FinTech Wales, the independent membership association and champion of the FinTech and Financial Services industry in Wales, opened the market at London Stock Exchange -  on St David’s Day – March 1st, 2024.

Sarah Williams-Gardener, Chair of FinTech Wales, officially opened the trading market at the London Stock Exchange Group, joined by Secretary of State for Wales, David TC Davies MP. Representatives from key stakeholders from industry and government attended, as well as those from Welsh founded or based fintechs, including Starling Bank, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Tandem, Wealthify and Just Eat, and many more.

Speaking about the Market Open ceremony, Sarah said: “It felt like a real moment in time for the fintech sector in Wales. I was honoured to be representing our network and showcasing all that we have achieved as a fintech community. Our drive and passion makes us loud and proud and it was wonderful to celebrate the Welsh fintech ecosystem on St David’s Day.”

FinTech Wales’ market opening formed part of Wales Week London, a collection of annual events that celebrates Welsh culture, business, and innovation in London.

Welsh Secretary David TC Davies said: “I was delighted to celebrate St David’s Day by opening the London Stock Exchange with FinTech Wales. We have a fantastic thriving Welsh financial services technology sector supporting 16,000 jobs across Wales which continues to go from strength to strength.”

Launched in April 2019, FinTech Wales offers help and support to its network of members, and uses the power of the collective voice to be heard by politicians, governments and influencers in the financial services space. As well as nurturing and supporting those businesses already in Wales, it aims to develop an ecosystem that will encourage and attract new fintech companies to start or scale in the region.

Attendee Toby Kernon, CEO and founder of Wagonex: "Growing Wagonex in Wales has given us access to the thriving Welsh Fintech ecosystem. We are great advocates for the work that FinTech Wales are doing towards developing the ecosystem here in Wales. The Market Open ceremony today is an example of how FinTech Wales amplifies the fintech sector, showcasing Welsh fintech companies to a wider audience in London."

James Fell, CEO of Credit Canary who was also at the opening, said: “We're proud to represent Wales, a world leading fintech ecosystem that boasts cutting-edge innovation and a vibrant talent pool. Credit Canary has thrived thanks to the incredible support of FinTech Wales, playing a critical role in our growth journey.”

Ultimately, FinTech Wales’ mission is to make Wales a globally recognised hub of fintech excellence. It is currently in the third year of its four-year strategy to support fintechs in Wales, in which the organisation has focused on four key pillars, including skills and talent, ecosystem and community, funding and investment and the promotion of Wales as a place for fintech and financial organisations to thrive.

A five-year, £1.6 million investment in FinTech Wales was announced by Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) in June 2022, with the two organisations working closely together in partnership to deliver on CCR’s commitment to establish Wales as a leading fintech sector in the UK.

Digitalisation is a company priority for 87% of senior business leaders according to a recent survey, but only 40% of companies have realised their full digital potential.

Digital transformation pioneer GFT has strengthened its leadership team with the appointment of Ian Oswald as its Executive Director of Strategy and Offerings.

Ian brings 25+ years experience in technology transformation for retail and commercial financial services. At GFT, he will be responsible for driving the business’ capabilities and offerings for the company’s clients across the financial services industry.

Ian joins GFT’s 280-strong UK team from EY where he held the role of partner in the business’ technology consulting team, leading engagements on technology strategy, transformation roadmap and execution for large banking groups and challenger financial institutions. Prior to EY, Ian held roles at IBM, PwC and NatWest.

Speaking on his new role, Ian said: “GFT is a leader in engineering excellence and its expertise in integrating modern industry platforms is exactly what is needed in the financial services market. I'm looking forward to working with our clients to drive forward their transformations, and lead GFT’s strategy and offerings.“

Carlton Hopper, UK Managing Director at GFT, said: “Ian is a great addition to our leadership team. His experience working in industry and consultancy for some of the UK’s biggest banks means he understands the digital challenges and opportunities facing the sector and our clients. We’re looking forward to seeing the positive impact his appointment will have on our clients.“

His appointment marks the second hire in GFT’s UK leadership team in six months, following the arrival of Priya Lakshmi as its new Chief Revenue Officer in October.

GFT has already had a strong start to 2024, having announced its acquisition of Sophos Solutions in January. The acquisition has grown GFT’s headcount by 20 percent to more than 12,000 specialists worldwide.

Thredd, a rapidly expanding next-generation global payments platform, has appointed Edwin Poot, seasoned financial technology executive, as Global Chief Technology Officer.

Edwin will lead the next phase of Thredd’s technological evolution to deliver the company’s robust product expansion roadmap.  Working closely with Chief Product Officer, Ava Kelly, who joined the organization in 2023, Edwin will be instrumental in bringing Thredd’s payments offering and geographic expansion plans to life.  All aspects of the company’s technology approach, including innovation, platform development, infrastructure, security, and compliance will be within Edwin’s remit. 

