The 11:FS Awards 2023

The 11:FS Awards are back for their second year and you better believe we’re turning things up to 11 for 2023!

We’re celebrating those that are helping to move the industry forward, and always keeping their customer as a north star.

Those still building and delivering for their community, still working to improve people’s relationship with money; despite it being one hell of a year. This one’s for you.

Key dates:

Nominations close 24.08.23

Shortlist announced 26.09.23

Awards evening 15.11.23

Nominate

The awards

As with all things 11:FS, our awards are global and open to all. Covering 5 categories across all areas of financial services, we're celebrating the people, products, and brands that have changed the game over the last 12 months.
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Nominations have now officially closed and our expert judging panels are deciding on the shortlist for each of our categories. Check back here on 26th September when all will be revealed.

Customer

Best experience design: consumer

Using a Jobs to be Done (JTBD) framework or a similar research methodology, you designed a product to solve a real-world problem using great UX, behavioural design loops and game mechanics.

Criteria:

Product design driven by customer insight

Clear positive outcomes through innovative UX and behavioural design

A joyful experience to use through thoughtful application of brand in UI, UX writing that inspires, and moments of delight

Inclusively designed - representative imagery, clear signposting, low ambiguity, solid accessibility options, etc.

Best experience design: business

You’ve designed a standout experience, combining customer research, great UX, and service design, to change the way businesses are able to access and manage their money.

Criteria:

Product design driven by customer insight

A joyful experience to use through thoughtful application of brand in UI, UX writing that inspires, and moments of delight

Innovative prioritisation of information, actions, or automations that simplify business processes

Clear positive outcomes through innovative UX and behavioural design

Inclusively designed (representative imagery, clear signposting, low ambiguity, solid accessibility options, etc.)

Best onboarding

Celebrating those that have mastered user onboarding with intuitive experiences to establish trust and rapidly deliver product value in the last 12 months. This award is brought to you by 11:FS Pulse - our online library of 5,500+ of the best user journeys from FS.

Criteria:

Highly user-friendly design that minimises the friction and complexity of onboarding while maximising intuitive navigation and simplicity.

Consistent clear instructions and signposting alongside readily available support

Strong brand identity and visual flourish

Flexibility - ensuring users can pick up where they left off and are not too restricted by KYC

Inclusively designed - representative imagery, clear signposting, low ambiguity, solid accessibility options, etc.

Purpose

Fintech for good

Whether it’s social good, sustainability, or smashing the patriarchy, this award recognises the past year’s fintech initiatives that had purpose at their core and aimed to create greater financial inclusion and climate responsibility.

Criteria:

Aligned to at least one of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals

Supported underserved, underbanked, or unbanked populations anywhere in the world

Supported efforts to fight and reduce climate change

You must demonstrate a measurable improvement the initiative has made to people’s lives through fintech

Financial wellbeing

You championed financial education to help customers take control of their day-to-day finances and gain the financial freedom to make choices that let them have a better relationship with money.

Criteria:

Helped customers track spending, save for emergencies or retirement, manage debt, make sound investments and/or protect themselves from risk

Used technology to help customers understand their current situation and the decisions they’re making

Encouraged better financial decisions through behavioural economics or game mechanics

Improved customer understanding of the financial trade-offs they face through content, education and advice

Technology

Best Technology as an Enabler

Powered by

Spotlighting innovative and disruptive tech providers to celebrate the foundational backend tech and infrastructure that solves complex financial problems and helps companies build scalable, truly digital solutions.

Criteria:

A clear JTBD methodology for builders and their end users

Truly digital tech that enabled integration with different providers interchangeably

A scalable, fit-for-purpose commercial model that delivered against business goals

Sophisticated and innovative use of data that enabled smart solutions for customers

Best use of AI

Powered by

Generative AI is 2023’s buzzword, but there’s more to it than that. AI and Machine Learning are driving real change for FS customers and for this award, we want to see use of systems that are bringing insights and capabilities to create a solution to a real problem that could not be solved cost-effectively or fast enough by humans alone.

