Join us for this exclusive event in Paris to hear about the opportunity to win £300k for your innovative open banking startup with solutions for small and medium enterprises (SME’s).

About the event

You might have heard about the UK's open banking APIs. They implement PSD2 in the UK and takes things a step further, enabling consumers/SMEs to securely and conveniently share their banking data with third parties.

As a result, a new wave of financial assistants, cashflow management tools, credit passports, dynamic budgeting applications, software integration tools and comparison platforms are emerging.

If you’re interested in entering the UK market, what are the opportunities/challenges and what do you need to know about the UK open banking APIs?

French Digital has invited the Open Up Challenge, a technology prize open to companies across Europe, to discuss these questions

You’ll hear from UK-based fintech ventures, Open Banking Limited (the organisation responsible for the UK open banking APIs), the Open Up Challenge team, and advisors with experience in both the UK and France.

Event agenda:

- Intro & Welcome

- About the Open Up Challenge

- Open Banking in the UK ~ progress so far

- Panel Discussion on the UK SME opportunity and the French vs UK open banking perspectives

- Networking drinks

About the speakers

Hakim Mendjeli, French Digital & 4by90 Financial Services.

Hakim is a founder and director at the London FrenchTech Hub and the FrenchTech London Fintech Ambassador.

He advises banks and Fintechs on their digital banking, transformation and product strategies. Most recently leading the digital product functions at Barlcays and Lloyds retail banking. He covers Insurtech, AI in financial services, open banking, GDPR, Blockchain, and APIs based banking.

He previously was CEO at diune – makers of Piktures the best photo gallery app on Android. Prior to this he was a senior exec at Vodafone.

Chris Gorst, Prize Lead, Open Up Challenge.

Chris heads up the Open Up Challenge. He was a Senior Economist at HM Treasury and the Prime Minister’s Energy Review, worked in investment banking at Morgan Stanley and as a strategy consultant at The Boston Consulting Group. He designed and delivered a groundbreaking accelerator programme for 10,000 UK small business leaders at Goldman Sachs.

David Coghlan, Marketing Director, OpenWrks.

David is Marketing Director of OpenWrks, an award winning fintech company that are making Open Banking work for businesses, so they can make products and services that work for their customers.

Prior to joining OpenWrks, David led the digital team for Experian’s UK SME business, helping small businesses use credit and market data to identify and reach new prospects and manage customer and supplier risk. Before that he ran a successful digital and business growth consultancy.

David’s career has always been focussed on how people and businesses can leverage data and technology to grow, thrive and more easily access the products and services they need the most.

He is a regular speaker about marketing, technology and how customers will realise value from Open Banking.

Further speakers will be confirmed shortly

About NESTA Open Up Challenge

The Open Up Challenge is a £2.5m technology prize for fintech companies at the forefront of open banking. The Challenge is backed by the Competition & Markets Authority and managed independently by Nesta, a global innovation foundation.

Last year, the Challenge awarded grants to 20 fintech companies, resulting in ten prize winners (read more on the winners in this Wired article).

We’re back this year and accepting new applicants to the prize. You could win £300k or more in cash grants/prizes to help build your product or service. We don’t take any equity and you keep all your Intellectual Property. The Challenge is accepting applications from around the world, but your product/service will need to benefit UK SMEs.

Attend the event to hear more about the prize, what we’re looking for and how to submit a strong application. You can also set up a 1-2-1 meeting with a member of the Open Up Challenge team, who will be in Paris Thursday as well.

You can find all the prize information here: openupchallenge.io.

About our Partners

Nesta

Nesta is a global innovation foundation. We back new ideas to tackle the big challenges of our time. One of the methodologies we use is ‘challenges prizes’, which deploy cash grants and prizes to focus entrepreneurial energy on overlooked problems. Nesta’s Challenge Prize Centre is one of the world’s leading organisations in the design and delivery of challenge prizes.

4by90 Financial Services Consulting

4by90 provides advisory and implementation services for the UK and European Digital banks and Fintechs on a Digital strategy, Product Management and Digital transformation. Previous clients includes Barclays, RBS, Lloyds Banking Group

Business France

Business France is the national agency supporting the international development of the French economy, responsible for fostering export growth by French businesses, as well as promoting and facilitating international investment in France. It promotes France’s companies, business image and nationwide attractiveness as an investment location, and also runs the V.I.E international internship program.

With its 1500 collaborators, Business France can offer a comprehensive range of services to fulfil its mission:
•Helping companies in France expand abroad by boosting their exports;
•Providing customised support to foreign investors;
•Promoting the business attractiveness of France, its companies and its regions.

Business France UK has launched in 2017 The French Fintech Tour. A unique 3-day event designed to resolve a single challenge: increase French Fintech adoption into the British and Irish financial landscape. Recognised as a premium event, le French Fintech Tour gathers senior and top executives from Banks, Insurances, Investments and Financial related companies. Le French Fintech Tour is returning for its second edition on the 3rd, 4th, and 5th of July 2018.