscale data centre capacity notably on the rise in the last four year” explains Josh. 

Click here to read Josh’s article on page. 48 of Inside Network’s latest issue. 

5. Cardiff Capital Region share insight into The 5 Factors Shaping their 2022 Venture Skills and Talent Agenda

Last but not least this week, Cardiff Capital Region have shared their insights into The 5 Factors Shaping their 2022 Venture Skills and Talent Agenda. 

“The third year of the third decade of the 21st century promises to be a skills journey unlike any other. The economic recovery, the fourth industrial revolution and the race to zero all represent major opportunities as well as significant challenges. If we ‘get it right’ from a skills perspective, then the future for our region will be founded on a resilient and agile workforce, a wider and deeper talent pool, higher performing organisations, better jobs closer to home and greater prosperity in every community.

The Venture Skills & Talent Hub was created to help build and nurture that future across the CCR. CCR helps employers attract and develop the talent they need, to support people in achieving their vocational ambitions – and to collaborate with the wider skills community in delivering the very best talent development for our region. 2022 is just the start of that journey – and these are the Big Five factors that will shape our progress over the next 12 months:

• Skilling, Reskilling & Upskilling
• One Size Doesn’t Fit Anyone
• Collaborations are Key
• Training & Skills are now part of ‘The Deal’
• The future is in Our Hands

Click here to read the full article on CCR’s website.

Until Next Time…

That’s it for this month’s Friends of FinTech Five. For more information on any of our Friend Members, visit our members directory and discover what’s new from the organisations helping the financial technology community to succeed throughout the region.