Criteria - AI/ML being used to enable your customers in one of the following ways:

Data sifting and assimilation

Fighting against financial crime

Applied algorithmic solutions

Using technology to help improve customers’ lives

Using technology to help the back office improve systems efficiency and security

Impact

Consumer game changer

We see more and more of the same companies year on year. But who’s solving a problem that no one else has? Whose impact on the market has been unique? Who’s given consumer money management a long-overdue shakeup?

Criteria:

Addressed a real-world customer problem and fundamentally changed the value chain, service offering or market

Evidence of other fintechs/banks using ‘copycat behaviour’ to emulate the success

A sustainable and scalable business model with a strong growth rate

Intelligent services utilising technology enablers

Business game changer

Powered by

You’ve changed the landscape of financial services for businesses, shifted the conversation, and challenged everyone else to up their game. You’ve set the new standard that other businesses are trying to reach.

Criteria:

Addressed a real-world customer problem and fundamentally changed the value chain, service offering or market

Driven direct impact to the profit and revenue outcomes of customers

Evidence of other fintechs/banks using ‘copycat behaviour’ to emulate the success

A sustainable and scalable business model with a strong growth rate

Intelligent services utilising technology enablers

Most progressive regulation

Regulation shapes FS and is the bedrock for generating trust from a customer base. But which piece of regulation from the past 12 months has really had an impact on the industry and help to drive positive change?

Criteria:

Driven innovation that impacted customer services

Speed and appropriate consideration towards market-changing deals (e.g. Plaid / Visa)

Clear and transparent comms, including regular publications, with an easy to navigate landing page

Regulatory actions backed by a clear strategy, leading to positive outcomes for firms and the customers they serve

Evidence of reflection and learning from other regulators

A level of adaptation to economic environments (e.g. adjusting capital requirements for banks as the economy strengthens/weakens)

People

11:FS Hall of Fame

The 11:FS Hall of Fame celebrates everyone shaping our industry for the better, wherever they are in the world. Over the course of their career, these people have brought us a step closer to the future of FS.

Criteria:

An entrepreneur or intrapreneur working in a financial institution who has made a big impact either as part of a customer relationship, via a significant investment, or by challenging the status quo

Someone who is clearly aware of and endeavours to embed diversity and inclusion into the organisation

Clearly exhibits strong values of innovation, resilience, teamwork, and boldness

Launched a product or offering where the industry had to follow

2022 inductees

Nick Ogden

Lawrence Wintermeyer

Anna Wallace

Sir Mark Walport

People

11:FS Hall of Fame

The 11:FS Hall of Fame celebrates everyone shaping our industry for the better, wherever they are in the world. Over the course of their career, these people have brought us a step closer to the future of FS.

2022 inductee

Nick Ogden

Not only did Nick break new ground with the first-ever ecommerce website back in 1994, but he also founded Worldpay, ClearBank - the first clearing bank in 250 years, RTGS - the first really real-time settlement system, and a plethora of other fundamental fabric of financial services changes.

2022 inductee

Lawrence Wintermeyer

Innovate Finance played a crucial part in supporting Fintech’s growth in the UK, and at the heart of the organisation itself was Lawrence. Taking over as CEO when it was just a year old, Lawrence built a strong community that acted as a safe centre point for the industry as a whole.

2022 inductee

Anna Wallace

Responsible for building the innovation unit at the FCA, Anna was a living, breathing culture change project within the organisation. She brought together a team and capabilities that changed the industry for the better, cementing the UK as a leader for fintech more broadly.

2022 inductee

Sir Mark Walport

A truly instrumental figure in the world of fintech, Sir Mark was pivotal in the UK’s adoption of sandboxes and other progressive regulations that have since influenced others around the world through his guidance to regulatory bodies in healthcare.

2022 inductee

Nick Ogden

2022 inductee

Nick Ogden

Not only did Nick break new ground with the first-ever ecommerce website back in 1994, but he also founded Worldpay, ClearBank - the first clearing bank in 250 years, RTGS - the first really real-time settlement system, and a plethora of other fundamental fabric of financial services changes.

