Fintech is an industry born out of a series of sparks of ideas that have ignited and disrupted the entire way money moves. Fintech Luminaries, an exclusive VIP event held annually ahead of the world-renowned South by Southwest (SXSW), honors the fintech companies responsible for transforming the financial services world for the better.
As an agency on a mission to help fintech companies build brands and grow through purpose-driven marketing strategies, CSTMR was honored to be one of this year’s sponsors for the FinTech Luminaries event in Austin on the evening of March 9. Our team met with industry leaders—including CEOs, founders, and executives—who are playing an integral role in the future of fintech.
Expected to experience a CAGR of 74.16% between 2019-2025, fintech is one of the most influential and fastest growing sectors in financial services history. To be in the presence of so many influential members of the fintech community was as educational as it was humbling. Rory Holland, founder and CEO of CSTMR, had the chance to sit down with industry leaders to better understand their role in the future of fintech:
“This explosion of demand is creating all these great platforms that are allowing people to do things they didn’t know they could do, and we’re just here to facilitate them doing it,” —Thomas Young, Co-Founder, VP Marketing Ops at Rocket Dollar
“The biggest thing is just understanding what do customers need, getting out, talking to customers, and serving their needs,” —Mark Gabriel, Director of Innovation at Sunrise Banks
“One of the big problems with innovating in the financial sector is how regulated it is. Banks have a hard time getting comfortable working with small companies. We make it easier for banks to help small companies and small companies to learn what they need to do to work with banks,” —Trevor Lain, Founder & CEO of Lexalign
“The merging of finance and tech has brought finance interest o your living room and made it easier for people. Whether it’s us on the trading front and making trading more accessible to those around the world, or others with things that have to do with payments or other solutions. So, we’re just really excited to be a part of the industry and we’re really excited to be a part of that growth rate,” —Connor Meegan, VP of Business Development at Topstep Trader
These are just a few of the many insights that came out of this year’s Fintech Luminaries event at SXSW. In addition to the sponsors represented above, we also want to thank other sponsors in attendance, including Jason Henrichs with Fintech Forge and Fintex; Austin-based Rocket Dollar; Village Capital; LiveOak Technologies; Financial Solutions Lab; Envestnet Yodlee; S&P Global Market Intelligence; Upside Avenue; Casoro Capital; The Financial Revolutionist; Lawgix; Caliber Targeted Marketing Communications; Provoke.fm; and of course—event hosts, FinTEx Chicago and FinTech Professionals Association.
The 2019 Fintech Luminaries event at SXSW lived up to its promise of, “Leave inspired, invigorated, and empowered.” While we can’t speak for everyone, we can say with certainty that months after the event, we’re still feeling every bit inspired, invigorated, and empowered. Looking forward to the coming together at next year’s Fintech Luminaries event!
View our Infographic to discover more about what’s shaping the future of fintech according to the experts we spoke with at the 2019 Fintech Luminaries event.
