The Centre for Finance, Innovation, and Technology (CFIT) has struck an agreement with key industry partners that will see blue-chip financial institutions partner and fund CFIT’s next industry-led coalition, which will be launched in Q1 2025.

This significant backing for CFIT demonstrates the appetite within the financial services sector to advance industry solutions and help deliver on the government’s mission of driving economic growth through financial innovation.

With the strategic support of both industry and government and its second coalition on tackling Economic Crime through a Company Digital ID approaching its conclusion, CFIT is now preparing to launch a combination of exploratory and follow-on coalitions throughout the year.

These coalitions will continue CFIT’s approach of reaching out across the ecosystem, driving change and innovation in financial services and delivering better outcomes for SMEs and consumers. Each coalition will generate impact and value-based proofs of concepts and propositions that can accelerate innovation and customer adoption.

The next of these coalitions will be led by industry partners including Mastercard and Lloyds Bank, with other organisations set to join in 2025. The coalition will build on the success of CFIT’s Open Finance coalition and SME Finance Taskforce by developing the technology, policy, and regulatory solutions to help the UK’s 5.6 million small businesses raise external finance more readily, successfully and efficiently.

The coalition plans include developing SME-focused solutions, such as an SME digital finance education tool and a digital marketplace. It will also build on CFIT’s prior work to boost the supply of SME lending by developing further supply-side proofs of concept, such as an SME resilience index that enables lenders and other financial service providers to make more informed decisions.

The shift to a hybrid model, where CFIT will simultaneously run publicly and privately funded coalitions, marks the beginning of CFIT’s next phase of growth, in which the organisation will continue to diversify its revenue sources throughout 2025 and beyond. CFIT was launched in 2023 with backing from HM Treasury and the City of London Corporation.

The organization has quickly established itself as the UK’s independent innovation accelerator for financial services, leading innovation coalitions and taskforces on topics including Open Finance & Smart Data, SME & Business Financing and Economic Crime. Its work has recently been recognised by the UK Government, in both the Budget and the Chancellor’s Mansion House speech, with recommendations from its inaugural Open Finance coalition and SME Finance Taskforce currently being taken forward.

Charlotte Crosswell, Chair of CFIT, said: “This new strategic agreement with industry partners positions CFIT strongly for its next phase of growth, and is testament to the success of our coalition-led approach to date. We are grateful for the support of Mastercard and Lloyds Bank and look forward to welcoming more strategic and coalition partners to further advance the progress we’ve already made on SME Finance. We are also working closely with industry on other key projects for 2025, such as smart data schemes in financial services and delivering more inclusive financial service propositions. 

“This agenda is closely aligned with the Government’s Industrial Strategy, National Payments Vision and ambitions – including manifesto commitments – on Smart Data, and especially Open Banking and Open Finance. All of which will be crucial to helping the UK regain its leadership in financial services innovation and fintech amidst intensifying global competition.”

Jane Prokop, Mastercard Executive Vice President and Global Head, Small and Medium Enterprises, said: “Small businesses are the backbone of the UK economy, but they are too often reluctant borrowers, deterred from accessing the finance they need to prosper due to previous bad experience or cultural factors such as greater risk aversion than in other markets. When they do seek to borrow, they frequently are unable to receive funds at a reasonable cost or in the needed amount.  Mastercard is delighted to lead this next coalition with CFIT and we endorse this collective initiative that will ensure small businesses get the funding that they need. We believe that this is in the interests of all economic stakeholders and that UK GDP growth will result from the coalition’s work programme.”

Elyn Corfield, CEO, Business & Commercial Banking from Lloyds Bank, said: “SMEs play an essential role in our communities, providing services and creating jobs. By entering into a strategic partnership with CFIT for this next coalition, we aim to accelerate the development of the SME finance market, creating smart-data-driven solutions that help SMEs access appropriate funding. If we can improve awareness of different financial options and increase the number of SMEs applying for suitable finance so that they can invest in their infrastructure, products and services, they can better play their vital role in boosting UK growth.”