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A spotlight event in the fintech calendar, Money 20/20 Europe brings together the field's brightest voices—both fledgling startups and industry greats—for three days of networking, brainstorming, and discussion. This year, it took place between June 6-8 in Amsterdam, and next year's session is scheduled to occur in the city between June 4-6, 2024. "Everybody is here, and every year it’s getting bigger and bigger," said CEO of Starling Bank, Anne Boden. Leah Holzmann, head of marketing and communications and Amazon Pay, agreed: "If we want to matter in Europe, we’ve got to be here."
Money 20/20 gathers some of the world's most exciting finance companies under one roof. This year was a record-breaker, with over 8,000 people and over 3,200 companies passing through the conference halls, giving dynamic startups in their infancy and titans of the trade alike the chance to spark new ideas and form connections.
"Money20/20 is basically the best fintech meetup I have ever been to in the world," said Megan Caywood, managing director and global head of digital strategy at Barclays. "It attracts people from all over. It feels like a family." Other attendees included Amazon Pay, Starling Bank, Santander, fraud-identifying science tech company Feedzai and global fintech service provider Unlimit. Plus, with a packed schedule of events such as panel discussions, networking sessions and entertainment (including a DJ set from 12-foot tall automaton Money-Bot), the event was an invigorating immersion in all things fintech.
The event allows attendees to not only rub shoulders with fintech experts, but also to learn from their vast experience through interactive panel talks and discussions. Over the course of the three-day event, Rumman Chowdory, responsible AI fellow at Harvard University, spoke on the topic of AI and the workforce, while Ian Stewart, CEO of HSBC UK, discussed how the bank stepped in to lend its expertise to Silicon Valley's UK operations. Also taking to the stage was actress, model and entrepreneur Lily Cole. "To my mind, money is the most universal and powerful language we have today," she said. "It is in every single moment, influencing our social fabric, our environmental reality, for better or for worse."
This year saw companies compete to be crowned the ultimate climate startup. A highlight of the event was the final of Europe’s Got Access, a competition following on from the success of America's Got Access, which took place at the Las Vegas Money 20/20 event in October 2022. It offered five startups the chance to showcase their contributions in the fight against climate change and pitch live on stage panel of judges including Scarlett Sieber, Money 20/20's chief strategy and growth officer; Katherine Brown, head of sustainability at Visa Europe; Commerce Ventures' founding partner Dan Rosen; and Liz Rich, head of strategy and corporate development at Bloomberg LP. The grand prize—a $100,000 uncapped SAFE note by Commerce Ventures—was won by ZeroLabs, a renewable energy startup that helps businesses and individuals worldwide reduce their carbon footprint.
The event also coincided with the five-year anniversary of Rise Up, Money 20/20's global scheme to champion diversity in the space. Since its inception in 2018, almost 300 women from around the world (60% of them women of colour) have been selected to receive complimentary tickets to Money 20/20 events, exclusive networking opportunities and one-to-one mentoring sessions to help them advance their careers. Amplify, which was founded in 2021, also centres marginalised communities: this curated leadership program, which spans four days, raises visibility and cultivates connections for people of colour and other underrepresented groups in the industry.
Take a look at the highlights of the 2023 show at europe.money2020.com.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
