Despite a challenging period during the coronavirus pandemic, Scottish fintech companies have performed remarkably and the ecosystem continues to thrive.

According to stats from FinTech Scotland, the number of Scottish fintech companies increased by more than 27% across 2021, bringing the total number of firms operating in the sector to 190.

This number has likely grown since these figures were published, and looking ahead the sector shows no signs of slowing down, with more dynamic young startups being launched and a number of key players continuing to scale and attract global attention.

With this in mind, DIGIT looks at 10 of the most exciting Scottish fintech companies innovating right now.

Aveni AI

Learn how solutions like Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing can automatically access 100% consumer interactions, helping you achieve cross functional insight and drive company-wide business improvements. 👇https://t.co/Gh1E50Sd62#AI #regtech #NLP

— Aveni (@Aveni_AI) July 21, 2022

Aveni AI sits at the intersection of two of Scotland’s most exciting sectors; AI and fintech.

The Leith-based startup harnesses cutting-edge AI to analyse conversational data and enhance customer experience.

Traditionally catering to the financial service sector, the company has long-term plans to expand into other regulated industries such as utilities.

Founded by Joseph Twigg and Moray Martin, the firm has grown rapidly since launching in 2018, and has experienced significant growth since the beginning of the pandemic.

June last year saw Aveni secure £1.1 million in a funding round led by Tricapital Angel syndicate while last month it raised an additional £2.75m to accelerate the expansion of its Aveni Detect platform.

Coastr

Navigate the new world of vehicle rentals with Coastr’s connected and #contactless rental ecosystem 📲 💻

Learn how you can improve fleet control and overall security, as well as boost profit and customer engagement by going #keyless and #paperless: https://t.co/AzVPNEB2Wc pic.twitter.com/nZQBRy8kSY

— Coastr (@CoastrOfficial) July 21, 2022

Coastr provides a cloud-based “all in one” vehicle rental management system, helping rental firms to digitise services and streamline operations.

Also based in Leith, the firm says its software can help deliver cost savings and maximise revenues for independent rental companies.

Founded in 2018 by Biswajit Kundu Roy, Coastr has grown rapidly since launch. In September last year, the firm raised £1.4 million in funding, and boasts a number of significant partnerships.

Float

Cash flow forecasting for project accounting⭐️

Read more to find out how Float Projects can help you better manage your money and plan for the future👇#projectaccounting #cashflowforecastinghttps://t.co/9e1aTVHJki

— Float Cash Flow (@FloatApp) April 14, 2022

One of the more well-established companies on our list, Float has grown to become one of the top Scottish fintech companies in recent years.

Founded in 2012, Float provides cash management and online forecasting software which allows businesses to track, monitor and adjust cash flow.

Float lets businesses connect its platform to their particular choice of accounting software, such as Xero, FreeAgent or QuickBooks.

Founder Colin Hewitt launched the company following his own experience encountering cash flow difficulties during his time running a digital agency.

Know-it

Introducing Credit Insure-it, powered by Nimbla! 🎉

Protect your business in the event your customer goes into liquidation or administration, with single invoice insurance powered by Nimbla. 🛡️https://t.co/2xfRD3B471#creditinsurance #cashflow #sme #creditmanagement pic.twitter.com/sJQuQlNA9y

— Know-it (@Knowitglobal) July 11, 2022

Glasgow-based fintech Know-it is a cloud-based credit management platform which aims to streamline and optimise credit control processes.

Founded by CEO Lynne Darcey-Quigley, the company primarily caters toward the SME market. The Know-it platform allows businesses to credit check and monitor, chase for payment, collect overdue unpaid invoices.

In December 2021, the company featured among several Scottish tech companies recognised in Tech Nation’s Rising Stars 4.0 programme.

Loveelectric

Meet Steve, our founder and CEO! If you’re attending @EmployeeBenefit Live, come for a chat at A27! If not, click the link in our bio to learn more #EBLive21 pic.twitter.com/yQVXfcOtqH

— loveelectric (@IoveelectricUK) October 6, 2021

Loveelectric is another Scottish startup skirting the border between two dynamic areas – this time the fintech and electric vehicle markets.

Founded by former Money Dashboard CEO Steve Tigar, loveelectric hopes to increase electric vehicle uptake by improving affordability and accessibility. The firm’s leasing scheme hopes to encourage more businesses to adopt eco-friendly transport by halving the cost of leasing a vehicle.