With over two decades of hands-on experience within the financial services space, Edwin has actively participated in the evolution of technology across fintech, telecom, energy, and e-commerce industries, previously holding roles as Chief Product & Technology Officer at Dayrize, VP of Product & Technology at Nubank and Chief Architect at Booking.com.

Edwin will directly report to Jim McCarthy, CEO of Thredd, while Thredd’s Chief Technology Officer, Ian Ripley, will report to Edwin with a continued focus on further optimising Thredd’s current technological infrastructure.  Edwin will join the company’s executive committee alongside a range of C-level industry veterans who have come on board over the last year to deliver the organisation’s next chapter of strategic growth.

Edwin Poot, Global Chief Technology Officer, commented:

“I am thrilled to be joining Thredd’s executive team where I can leverage my knowledge and experience to support their global growth goals. Previously, I have been at the forefront of shaping technology landscapes while steering high-performance teams, understanding both the intricacies of technology as well as the importance of being a strong leader.”

“I look forward to working with the Thredd team to continue building our global technology strategy to support our clients’ broad B2B and B2C payments ambitions worldwide.”

Jim McCarthy, CEO of Thredd, commented:

“Our goal remains to invest in world-class talent to lead the industry with the most modern and complete payments offering.  Edwin’s hands-on experience driving dynamic technological scaling and expansion within the global financial services ecosystem positions us well to achieve our strategic goals for 2024 and beyond.”

Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting (TAA) has launched CCH iFirm®, its award-winning cloud-based practice management and compliance software platform, in the U.K. The integrated and scalable platform is designed to help make tax and accountancy practices more efficient and productive.

“For over a decade, CCH iFirm has been driving impact globally for tax and accounting firms with its innovative technology and extensive capabilities, and we are excited to introduce this new platform to the U.K.,” said Bas Kniphorst, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Wolters Kluwer TAA Europe. “Accounting firms are adopting technology solutions to help achieve greater business scalability, agility and resilience against the backdrop of an ever-evolving accountancy landscape. Wolters Kluwer CCH iFirm provides those capabilities through a unified platform with single sign-in.”

The new platform offers efficient and automated workflows and full integration and visibility across a range of accounting tools. It enables access to real-time data, while adhering to the top industry security standards. CCH iFirm thereby allows users to access new opportunities driven by data analysis, visualization, and reporting.

A leading cloud platform in the North America and Asia Pacific markets, the U.K. launch of CCH iFirm is the first in Europe. Existing users of Wolters Kluwer CCH Central, the on-premise accounting system in the U.K., can choose to make a one-off switch or a phased transition to the new platform.

Cloud brings new benefits

“CCH iFirm is a next-generation cloud platform which directly brings the reliability, expertise and innovative technology that Wolters Kluwer is famed for to our clients in the U.K.,” added Neil Parsons, Managing Director, Wolters Kluwer TAA U.K. “Significant changes to U.K. tax regulation are coming, particularly for sole traders and partnerships, so now is the perfect time for accounting firms to review and update their systems and move to the cloud.”

CCH iFirm integrates seamlessly into workflows, including with CCH Central. The new platform also syncs with popular accounting and productivity tools, creating a unified ecosystem designed to boost efficiency and productivity.

Adding functionality

The functionality of the CCH iFirm platform will expand in stages in the U.K. market, with several modules in the pipeline for rollout in the months ahead, including: 

• CCH iFirm AML (Anti-Money Laundering) – facilitating AML checks on individuals direct from CCH Central, as a key part of the client-onboarding process.
• CCH iFirm Accounts Production – streamlining the accounts process, from data entry to online filing, enhancing compliance efficiency and profitability.
• CCH iFirm Personal Tax – helping accountants to prepare and submit personal tax returns for individual clients.
• CCH iFirm Validate – accelerating bank confirmations with cloud-based audit software, using blockchain technology.

CCH iFirm has been independently recognized for its innovations. Last year, for example, Wolters Kluwer TAA Asia Pacific won a Grand Globee at the 15th Annual 2023 Golden Bridge Innovation Awards in the Product Development Initiative of the Year category.

Insurtech Cytora announced that the company has been engaged by Chubb, a world leader in insurance, to automate claims document processing.

Cytora is a pioneer of Generative AI applied to insurance workflows that digitize insurance workflows at unparalleled levels of performance, configurability and scalability across the enterprise.

Amir Farid, Chubb North America Transformation Officer, said: “The collaboration is focused on enabling Chubb Claims documents to be automatically digitized, eliminating the need for manual intervention. Cytora’s platform enables Chubb teams to create, compose and deploy AI-native Claims document flows in a scalable approach across multiple markets and lines of business.”

