THE Fintech Islands Experience (FiX) Summit has attracted over 300 experts from across the globe and varying sectors of the financial technology industry who will converge in Barbados at the Hilton Barbados Resort from October 5 to 7, 2022.

Dubbed the first-ever global fintech conference in the Caribbean, FiX will feature renowned fintech leaders who will deliver key presentations and over 20 hours of “curated content”. Most notable among presenters is prime minister of Barbados Mia Mottley who will provide a welcome address and host a VIP meet and greet on the first day of the conference.

According to the organisers of FiX Summit, the aim is to create a world-class event that stimulates the growth of the fintech ecosystem in the region.

“Our speaker line-up includes 100 plus fintech leaders from around the globe. More than 60 per cent of speakers are founders and CEOs; more than 40 per cent of speakers are from outside of the Caribbean region, including fintech leaders from North America, [Latin America], Europe and Africa,” Fintech Islands senior advisor and former chief content officer for the Money20/20, Andrew B Morris explained.

He further outlined that the summit will cover four major themes relevant to the Caribbean context — financial inclusion, climate fintech, cryptocurrencies and decentralized finance, and embedded and open finance.

So far, the organisers of FiX Summit have secured partnerships with major players in the global fintech space such as Mastercard, Delta Capital Group, Digicel Group, Republic Bank, Unipet, and Visa.

Morris shared that platinum sponsor Mastercard and gold sponsor Digicel Group will be making an announcement on the first day of the conference about a significant partnership.

The conference will also allow delegates to network and partake in immersive cultural experiences which include an opening night reception at the Barbados Museum. On day two they will engage in networking tours.

FiX Summit will culminate with the Fintech Islands Start-up Pitch which will highlight seven promising, early stage fintechs from the region. Presented by Draper Startup House Caricom and powered by Republic Bank, the pitch will facilitate exchanges between the start-ups and a panel of judges in a rapid-fire format comprising two minutes of presentations and four minutes of questions and answers. The top three finalists from the pitch will win prizes such as investments, cash awards, sponsorship to accelerator programmes, among other benefits.