FinTech Wales, the not-for-profit independent membership organisation for the FinTech and Financial Services industries in Wales, has voted Louise O’Shea, the CEO of Confused.com, as the new Chairman and appointed two new Directors to the board - Ben Joakim, Head of Strategy at Principality Building Society and Eamon Tuhami, Founder and CEO of X8IQ.
The new appointments were made at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on October 12th in the grounds of one of Wales’ most iconic venues, Cardiff Castle.
In addition to the changes at Board level, several new Panel Members were voted in, including Ella Hastings, Chief Marketing Officer at Wagonex, James Rudolf, Chief Commercial Officer at Acquis Insurance and Sarah McQuaid, Senior Director, marketing, at LexisNexis Risk Solutions.
Speaking at the AGM, Sarah Williams-Gardener, the CEO of FinTech Wales – who has been in post as the CEO of FinTech Wales for nearly a year - said: “When I joined FinTech Wales I could see the massive potential of this organisation. The founding members had a real vision for not only the organisation itself, but also the fintech and financial services sectors in Wales and the 39% increase in membership this year alone has been a testament to that.
“2021 has been an exceptional year for FinTech Wales and I’m immensely proud of the work that we have achieved. There have been so many exciting firsts this year – launching The FinTech Wales Foundry, Wales’ first accelerator programme for FinTech businesses across the globe, as well as hosting a number of key events, bringing together a real business community across Wales.
“We have a very special business ecosystem in Wales, and we are immensely proud to be the voice of the Welsh FinTech sector. We know it’s still early days for the organisation and we still have a lot to do, but the strengthening of our Board with such key people in the sector, together with the clear vision we have in place for 2022, means that we are in a good place to build on the achievements of this year.”
On her appointment as the new FinTech Wales Chairman, Louise O’Shea commented: "To be appointed by the FinTech Wales Advisory Panel as Chairperson for the organisation is an honour. We have made significant progress in the last 12 months and have big, albeit realistic, ambitions for the future. Working with Sarah, the Board and Panel to deliver these on behalf of all of our members is something I am very much looking forward to. We are a collaborative, open organisation keen to welcome new members and work with other organisations across our ecosystem for the benefit of all. Please do get in touch and get involved!”
Launched in April 2019 by Richard Theo, the UK Government’s FinTech Envoy for Wales, FinTech Wales operates as a trade association with member organisations comprising of FinTech and financial services companies headquartered or operating in Wales. The idea behind FinTech Wales is to help businesses both in Wales and beyond to start-up and scale up in a supportive and collaborative atmosphere. Ultimately, the goal is to make Wales the place to start-up and scale-up in the global FinTech community.
It brings together entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes, as well as technology suppliers, innovators, universities and public sector bodies.