Welcome to the FinTech Five, the part of the week where we take a closer look at the best articles, news, and features from our FinTech Wales members.

It’s been another week month for Welsh FinTech that’s continued to demonstrate the unstoppable momentum that’s building throughout the  region’s FinTech community. Here are our top five stories and articles you may have missed from the week gone by.

1.Sonovate Tipped To Be Wales’ First $1Bn Fintech Unicorn

First this week we saw the outstanding news that Cardiff-based disruptor, Sonovate, have been tipped by The report by the UK government’s Digital Economy Council and data firm Dealroom.co as a potential future unicorn.

If the prediction proves correct, Sonovate, who provide finance and tech solutions to recruitment agencies and other businesses that engage contractors and freelancers, would become the first unicorn to emerge from the Wales region and set a major precedent for the abundance of dynamic technology startups in our region looking to achieve the magic valuation of $1bn.

Damon Chapple, co-founder and co-CEO at Sonovate, said:

“Despite the flourishing and well-established fintech scene in Cardiff especially, there are currently no fintech unicorns in Wales.

“As someone who grew up in Cardiff and still lives and works in the city, I’m keen to see this change.

“Sonovate becoming the first would be testament to our hard-working and talented team, which has played a huge role in our growth and led to us being recognised as a futurecorn.”

Richard Prime, co-founder and co-CEO at Sonovate, added:

“It’s great to be included in this list, reflecting the increasing demand for solutions like ours.

“We continue to focus on enhancing and expanding our proposition to support the growing number of freelance and contract workers in the UK and internationally.”

Read more on this exciting story on the Sonovate Website here.

2.Admiral Tops Uk List Of Best Employers For Wellbeing

Welsh employer, Admiral has been named the best big company in the UK for Wellbeing.

The FTSE 100 financial services company, which is headquartered in Cardiff, was recognised for its outstanding approach to employee wellbeing by workplace engagement specialists, Best Companies.

The FTSE 100 financial services company, which is headquartered in Cardiff, was also 5th in the annual list of UK’s 25 Best Big Companies to Work For.

The company, which employs more than 7,500 people across South Wales was also included in Insurance’s 10 Best Companies to Work For, as well as the 30 Best Companies to Work For in Wales. It ranked 2nd and 7th respectively.

Admiral Group CEO, Milena Mondini, said, “I am so proud to be recognised by Best Companies as one of the 5 best big companies in the UK, and the best big company in the UK for wellbeing.

“There is nothing more important to us than looking after our people. And obviously, in the last year, it has been the case even more.

From the outset of the pandemic, our priority has been the safety and wellbeing of our colleagues, ensuring they were supported whilst we adapted to new ways of working and the many challenges that Covid brought.

“We embraced flexible working arrangements, ensured regular communication signposting to resources geared towards helping our colleagues cope during the crisis, and we worked hard to equip our managers to support their team members on an individual basis.”

Read more about this and other stories on the Admiral Group’s website here.

3.W2 Global Data – Cryptocurrency – Silk Road To Central Bank

 

A great read next on W2 Global Data’s blog about one of the hottest talking points of the moment – Cryptocurrency. If you have even a passing interest in the world of blockchain or digital currency, this article is a must read as it charts the journey of cryptocurrency all the way from the Silk Road to modern day central banking.

Here’s a short extract from the article

“Cryptocurrency – If you are a child of the 80s, you will no doubt remember the great philosopher Ferris Bueller’s infamous musing, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it”.

Today, life moves very fast and change is constant. COVID appears to be a catalyst for accelerated change, particularly when it comes to how we spend and the move towards the much debated ‘cashless society’. Whether this is a good or bad thing and how this affects individuals who may become financially excluded, is a discussion for another day.”

Read the full article on the W2 website here.

4.Peppercorn Receives Eis Relief After Public Guidance Update

Next is the significant news revealed in the Insurance Times that Peppercorn have become the first InsurTech to receive Enterprise Invest Relief approval.

The Cardiff based InsurTech had previously been deemed ineligible for the scheme due to its business model and reapplied in April 2021 following changes to public guidance. This recent application success means has now they are finally able to benefit from the substantial income tax and capital gains tax relief to available to investors in IES businesses.

Nigel Lombard, chief executive and founder of Peppercorn told the Insurance Times: “As well as the process taking a large amount of effort and time, the absence of advance assurance meant the traditional early stage routes of sourcing investment from angels and EIS funds was effectively blocked. The good news is it won’t be any more for new MGA startups.

Read the full story and more on the extensive work carried out by Insurtech UK’s chair of government and external affairs working group to prompt these changes here.

5.Laytrip Announces New Worldwide Destinations After Initial Beta Launch of Laytrip.com

Laytrip, Inc a worldwide layaway travel provider currently offering flights during its beta launch of Laytrip.com, announced today that it has added over 500 new domestic and international destinations to the platform, bringing its total destinations served to over 800 worldwide.

Laytrip currently offers travel customers a new and unique way to plan and book affordable travel on layaway to over 800 worldwide destinations, without any interest charges, credit checks or third party financing providers.

Victor Pacheco, Laytrip Founder and Executive Chairman said “We are very pleased to provide our new Laytrip product to our customers.

Our Co-founder and CEO Mike Powell and I, through our experiences building and running Airlines and travel companies, strategized during a difficult economic climate to create a unique offering that would make travel affordable for everyone. We believe we have succeeded.

We are Laytrip users ourselves and we are confident that as we continue on our growth plan, the product and brand will continue to resonate well with anyone who travels.”

Find out more about the strides LayTrip has taken to book travel easily, quickly, and under budget here.

Until Next Week

And that’s it for the FinTech Five this week. Thank you for reading, and don’t forget to join us next week for more of the best content from across our FinTech Wales membership.

If you want to join our dynamic FinTech Wales community, then click here to learn more about the exclusive benefits FinTech Wales membership has to offer.