The membership body championing Wales’ fintech and financial services sectors has appointed chief executive of Confused.com, Louise O’ Shea, as its new chair.
At its AGM new directors to the board were also appointed in Ben Joakim, head of strategy at Principality Building Society and Eamon Tuhami, founder and chief executive of X8IQ.
New panel members were also voted in by the not-for-profit organisation, 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.
Sarah Williams-Gardener, chief executive of FinTech Wales, said: “When I joined FinTech Wales last year 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.”
Ms O’Shea, who was appointed interim chair in March replacing tech entrerpreneur and the UK Government's fintech envoy for Wales, Richard Theo, said: “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.”
Cardiff-based comparison firm Confused.com was acquired earlier this year in a £500m plus deal by RVU from Admiral.
