Fintech SMEs in Scotland currently employ more than 10,500 people across 226 enterprises, with 38 per cent of fintechs having reached scale-up stage. Looking to ensure this growth continues, and to accelerate the ecosystem, FinTech Scotland, the Scottish fintech cluster body, has partnered with Techscaler, the Scottish Government’s tech startup support programme.
FinTech Scotland-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 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.
Scaling Scottish fintech SMEs
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.”
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.”
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.
Innovation Minister Richard Lochhead said: “Our £42million 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.”
Lochhead added: “Progress like this demonstrates Scotland’s ambition to become one of Europe’s leading start-up communities. We are setting an example and helping drive a fair and growing economy.”
Advancing the local fintech community
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 3 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.”
Techscaler’s place in Scotland’s fintech roadmap
Scotland’s commitment to fintech innovation is evident in its ten-year sector roadmap, targeting the creation of 30,000 jobs and an ambitious economic value increase of over 330 per cent, surpassing £2billion by the end of the decade. This strategic vision aligns with the country’s focus on four key segments: open finance data, climate finance, payments and transactions, and financial regulation.
Through the partnership, Techscaler will lend its expertise to initiatives such as the Financial Regulation Innovation Lab (FRIL), launched by FinTech Scotland in December in partnership with mutual partners the University of Strathclyde and University of Glasgow. This initiative seeks to advance understanding and adoption of new and emerging technologies in fintech through industry-led innovation challenges, skills and education programmes, workshops, roundtables, conferences, and trade missions.
Techscaler has forged multiple partnerships across and beyond the Scottish tech ecosystem since it has been operational, including with the chief scientist office’s NHS Innovation Hubs, govtech funding challenge programme CivTech, and STAC, the Internet of Things accelerator.