Scottish businesses that have been trading profitably for two years or more can sign-up to the scheme and help staff secure a vehicle for personal or business use.

Nova Finance

Join us this Thursday for our monthly Town Hall where we will share the latest on product development, automated strategies within Beta, roadmap progress, and answer all the questions you have!

Drop into the Nova Discord to set a reminder👇 https://t.co/U8pSBcHDlT pic.twitter.com/dGD9fYVYCt

— N◎VA (@NovaFinance_) July 19, 2022

A relative newcomer to the Scottish startup scene, Nova Finance describes itself as a “non-custodial programmable asset protocol” built for decentralised finance (DeFi).

The Nova platform allows users to develop investment portfolios while automating traditionally complex investor and yield strategies, thus improving accessibility for every day crypto investors.

Co-founded by Adam Greenberg and Tom Sichel, the duo behind SageCity, Nova Finance secured $3 million in funding last year.

At present, the firm is building its consumer-focused application, and plans to launch officially later this year.

Nude

Stepping on to the property ladder is a challenge for millions of people across the UK in 2022 amidst rising house prices and the growing cost-of-living crisis.

Glasgow-based fintech Nude offers a helping hand to first-time buyers, allowing them to open a savings or investment account, boost deposits and access vital government incentives.

The firm launched officially in 2020 after raising £3.6 million in funding and has gone from strength to strength, and was recently highlighted by Moneysavingexpert for offering one of the UK’s top lifetime ISAs.

OneBanks

We’re celebrating over a year of supporting the community in Lochgelly with their everyday banking needs.

A huge thank you to our team in Lochgelly, as well as all of the customers and businesses who use our services every day. pic.twitter.com/1eN9GE0XKA

— OneBanks Hub (@OneBanksHub) July 19, 2022

Bank branch closures are a problem affecting communities across Scotland, with recent research showing that up to half-a-million Scots could be “left behind” as banks abandon the traditional high street.

Glasgow-based OneBanks aims to plug the gap left by bank closures and continue to offer physical banking services.

Founded in 2020 by entrepreneur Duncan Cockburn, the firm provides physical banking services at selected sites across the country, and currently operates three pilot ‘kiosks’ in towns with no bank branches.

The firm has grown rapidly since launch, and recently appointed a new chief operations officer and non-exec director ahead of plans to expand nationally later this year.

Snugg

We’re excited to share the outcome of our first seed fundraising round! A big thank you to all our #investors!https://t.co/kx0703yiJH#fintech #scotland #energyefficiency pic.twitter.com/Dw5Z8nPt5r

— Snugg (@SnuggEnergy) July 6, 2022

One of the newer startups to join the Scottish fintech ecosystem, Snugg aims to “revolutionise” home energy efficiency finance and empower customers to overcome rising energy costs.

Co-founded by Robin Peters and Paul Kettlety, Snugg helps homeowners easily identify, finance and implement improvements to their homes to optimise energy efficiency.

Working in partnership with banks, installer networks and data providers, the firm’s platform can provide energy efficiency recommendations to users based simply on their address.

Having recently secured £1.2 million in funding to accelerate development of the Snugg platform, this startup is definitely one to watch.

Zumo

“Sustainability”. It’s a word we hear all the time. Within just five years, online searches for sustainable products have soared by a staggering 71%. So what is sustainability and does “sustainability” have a different meaning in finance?#crypto https://t.co/q84a5sn2Fv

— Zumo (@zumopay) July 21, 2022

Since its launch in 2018, Zumo has risen to become one of the stand-out companies operating in Scotland’s fintech sector.

Founded by Nick Jones and Paul Roach, the Zumo platform aims to make cryptocurrency more accessible to the general public. The firm’s smart wallet provides users with the “safest and simplest way to buy, store, send and spend cryptocurrencies and traditional money”.

This Edinburgh-based cryptocurrency startup ended last year on a high note, becoming the first Scottish crypto firm to secure FCA authorisation.

Fintech Summit 2022 | Join the Conversation

Want to connect with more dynamic Scottish fintech companies? Register for a free place at the Fintech Summit on Thursday 15th September.

Hosted live and in-person at Edinburgh’s Dynamic Earth, the Summit is Scotland’s largest annual gathering for financial technology professionals, providing an opportunity to reconnect with industry peers and explore the latest developments across the sector.

To learn more about the conference and book your ticket in advance, please visit: www.fintech-summit.co.uk