FMLS24: Exploring the Future of Retail Investing

Finance Magnates London Summit: 24 continued into the second day at Old Billingsgate. It featured exhibitions, insightful panel discussions, and interviews. The event brings together influential brands and leaders in the trading, payments, fintech, and crypto asset space.

FMLS:24 is a premier hub that provides financial updates, analysis, and research on online trading, fintech, payment, crypto, and blockchain technology.

Here, firms in retail and institutional brokerage businesses, banking, fintech, crypto, and even regulators showcase their services and share ideas about the latest industry innovations.

The 2.5-day event will culminate with the FMLS Awards, an important opportunity to recognize outstanding performance across various business categories in the industry.

Speed Networking: The Sunset Liquidity Beer

There is more to come at FMLS:24. Among the topics lined up for Wednesday include a discussion with the regulators. At the Centre Stage, for instance, we will delve into the nitty-gritty details of regulatory aspects in the trading business.

Some of the questions that will be answered are: What exactly do brokers need to report to regulators to ensure compliance, and when? How do off- and mid-shore jurisdictions keep up with global developments?

And in compliant marketing: Are industry participants complying with regulators' growing push on ads and influencers? Who will regulate funded trading as a standalone offering and as CFD brokers' products?

Future of Funding: VCs Talk Investing

What lies ahead for founders amid diminishing funding interest, market consolidation, and fundamental aspects? The emerging space of NEO banking could suggest opportunities in this regard. Industry participants thoroughly surveyed the aspects of VC funding and the opportunities.

The panel discussion brought together Roberto Napolitano, the CMO of Innovate Finance; Rezso Szabo, the General Partner and head of London Illuminate Financial; Laurens De Poorter, Partner of Kraken Ventures; Lex Sokolin, the Managing Partner for Generative Ventures; and Thomas Curran, the Head of CMC CapX, CMC Market.

"Payments as a Product" and Broker Innovation in a Multi-Asset World

And at the center stage, the importance of comprehensive payment solutions in reducing operational costs was discussed. Mattia Calvosa, the Director of Regional GTM and BD at Visa, spoke to Finance Magnates’ Jonathan Fine to explore this space. As client demand becomes more complex, expansive payment solutions can reduce operational costs and deliver a better product.

The Future of Retail Investment, by Its Creators

The impact of retail investors has remained strong since the pandemic. However, to maintain their competitiveness, brokerage firms need to keep up with the new reality. This is because financial services, personal finance, and fintech are becoming more intertwined. At the FMLS:24 Innovate Stage, industry experts delved into the future of retail investment.

Steven Hatzakis, Global Director of Online Broker Research, and Lucian Lauerman, Deputy Chief Operating Officer of OANDA, were among the panelists. Pavel Spirin, CEO of Scope Markets; Gerald Perez, CEO of Interactive Brokers (UK); and David Litchfield, Director for Derivatives Sales at Cboe Global Markets, were also present.

Tomorrow, a similar panel discussion about "Wonder Women of Fintech" will take place. Interestingly, although women make up 30% of the global fintech workforce, only 12% reportedly hold leadership roles. Also, female-led startups receive less than 2% of venture capital funding.

However, despite these challenges, women are rising in this space, with a 58% growth in female fintech founders over the past decade. Besides that, firms with gender diversity perform 30% better financially, proving the value of inclusion. Discover the ways in which women are transforming obstacles into opportunities, leading the charge in fintech innovation, and shaping the industry's future.