A new partnership between FinTech Scotland and the national tech startup support programme – Techscaler – is aiming to ‘galvanise’ the sector.
More than 200 fintech companies across the country will get access to the tech education and accelerator network – in a bid to ‘scale-up’ more of Scotland’s most innovative fintechs.
Under the partnership, the FinTech Scotland community will gain access to Techscaler membership benefits, tapping into an ‘enhanced support system’.
And likewise Techscaler members will be introduced to FinTech Scotland, unlocking ‘cross-sector synergies and peer-to-peer knowledge exchange’.
Nicola Anderson, CEO of FinTech Scotland, said: “This collaboration is about getting behind Scotland scaling for tech, together. It underscores our joint dedication to cultivating innovation and showcasing the vibrant fintech community in Scotland. We look forward to bringing tangible benefits to our scaling fintech SMEs, and sharing our sector expertise with Techscaler founders, to build a robust and forward-thinking fintech cluster.”
FinTech Scotland’s affiliated scaling firms will now be able to access the comprehensive benefits offered by Techscaler membership, opening the door to an extensive network and support system of mentorship, educational courses, community events, and more, enhancing collaboration opportunities and fostering growth for fintech innovators.
Techscaler runs three main programmes – Startup First Steps, Startup Next Steps, and Reforge. Techscaler’s partnership with Reforge, the world’s leading career development platform for top-tier professionals in tech, brings access to Silicon Valley playbooks and best practices to founders in Scotland who are scaling their teams.
Yasmin Sulaiman, VP of partnerships for CodeBase, said, “Connecting the diverse parts of the tech ecosystem is a huge part of our job running Techscaler for the Scottish Government. When organisations like ours and FinTech Scotland come together to understand founders’ needs, we’re able to offer a much stronger suite of support and join up founders with the opportunities they’re looking for to grow. We’re looking forward to growing our partnership, and helping connect our community to FinTech Scotland’s expertise.”
FinTech Scotland – a cluster management organisation – looks after 226 SMEs, employing more than 10,500 people, with 38% of those enterprises reaching scale-up stage.
A ‘scale up business’ is defined as a company which has seen average annualised growth of at least 20% over three years with 10 or more employees at the start of the period, according to the OECD.
Techscaler’s fintech-focused members will be introduced to the resources and opportunities provided by FinTech Scotland, bringing sector specific support to fintech founding teams. This collaboration ensures that Techscaler members operating in the fintech sector receive the most relevant support to their sector, enabling them to tap into a broader ecosystem and lean into finance-specific challenges.
To mark the initiation of the partnership, Techscaler and FinTech Scotland will host a Founder Roundtable next month to gather insights from fintechs, providing founders with the opportunity to engage directly with industry leaders and peers.
The insights gathered from the roundtable will be instrumental in curating activities and support mechanisms that meet the fintech community’s needs. The roundtable event will take place at CodeBase in Edinburgh on Wednesday 3rd April at 10.30am after Unfiltered, CodeBase’s monthly open networking event.
Colin Hewitt, CEO and co-founder of Float Cash Flow Forecasting, said: “Being part of the CodeBase community through our journey with Float has provided us with a dynamic workspace and access to the right people which has played a pivotal role in shaping Float’s success. I’m excited about the partnership between Techscaler and Fintech Scotland, it signals an exciting era for Scotland’s fintech ecosystem, and a positive sign of the continued evolution of this vibrant community.”
Innovation Minister Richard Lochhead said: “Our £42 million Techscaler network is already showcasing some of Scotland’s most promising start-ups. This partnership with FinTech Scotland is another example of how the Techscaler network is helping to galvanise our innovative, collaborative and inclusive tech community by sharing knowledge and supporting growth.”