The winners of the inaugural Finnie awards were announced earlier today at a ceremony attended by more than 200 guests at Sydney’s Darling Harbour, according to FinTech Australia. The winners of 29 awards were chosen by 39 local and international judges from 158 entries.
The winners of the five headline awards were:
- Female FinTech Leader of the Year award: Emma Weston, CEO and co-founder, AgriDigital
- Male FinTech Leader of the Year award: Greg Moshal & Beau Bertoli, Prospa
- FinTech Organisation of the Year: Afterpay
- Emerging FinTech Organisation of the Year: Spaceship
- Emerging FinTech Leader of the Year award: Emma Weston, CEO and co-founder, AgriDigital
FinTech Australia reports that awards were also handed out for companies that have shown excellence in 17 Fintech sub-sectors, along with a further seven awards in areas such as workplace diversity, collaborative partnerships, market presence and marketing.
The judges commented that Watson, who won Female FinTech Leader of the Year, had “a strong combination of business and technical leadership….she showcases resilience, creativity, and tenacity in a new business undertaking.”
AgriDigital is a global commodity management and financing solution for the agriculture supply chain. In December 2016, AgriDigital successfully executed the world’s first-ever live settlement of a physical commodity on a blockchain between a grower and a buyer.
Meanwhile, Greg Moshal & Beau Bertoli, joint CEOs of Prospa, claimed the Male FinTech Leader of the Year award after judges stated:
“Prospa comes with a fresh and energetic attitude, sourced straight from its founders. Very clear vision and target-focused, the results speak for themselves.”
Prospa provides unsecured loans of up to $250,000 that can take as little as 30 minutes from application to money in the bank. Prospa has more than 10,000 customers and is approaching $350 million in loans to small businesses after just five years of operation.
“Tonight’s awards showcase the excellence in Australia’s fintech industry and will help promote this industry to a broader audience, assisting it to grow in a highly globally-competitive environment,” stated FinTech Australia President Simon Cant. “The winners are a testament to the dynamic and exciting Australian fintech environment which has come a long way in a few short years and has almost unlimited potential. The awards also amplify the work of our fintech industry members who are taking on and solving key industry challenges, such as increasing leadership diversity and building partnerships with larger financial institutions.”
A total of 19 of the 29 Finnie award winners are from NSW, thus underlining the strength of the state’s local Fintech industry.
“The NSW Government through Jobs for NSW has been very pleased to sponsor the Finnie Awards over two years to celebrate the achievements of our fintech sector, and I congratulate all the companies and individuals who have been recognised for their incredible work,” said John Barilaro, Deputy Premier and Minister for Small Business.
NSW Minister for Innovation Matt Kean said that Sydney was home to the largest financial services industry in Australia with 54% of the Fintech sector based in NSW.
“We are committed to growing this exciting high-value growth sector to create jobs and economic opportunities for our state.”
FinTech Australia has also opened online community voting for the final Finnie award, which is the Global FinTech Leader of the Year award. There are three candidates – Imran Gulamhuseinwala, Blythe Masters and Jack Ma.
More information is available here. Voting closes on Friday, 26 May at 10pm AEST.