On 11 March at Vinopolis in London Bridge, platforms, investors, journalists and institutions gathered at the first AltFi Summit, organised by Alt Finance News, a news source dedicated to the new finance movement.
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Some of our contemporaries at AltFi Summit 2014[/caption]
Keynote speakers included Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, and CEOs from leading p2p platforms in the UK and Europe.
Overall, it was a well-balanced day, with an overriding sense of optimism in the air as platforms appeared excited about their future, tempered with some warnings about over-valuations for some platforms and a hesitancy over whether serious money could be deployed to attract institutional investors, as is the case in America.
We spoke about the changing face of finance, how individuals want to take greater control over their own investments in a cultural shift and why we want to see greater integration across Europe for innovative platforms.
Vince Cable reiterated his desire to support the industry through the British Business Bank, but he was pressed on the role of the banks in the industry, in light of the OFT probe into banking practices concerning p2p providers and whether banks should be forced to refer clients to alternative finance providers as part of their remit.
The delegate list itself was impressive, with plenty of international interest in the UK market and leading European lenders like Trustbuddy singling out the UK as the world leader in the peer-to-business lending space.
Everyone was in agreement about one thing though - this movement is only a fraction into its journey.
Visit Alt Finance News
Some of our contemporaries at AltFi Summit 2014[/caption]
Keynote speakers included Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, and CEOs from leading p2p platforms in the UK and Europe.
Overall, it was a well-balanced day, with an overriding sense of optimism in the air as platforms appeared excited about their future, tempered with some warnings about over-valuations for some platforms and a hesitancy over whether serious money could be deployed to attract institutional investors, as is the case in America.
We spoke about the changing face of finance, how individuals want to take greater control over their own investments in a cultural shift and why we want to see greater integration across Europe for innovative platforms.
Vince Cable reiterated his desire to support the industry through the British Business Bank, but he was pressed on the role of the banks in the industry, in light of the OFT probe into banking practices concerning p2p providers and whether banks should be forced to refer clients to alternative finance providers as part of their remit.
The delegate list itself was impressive, with plenty of international interest in the UK market and leading European lenders like Trustbuddy singling out the UK as the world leader in the peer-to-business lending space.
Everyone was in agreement about one thing though - this movement is only a fraction into its journey.
Visit Alt Finance News
