The future of fintech
It was a production worthy of Broadway. Gov. Asa Hutchinson was literally in the spotlight on the stage of the Arkansas Repertory Theatre in downtown Little Rock earlier this month as a crowd of more than 200 people looked on. Those in attendance came from across the country and around the world.
For a fourth year, the Little Rockbased Venture Center teamed with state government and Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (commonly known as FIS) to sponsor the FIS FinTech Accelerator. Ten startup companies sent people to Little Rock to participate in a 12-week program designed to help them get their ideas off the ground.
FIS is involved because it can take these ideas and better serve its clients. State government is involved because it hopes that the Little Rock area will become an even bigger financial technology hub than it already is. And the Venture Center is involved because that’s what it does.
Gary Norcross, the FIS chief executive officer, announced that his company will continue its sponsorship for another year. Now based in Jacksonville, Fla., FIS has Little Rock roots and employs almost
1,200 Arkansans. Systematics Inc. was founded in Arkansas in 1968, was acquired by Alltel Information Services in 1990 and was then bought by
FIS in 2003.
FIS has more than 20,000 clients in 110 countries. If FIS does well, the job total in Arkansas could grow. And if the startups do well, a few of them just might choose Arkansas as their headquarters.
“The state of Arkansas invests in the FinTech Accelerator because we want FIS to continue to be a global leader in financial technology,” Hutchinson said. “We invest to support one of our homegrown companies that still has great roots here in the state. But we also invest because we want a return on the investment by building the technology sector.”
There were 225 applications from more than 30 countries to participate in this year’s program. The 10 companies chosen polished their business
plans and met with potential clients during their time in Arkansas. While here, participants ate in Little Rock restaurants, attended cultural events and explored the surrounding area. Several of them may decide to stay.
“Investors in companies like these are much more open than they once were when it comes to investing in the middle of the country,” Wayne Miller, the executive director of the Venture Center, told me over lunch recently.
Miller took over the Venture Center, which is in the Little Rock Technology Park on Main Street, last October. He had come to Little Rock two years ago to run the FinTech Accelerator. Miller lives and works downtown, claiming that he has “a 70-second commute.” He’s a proponent of downtown, the tech park and the future of the capital city as a hightech hub.
Miller previously lived in the Washington, D.C., area. He worked with startup technology companies in the health-care and cybersecurity sectors.
“I was recruited to run a medical device accelerator in Miami, but I researched what was being done in Little Rock and saw what I considered to be the right approach to solving the problems startups face,” Miller said. “I jumped on a plane and spent five days in Little Rock. I was impressed with the quality of the people here. The attitude in a small state like this is different. People constantly ask us: ‘How can we help you get this done?’ Plus there’s the fact that Little Rock is really where fintech began. From the start, there was this combination of ingredients that I knew would allow us to achieve our goals.”
The success of the FinTech Accelerator allowed the Venture Center to later partner with the Independent Community Bankers of America on another accelerator program. The ICBA is the voice for almost 5,000 community banks across the country. Those banks have a combined $4.9 trillion in assets, $3.9 trillion in deposits and $3.3 trillion in loans. This was the first year of a three-year agreement between the Venture Center and ICBA.
“We have bankers come here from around the world,” Miller says. “These are high-level people. While they’re here, they also learn more about Arkansas. The comment I hear over and over is this: ‘I was really pleasantly surprised by what I found.’ The long-term impact of these programs is going to be huge. I hope people will keep the faith and stay with us because these programs will provide a big benefit to the Arkansas economy in the years ahead.”
On its website, the Venture Center describes its mission as fueling “the startup ecosystem through partnerships with corporations, universities, government agencies, nonprofits, venture funds, service providers, program alumni and other organizations in the community.”
“Northwest Arkansas has some of the best companies in the world when it comes to supply-chain management,” Miller says. “Central Arkansas can be to fintech what Northwest Arkansas is to the supply chain. The two regions will complement each other, and the whole state will benefit.”
Hutchinson told those in attendance at this month’s event: “I hope that many from out of state—whether you’re investors, in financial services or with a tech company—understand that Arkansas is leading the way in computer coding education. We’re a good partner in terms of the talent we want to produce.”
Norcross said FIS invited more than 50 of its clients from around the world to hear the presentations of the 10 startups and perhaps do business with them. That’s more visitors to experience Little Rock’s emerging high-tech scene.