Wednesday 18 January 2017 2:06 pm

Why are the world’s eyes on this innovative fintech startup?

Imagine an app that puts all your finances in one place: your current and savings accounts, credits cards, mortgage and other personal accounts – all in the palm of your hand. Quickly and easily.

Money Dashboard’s app does just that – its financial data platform has attracted 100,000 users since its launch in 2010. The fintech company, based in Edinburgh, believes it has the potential to transform how people manage their finances digitally.

It was one of 24 finalists out of thousands of start-ups that competed at Asia's largest fintech awards: the Next Money Fintech Finals 2017 (#FF17) on January 19th.

Set up in the Scottish Borders, Money Dashboard moved to the Scottish capital in 2013. The city's talent pool, start-up community and fintech sector have helped fuel the company’s growth. Using the app, people can save smarter for their future given that 16 million people in the UK have less than £100 in savings, according to research.

500 transactions a second – blink and you'll miss it

The company tags about 500 transactions a second and makes money in two ways. The first involves aggregating and anonymising all its data to create market research on consumer spending that it sells to agencies in different sectors, including retail.

It is working on a second route: to identify people that could save money by switching to another product – for example a better current account that doesn’t charge overdraft fees. A recommendation could then be made, earning the company a commission.

People take control of their finances and make the right decisions

Steve Tigar, Money Dashboard’s chief executive, explains: “We find that most people bank online and have many different accounts where they check balances in many different places. It’s very unwieldy to manage and get a true view of where you’re at financially. So the first benefit is that we pull all that data together into one place to help people take control of their finances and make the right decisions.”

"Digital accounting specialist FreeAgent and online verification company miiCard are examples of other Edinburgh fintech startups that have secured investment and are growing strongly," he adds.