FinTech at Parliament House
On 7 February, Fintech Australia hosted members and partners at our inaugural FinTech at Parliament House event in Canberra as the launch event for the new 'Parliamentary Friends of FinTech and the Digital Economy' group, a non-partisan forum for parliamentarians co-chaired by Dr Daniel Mulino MP and Senator Andrew Bragg.
FinTech Australia will support the group by organising events and creating opportunities for parliamentarians to meet and interact with fintech leaders about the industry, starting with this launch event. Its aim is to foster a greater understanding of fintech-related issues and over time greater collaboration with parliamentarians on regulatory challenges facing the sector.
The evening featured a welcome address from Minister Stephen Jones during which he spoke about fintech's important role as part of the digital economy and its rapid growth over the last decade.
He also highlighted the regulatory wave coming, with new licensing frameworks for payments, digital asset platforms and BNPL, and the important role fintech can play in tackling the sharp rise in scams. Notably, he addressed the recent reporting on potential changes to the sophisticated investor threshold test and clarified that in considering next steps, he does not intend to restrict investment in early stage fintechs.
The event also featured addresses from Dr Daniel Mulino MP and Senator Andrew Bragg, as well as a keynote from Co-founder of Up, Dom Pym, and a panel discussion featuring:
Cathryn Lyall, Partner at Seed Space Venture Capital
Michael Saadat, International Head of Public Policy at Block
Kellie Morton, Chief Legal Officer at Birchal
Lars Leber, Vice President of Emerging Markets & Global Expansion at Intuit
We would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who traveled to Canberra to support the event.
It is incredibly important to have fintech leaders present in Canberra and engaging directly with parliamentarians to showcase the immense value fintech provides to businesses, consumers and the Australian economy.
FinTech Australia looks forward to building on this strong start and involving more members throughout the year.
Check out photos from the event here.