2022 inductee

Lawrence Wintermeyer

2022 inductee

Lawrence Wintermeyer

Innovate Finance played a crucial part in supporting Fintech’s growth in the UK, and at the heart of the organisation itself was Lawrence. Taking over as CEO when it was just a year old, Lawrence built a strong community that acted as a safe centre point for the industry as a whole.

2022 inductee

Anna Wallace

2022 inductee

Anna Wallace

Responsible for building the innovation unit at the FCA, Anna was a living, breathing culture change project within the organisation. She brought together a team and capabilities that changed the industry for the better, cementing the UK as a leader for fintech more broadly.

2022 inductee

Sir Mark Walport

2022 inductee

Sir Mark Walport

A truly instrumental figure in the world of fintech, Sir Mark was pivotal in the UK’s adoption of sandboxes and other progressive regulations that have since influenced others around the world through his guidance to regulatory bodies in healthcare.

Judges

We've put together a panel of judges from all corners of 11:FS and the wider financial services space. Meet our experts in product, banking, design, strategy, tech and so much more.

Panel 01/04

Customer

Benjamin Ensor

Strategy Director

11:FS

Will Jones

Executive Creative Director

11:FS

Joe Colchester

Head of Product

11:FS Pulse

Sara Castelhano

Co-Head of Payments and Commerce Solutions for EMEA

JP Morgan

Panel 02/04

Purpose

Benjamin Ensor

Strategy Director

11:FS

Will Jones

Head of Design

11:FS

Joe Colchester

Head of Product

11:FS Pulse

Pat Patel

Executive Director

Elevandi

Panel 03/04

Technology

Ewan Silver

CTO

11:FS

David Barton-Grimley

Strategy Director, BaaS & Embedded Finance

11:FS

Stathis Onasoglou

Field CTO - Fintech

Google Cloud

Panel 04/04

Impact

David M. Brear

CEO & Co-Founder

11:FS

Nas Ahmad

CEO of Pulse & General Counsel

11:FS

Kate Moody

Strategy Director, Customer Experience

11:FS

Derya Düner

EVP

QNB, Finansbank

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On the night

On Wednesday 15th November we’ll come together - physically and remotely - to celebrate the wins, to acknowledge the challenges, and most importantly, to dust-off our snazziest dancing shoes.

Sponsorship

Interested in being a part of the biggest night of the year for financial services? Get in touch with our team to learn about the sponsorship opportunities and how your brand can get involved.

Get in touch

Last year

With winners from every corner of the world, last year’s show really had it all. Check it out for yourself.

FAQs

Can I still make a nomination?

Unfortunately, nominations are now officially closed for this year’s awards, with our shortlists being announced on 26th September. We’ve had a huge amount of nominations this year so keep your eyes peeled to see if your favourite brand, person, or product in FS has made the cut!

Can I sponsor the event?

We’re looking to partner with ambitious brands to help them get in front of decision makers from across the industry. If you’re interested, get in touch with us, we’ve got a range of sponsorship packages available.

How are the shortlists decided?

We take a lot of care in curating fair and in-the-know panels that include our own experts, as well as those from across the industry. Between them, they decide the shortlist and winners from all the nominations we receive.

Can I attend the awards?

Tickets for the 11:FS Awards are reserved for shortlisted companies, event partners, and selected industry guests. If you want to work with us and be a part of the night, get in touch. Or, if you want a taste of an 11:FS event live and in-person, come along to our live podcast recording - After Dark, in London on 20th September. Tickets available here.

What does 11:FS do?

Ah, that old chestnut. Well, you see, we do a lot. We’ve helped businesses build banks, launch digital propositions, design lovable products, strategise for new market growth, research new tech, and we’re only scratching the surface. 11:FS Pulse is our UX library to help brands research and benchmark their own products. Oh, and we have the #1 fintech podcast on the planet - Fintech Insider. Yep, we keep busy.

Up to speed with the awards? Head over to 11:FS.com to see what else we get up to.

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