FinTech Australia announced 2019 finnies award winners

Up Bank, AirWallex and Afterpay are among the biggest winners of the 2019 FinTech Australia Finnie awards, with another 12 incredible businesses earning accolades on the night.Up Bank and AfterPay took home two awards each. AirWallex won three awards, including Biggest Raise of The Year for its $141 million raise in March 2019.Afterpay was named Fintech Organisation of The Year for the third year in a row.I want to offer my congratulations to all the winners of this years Finnie Awards, this group of companies represent the best of our ecosystem and our achievements to date, FinTech Australia General Manager Rebecca Schot-Guppy.This year we set out to acknowledge collaboration across the fintech industry and we believe this cohort of winners truly represent this crucial theme and key point of difference for our ecosystem.AirWallex, Up Banks and Afterpay achievement also cant be understated, given the calibre of all of the entries.Held at the Victorian Innovation Hub in Docklands, Schot-Guppy said this awards night broke new ground for the event.We had a record number of entries, up 30 per cent from last year. Tickets to the event also sold out within a fortnight. For the first time in the Finnies three-year history, we had a waiting list for further ticket sales.It all ties into the unprecedented growth weve seen in the fintech sector in the past year.We saw the emergence of our first fintech unicorns in AirWallex and Afterpay. Meanwhile, collaboration between fintechs and banks has deepened and the aftermath of the Haynes Royal Banking Commissions has only reinforced the need for that relationship and for partnerships that benefit both the banks and their customers which was demonstrated in the quality of the finalists in the partnership awards.Over the next 12 months we will see the continued rise of neobanking in Australia, the launch of Open Banking and perhaps another of our winners will achieve unicorn status.All of this remarkable innovation and the pace of change showed in the calibre of this years entries. We cant stress enough how tough it was to select the finalists and how proud companies should be for even making it into shortlist.Winners of the FinTech Australia 2019 Finnie Awards:FinTech Organisation of the Year Sponsored by LibertyAfterpayEmerging FinTech Organisation of the Year Sponsored by AfterPay TouchAthena Home LoansOutstanding FinTech Leader of the Year Sponsored by Stone & ChalkJack Zhang, AirWallexEmerging FinTech Leader of the Year (under 35)Sponsored by Reinventure GroupJessica Ellerm, ZuperFemale FinTech Leader of the Year Sponsored by Seed Space CapitalVan Le, XinjaBest Partnership of the Year Sponsored by FirstMacUp (Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, and Ferocia)Biggest Raise of the Year Sponsored by Primary MarketsAirWallexDeal of the Year Sponsored by CornwallsMoneyPlaceBest Workplace Diversity Sponsored by LibertyIdentitiiExcellence in Blockchain/Distributed Ledger & Digital Currencies/Wallets/ExchangesEnosi AustraliaExcellence in Business LendingTrade LedgerExcellence In Consumer LendingWisrExcellence in CrowdfundingEquitiseExcellence in Establishing Market Presence: Global Sponsored by AustradeAirwallexExcellence in FinTech Support ServicesReinventure GroupExcellence in Industry Collaborations & Partnerships Sponsored by StartUp DailyUp (Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, and Ferocia)Excellence in InsurtechHuddle InsuranceExcellence in Payments Sponsored by The State of Victoria Department of Jobs, Precincts and RegionsAfterpayExcellence in Wealth ManagementMyprosperity