Richard Hartley, CEO of Cytora, said: “The insurance industry is undergoing an acceleration towards a digital-first future enabling risk volume to scale at a fraction of the current cost while achieving superior control over decisioning. We are excited to partner with insurers that are at the forefront of the transition to a digital-first operating model.”

Oliver Wyman, a global leader in management consulting, and a business of Marsh McLennan today announced the completion of its acquisition of Innopay. Innopay complements Oliver Wyman’s existing payments consulting capabilities.

Innopay delivers strategy, scheme development, and execution in the domain of digital payments, open finance, digital identity, and data sharing. Their services capture an end-to-end offering in the payments sector to support companies and organisations to identify and seize opportunities in a digital world.

Innopay has joined Oliver Wyman as a specialist consulting business within the group’s European region. It continues to operate in the Netherlands and Germany, maintaining its presence in Amsterdam and Frankfurt. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Commenting on the transaction, Dr. Stephen Whitehouse, Partner and Head of Payments for Europe at Oliver Wyman, said: “The completion of the acquisition of Innopay heralds a considerable enhancement of Oliver Wyman’s payments capabilities. We look forward to combining our strengths and collaborating with Innopay, leveraging their expertise to deliver exceptional value and catalyze growth within the payments industry.”

Shikko Nijland, CEO, Innopay added: “Oliver Wyman’s acquisition opens up new opportunities for us to expand our reach and deliver impactful solutions to clients. We are excited to be part of a larger organization that shares our values for growth and innovation and are thrilled to officially join forces. Together, we will unlock new value for our clients and colleagues alike.”

Iress today announced the launch of its global FIX hub for trading clients. The Iress FIX Hub is a 100% cloud-native, enterprise hub-and-spoke network that connects buy-side, sell-side and trading venues across global markets. It enables trading firms to expand investment opportunities across all major asset classes and multiple message interfaces. A production configuration can be deployed in under 90 seconds.

In addition to global connectivity, Iress’ FIX Hub solution provides buy-side and sell-side clients with instant access for FIX onboarding, built-in capability for monitoring and security, access to daily reconciliation and validation, and ongoing diagnostics to reduce the risk of outages and downtime.

Iress’s Head of UK Trading, Debbie Kaye, said: “Today’s trading environment is increasingly complex and counterparties are not always limited to those on traditional point-to-point FIX networks. Iress’s FIX Hub enables our clients to quickly connect to any counterparty on the FIX network without laborious onboarding and installation of hard line connections. This helps to democratise access to the FIX network, to improve liquidity, price discovery and improves transaction times.

“Iress’s FIX Hub forms a key part of Iress’ refreshed strategy to refocus on our clients in trading and market data by reinvesting in our core software and data and analytics capabilities. In 2024, Iress’ FIX Hub capabilities will continue to evolve and focus on enhancing the client experience while delivering value-add data insights. These include machine learning-based insights for smarter trading and investing decisions.”

Portofino Technologies, one of the leading cryptocurrency market makers, today announces its successful registration as a crypto asset firm with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), enabling the business to trade cryptocurrencies with institutional investors in the UK.

Since its inception, Portofino Technologies, a crypto-native high-frequency trading firm, has focused on building a product to provide liquidity on the largest cryptocurrency exchanges. Portofino Technologies’ OTC business has grown considerably in recent months and provides its institutional clients with the most competitive prices and deep liquidity across hundreds of tokens. As an FCA-registered firm, Portofino is now in a prime position to grow its client franchise further both in the UK and globally.

With the FCA registration, Portofino Technologies can now trade directly with major banks, trading platforms, brokers, institutional investors, as well as blockchain projects and treasuries in the UK who seek to invest in digital assets, under robust compliance and risk management controls.

Joining the handful of cryptocurrency firms obtaining an FCA registration in the UK signals major recognition of Portofino Technologies’ commitment to the highest operating standards, and places Portofino Technologies at the forefront of the maturing institutional crypto industry.

Alex Casimo, Co-founder & Chief Operating Officer, Portofino Technologies, says: “Receiving the FCA’s approval to operate as a cryptoasset trading firm in the UK is a significant milestone for Portofino Technologies, which will allow us to expand our institutional client base. After having successfully built our product for on-exchange trading, Portofino sees the growth of its client franchise as a significant profit driver for the company in the coming years. With this latest certification, Portofino Technologies is now registered to provide OTC services in both the UK and Switzerland, solidifying our position as one of the most regulatory compliant cryptocurrency market makers globally.”

Celyn Armstrong, General Counsel and Head of Compliance, Portofino Technologies, says: “The FCA rightly sets a high bar for cryptoasset firms seeking registration, and we are proud to have successfully demonstrated our strong and sophisticated compliance controls. Our traditional finance and digital asset clients alike can have full confidence that we are committed to stringent regulatory compliance and risk management standards.”