Gina Clarke, occasions correspondent at The Fintech Instances, displays on the current flood of fintech conferences and what all these speaker banners actually say concerning the state of the trade.
- I write about occasions.
- I am going to a number of them.
- I’ve labored in occasions for years.
From programming panels and curating content material to juggling the conflicting calls for of sponsors, audio system and the mysteriously titled ‘strategic companions’, I do know the joys of locking in a headline speaker at 11:59pm and the silent dread of realising they’ve requested to carry their pal on stage (true story).
So, once I scroll via LinkedIn and see a tsunami of ‘I’m talking at…’ banners, often with the identical three fonts and a grinning headshot, I do know precisely what went on behind the scenes. The fragile dance of curation vs business. The never-quite-said-out-loud query: Is that this a merit-based keynote or a cleverly disguised model increase?
Whose mic Is It anyway?
Might and June definitely maintain the lion’s share of occasions for these in Europe, hoping for a respite from the rain however actually cursing the climate for the heatwave that arrived as a substitute. From UK Fintech Week to Money20/20 Europe, it’s been a busy time to ‘form the way forward for funds’ and play that buzzword bingo.
London Tech Week made its long-anticipated return with every part from AI regulation to cloud infrastructure on the agenda, plus a wholesome quantity of ‘Didn’t I see you at SXSW London final week?’ shoulder faucets.
Talking at these occasions does imply one thing however not at all times what you suppose. A headline slot may be earned. It may be sponsored. It may be a mix of the 2. And with bigger companies investing in multi-event sponsorship methods, their visibility isn’t at all times concerning the content material, it’s concerning the protection.
Mix this with the ‘I’m attending’ banners and it’s laborious to maneuver on social media with out changing into ‘anti-event’. Certainly, I’ve seen some cracking ‘I’m not attending’ posts, albeit it will get laborious to discern tongue-in-cheek from Victor Meldrew (I don’t consider it!)
And sure, I get it: talking is prestigious. It alerts experience. It validates your model. However we’ve reached a saturation level the place discerning the real from the shiny is more durable than decoding a DeFi protocol on three hours of sleep.
The response check
In the event you’re on the lookout for a option to keep sane in the midst of occasions season, right here’s my suggestion: carry out the Response Check each time one other invite lands in your inbox or one other banner floods your feed:
- Nice What a chance! You’ve obtained one thing to say, or somebody you actually need to meet. E book the ticket.
- Glad Your folks will likely be there. It’s a networking increase. Attain out for that espresso.
- Jealous Why weren’t you requested to talk? Time to research call-for-content deadlines and sharpen your pitch.
- Over it Truthfully? You continue to haven’t adopted up from the final one. Possibly simply take the day to clear your inbox and not hear the phrase “transformation” 5 occasions earlier than lunch.
The glass half full perspective
Sure, we’re drained. However the sheer variety of occasions is telling us one thing: the trade is in development mode.
New subjects are rising sooner than ChatGPT plugins. Regulators are lastly listening (and infrequently attending). Partnership offers are being struck between lanyard badges. Media groups are rolling out spotlight reels with LinkedIn as a major efficiency metric. (Snapchat and TikTok aren’t far behind both, brace your self for vertical video thought management.)
This isn’t simply occasion mania – it’s momentum.
And right here is why it issues
After a bruising few years: post-Covid uncertainty, inflated fintech valuations, price hikes that ruined everybody’s temper, this season feels… completely different. There’s optimism once more. IPOs are again out there. Startups are as soon as once more hiring earlier than elevating. Legacy establishments at the moment are much less ‘watch and study’ and extra ‘purchase and construct’.
So sure, the banners may be all over the place. However don’t begrudge them totally. They’re an indication that individuals are investing once more: in concepts, in partnerships, in stage presence.
And possibly, simply possibly, what we’d like most proper now’s a bit of little bit of that borrowed optimism. Ideally with espresso. And a very good occasion app.
Uncertain the place to move to first? Check out my earlier articles on the place to spend your occasions price range: Europe and North America, and Asia and the Center East.
Arising quickly: FINOS Open Supply in Finance Discussion board, AI Summer season Seashore Get together or sit up for Fintech Week London.
