© Copyright Acquisition International 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

Article Image - Finding Face in the Fintech  Investment Boom
Posted 1st June 2015

Finding Face in the Fintech Investment Boom

We recently spoke to Sam Pearse, Partner, Corporate & Securities, at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP about how to find face in the Fintech Investment Boom.

Mouse Scroll AnimationScroll to keep reading

Let us help promote your business to a wider following.

Finding Face in the Fintech Investment Boom
Image

Finding Face in the Fintech Investment Boom

Image

Sam Pearse, Partner, at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

We recently spoke to Sam Pearse, Partner, Corporate & Securities, at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP about how to find face in the Fintech Investment Boom.

The UK’s fintech industry is booming. Over the past five years, the UK and Ireland enjoyed a growth rate outstripping the rest of Europe and Silicon Valley according to research published by Accenture in 2014. However, the more mature US technology sector and investment culture means UK businesses lag behind their US counterparts in attracting the investment to move them through the stages of growth. So what should private equity houses and venture capitalists look for when assessing early-stage, consumer-facing fintech businesses for potential investment?

The company must first have a functioning product on the market available for consumers to access. Investors want to see a downloadable product rather than an idea. Secondly, investors will typically target those products which have traction and display the potential for viral growth; the larger the number of “eyeballs” the greater the opportunity for monetising the technology. Revenue-generation is not critical at the pre-investment stage. Using free deals or freemium offerings is perfectly acceptable and helps enable that all important take-up by consumers. A company should not think that because it does not have £2m of revenue investors will not be interested in them.

The product must have appeal. What it does, rather than how it does it, is a primary concern for investors. Successful products will target, and excel at, frictionless delivery, particularly around products which solve a previously undescribed problem or simplify the consumer’s life. This means the emphasis need not be on the underlying intellectual property. Consumer fintech products do not need to have highly-sophisticated intellectual property at their core in the same way that big data products need advanced algorithms. Readers will be aware of product aggregators allowing consumers to compare financial products. These are simple ideas with clean execution.

With that in mind, companies need not focus on creating bespoke intellectual property. Opensource technology, for example, provides a time and cost-saving tool in building the product. However, the use of opensource technology needs to be carefully considered; the terms of opensource licences may mean that bespoke technology built on opensource code must be offered for free. Even if the intellectual property, as a whole, is not to be monetised by licensing, giving away your innovation and hard work cedes some advantage to would-be competitors.
The right platform will have a large influence on the attention the product attracts and the key platform for retail products is mobile applications. Consumers are mobile and an internet-only offering will struggle to gain the visibility that it needs to become a compelling investment opportunity. A mobile product will help achieve the proof of concept that investors look for.

Early companies have to strike a balance when considering where to spend their cash and legal services are not high up the list. This is understandable; it is more important to spend money building the product and gaining visibility. That does not mean that companies should ignore legal issues. Instead, companies should be seeking pragmatic, timely advice that will keep competitors and regulators from the door. Companies need to weigh up the business decision and acceptable levels of risk against being legally watertight. Any time and money to gold-plate the business can be spent once investment has been secured.

Categories: Finance, Leadership


You Might Also Like
Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
The Future of Salon Management: Embracing Technology for Better Results
Innovation
03/03/2023The Future of Salon Management: Embracing Technology for Better Results

Salon management has changed drastically in the past few decades. From the adoption of modern technologies to more efficient operational systems, salons have made significant strides in improving their services.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Are Your Business and Personal Brands Prepared for AI? Expert Says Most Aren’t
Innovation
28/04/2023Are Your Business and Personal Brands Prepared for AI? Expert Says Most Aren’t

The online competition for attention and engagement has never been more intense. And the rapid rise of AI is exponentially increasing the tension, bringing things to a game-changing level. To stand out from the crowd and compete, leaders need to get their pers

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
What Exactly is Workers’ Compensation and How is it Paid Out?
Legal
11/08/2022What Exactly is Workers’ Compensation and How is it Paid Out?

When you get injured in a workplace accident, it can be hard to keep getting up every day and attending to your duties normally. The good news is that you may be eligible to collect medical bills and lost wages if you suffer a workplace injury or illness, rega

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Taking The Right Approach To Due Diligence When Acquiring A Business: Key Steps To Success
Legal
19/02/2020Taking The Right Approach To Due Diligence When Acquiring A Business: Key Steps To Success

Whilst not the most glamorous part of the process, due diligence is a key element of any acquisition. When expanded beyond a simple tick box exercise, due diligence can go a long way in determining the success of an acquisition. How can buyers successfully app

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Streamlining Your Online Payment Process: A New Era of Online Transactions
Finance
30/03/2023Streamlining Your Online Payment Process: A New Era of Online Transactions

When discussing streamlining, we mean ways to make your payment transactions more convenient. The number one benefit of streamlining is to make your customers happy, as they will be able to pay quickly and efficiently.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Ingenious IP Lawyer
Legal
18/01/2021Ingenious IP Lawyer

The murky world of Intellectual Property is hotly contested, with many law firms handling portfolios on a client’s behalf. As we look once again to those lights of the legal profession, we turn to Santiago R. O’Conor, the Leading Intellectual Property Pros

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Enhancing Sustainability and Efficiency with Commercial Heating Systems
News
19/12/2023Enhancing Sustainability and Efficiency with Commercial Heating Systems

When it comes to heating systems on commercial premises, gas boilers remain the go-to option for businesses of all sizes and industries. These appliances offer the perfect balance of power, performance, reliability, and efficiency, while also allowing for besp

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
ACI Media Group Buys Minority Stake in MyDistrict.net
M&A
02/07/2015ACI Media Group Buys Minority Stake in MyDistrict.net

ACI Media Group Buys Minority Stake in MyDistrict.net

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Connecting People Everywhere!
Innovation
31/05/2023Connecting People Everywhere!

CallTower is a cloud-based unified communications, contact centre, and collaboration solutions provider within the telecommunications industry.



Our Trusted Brands

Acquisition International is a flagship brand of AI Global Media. AI Global Media is a B2B enterprise and are committed to creating engaging content allowing businesses to market their services to a larger global audience. We have a number of unique brands, each of which serves a specific industry or region. Each brand covers the latest news in its sector and publishes a digital magazine and newsletter which is read by a global audience.

Arrow