The world is back on the move and along with that comes a plethora of options in the FinTech conference space. BankTech Ventures has received numerous inquiries from our Limited Partner banks on which conferences are worth their time and money. There are many options, and their value to you largely depends on your objectives, so that should be your primary filter for decision-making. In this article, we'll review the various conferences and their unmarketed objectives to give you a better idea of where you may want to plan to be over the next few months. This list is based on our team's experience at each conference and was not influenced by any conference hosts.
What are your objectives? As some examples, are you looking to connect with peer banks going through a similar innovation journey, or meet those potentially a few steps ahead of where you are? Are you looking to connect with tech companies to seek specific solutions, or looking to invest capital in or partner with those companies? Keep in mind your intentions and objectives for planning your conference schedule as you consider our opinions on the various events described below.
Recent & upcoming events, as of October 2022:
September
[Past] Finovate Fall – NYC – Sept 12-14
- Finovate offers 2 primary US conferences per year in NY (fall) and SF (spring) and is mainly a stage for fintech companies and projects to be presented and evaluated in a rapid fire manner. With 7 minutes per presentation, you get a quick look at many companies, and can then decide if you want to spend more time with them. Over a few day period, dozens of companies present on stage as well as in a trade show booth area.
- Here’s a summary from a past event: https://finovate.com/fresh-off-the-stage-the-finovate-demo-experience/
- Who should attend: This can be overwhelming with so many companies presenting, so you probably want to attend Finovate if you’re looking to see a lot of companies and ideas quickly. There is a good cross-section of fintech companies, fintech investors and financial institutions present
[Past] Association of Financial Technology (AFT) Summit – Vancouver – Sept 25-27
- You must be a Core provider or Bank tech company to participate. Substantial progress is made by the various companies working together to advance the overall Bank tech industry in a non-sales focused setting.
- AFT celebrated their 50th anniversary and continues to invest in working together to better serve financial institutions.
- Who should attend: FinTech founders/leaders who want to develop Bank tech industry relationships and engage with peers in a non-competitive space
October
Venture Atlanta – Atlanta – Oct 19-20
- This event is predominately geared towards tech companies looking for capital and investors looking to deploy capital. It’s not specifically bank/FinTech focused, but a short, productive conference to attend.
- Who should attend: Banks looking to invest capital or founders looking for funding
Money20/20 – Las Vegas – Oct 23-26
- This is the heaviest marketed and ‘flashiest’ of all conferences, especially being held in Vegas. There are predominantly FinTechs and potential investors in attendance. Regarding banks, the ones attending are mainly Banking-as-a-Service (“Baas”) banks looking for FinTech clients to work with. You’ll find some promising FinTechs here, but it can be overwhelming if you’re a banker trying to attend without a specific idea of the type of company you’re looking to meet.
- Who should attend: FinTechs, potential investors, BaaS banks
November
Hovde Group Conference – Boca Raton – Nov 2-4
- By invitation only, this event is predominately geared towards public banks and institutional investors, with discussions around bank M&A, regulatory updates, etc. Although this isn’t a FinTech oriented conference, that is an increasingly prevalent topic of discussion. Overall, this is a safe space for bank CEO’s & CFO’s to speak candidly with each other, share best practices, and strengthen their networks.
- Who should attend: Typically, bank CEOs and CFOs focused on connecting with their institutional investors and are open to bringing new ideas around tech back to their Board & management team.
January
Bank Director’s “Acquire or Be Acquired” – Phoenix - Jan 29-31
- This is a conference where deals get done, whether amongst banks or between banks and FinTechs. While predominantly oriented towards the bankers, there are quite a number of FinTechs in attendance (large expo area in main area, plus various events hosted by the FinTechs). There’s enough sessions and panels at this conference that you could essentially create any focus track you want, but the most successful bankers in attendance will line up meetings ahead of time with individuals or companies they’re looking to engage. Note: the conference hotel sells out quickly, so register early.
- Who should attend: Attendees range across the bank, with typical attendees being those who actively engage and stay present during the conference.
March
ICBA Live – Honolulu – Mar 12-16
- Note: You must be an ICBA member to attend. This conference is geared towards gathering the association members to further strengthen the network, plus introduce a large quantity of tech companies. There is a large expo area and a significant number of various educational tracks you could focus on. At this conference, you will have access to a huge number of bankers across all asset sizes and geographies, that you may otherwise not engage with elsewhere. The ICBA provides a perfect setting for networking and learning at this annual bankers event.
- Who should attend: Bank CEOs, CFOs, CTOs, and/or CIOs. If you have questions, we'll connect you with the ICBA's Chief Innovation Officer who will be happy to share further detail.
April
BankTech Ventures Limited Partner Summit – Chicago – Apr 17-19
- An invitation-only event for our Limited Partners, Portfolio companies, and a select few investment prospects. This conference is focused on providing actionable takeaways for your bank to progress its innovation journey, fund updates and future roadmap, introducing our portfolio companies, peer group discussions, and ultimately strengthening the network of our Fund. This is not a passive conference – we ask that all participants come ready to learn, be okay with feeling slightly uncomfortable at times as we challenge you with new concepts, and actively engage with fellow bankers and tech companies.
State / Association Conferences – Various Cities, Throughout the Year
- These are based on each association’s objectives and from experience of participating in several of them, they are very productive given the more targeted focus and smaller group size.
- If you’re interested in learning more about your respective state’s association, contact us to be connected with the relevant member. BankTech works closely with a number of state associations.
If you are attending any of these events, let us know and we can make introductions based on your objectives. We anticipate that our team will be in attendance as well and would love to meet up and talk about how we can better serve you, both at the conference and through our Fund.
Thank you,
The BTV Team
