2026 and Beyond: FinTech Scotland’s Next Chapter

A Message from Aleks Tomczyk

In 2025, global fintech investment rose by 21% to $53bn, signalling a welcome return to growth across most markets. The US remained the global leader at $25.1bn, while the UK reclaimed second place with $3.6bn. These figures are more than just encouraging – they point to renewed confidence across the fintech ecosystem and set a strong foundation for 2026.

Against this backdrop, I feel a genuine sense excitement and responsibility as Chief Executive of FinTech Scotland. We’re at a pivotal moment for the cluster: it’s vibrant, the ambition is real, and the opportunities ahead of us are immense.

My immediate focus is clear, centred on three priorities.

Firstly, we will strengthen and scale our innovation programmes to deliver real value across the ecosystem including measurable social impact.
That means deepening the work already underway and improving on it:

• Through our award-winning Financial Regulation Innovation Lab, we will continue to strengthen the collaboration between innovators and regulators, ensuring Scotland remains at the forefront of fintech that supports regulation and reducing operating costs whilst improving consumer outcomes.
• With the Centre of Excellence in Digital Trust, led by Edinburgh Napier University, delivered in partnership with Edinburgh and Glasgow Universities, we will position Scotland as a global innovator at the intersection of digital trust, identity, crypto and data in financial services.
• We will scale the Finance and Health Lab, driving better financial wellbeing, resilience and long-term financial health for people across Scotland.

Secondly, we will build sharper, more targeted support for fintech entrepreneurs – from idea through to international scale-up.
This means clearer enabling pathways, stronger networks, better access to funding, and programmes (including our Innovation Labs) grounded in real company needs. Alongside this, we will amplify Scotland’s presence in priority global markets, making our firms more visible, better connected, and bringing more of Scotland’s fintech innovation onto the world stage.

Thirdly, we will drive greater collaboration across the ecosystem.
By enabling connections inside and outside Scotland amongst our strategic partners, fintechs, academic institutions and in related professional services we will help financial services and fintech companies large and small to prosper. This will be made possible by strong foundations – an excellent talent pool, world class research base and great, forward thinking, existing financial services companies – we will help to strengthen them, further.

These three things will result in growth, create high-value jobs, attract inward investment, encourage new startups and strengthen resilience in the cluster. Fintech will play an enhanced critical role in Scotland’s economic future.

I have a background in technology innovation and business building. I have run major change projects in financial services. I have built two fintechs from the ground up.

One of the things that has always excited me most is the role of people, networks and ecosystems in innovation. Technology doesn’t create change – people do. Innovation succeeds best when stakeholders collaborate to solve real problems, when trust is built, and when ambition and success are shared.

I am confident that by building further on our fintech community, and by staying focused, collaborative and ambitious, we can deliver tangible impact for our companies large and small, our people, and our country – plus companies and people elsewhere.

In the years ahead, I look forward to meeting many of you – employees, founders, investors, academics, regulators and partners – because relationships are the bedrock of success. I welcome your ideas, your energy and your feedback, and I encourage you to reach out to us here any time.

Here’s to the journey ahead.