Finance Isle of Man has signed a partnership agreement with FinTech Scotland to promote and develop Insurtech and FinTech capabilities across the two jurisdictions, with the intention to boost economic and business co­operation and investment.

They will work together to stimulate education, recruitment and employment opportunities, as well as provide businesses with opportunities to attend events and sector focused seminars, trade missions, conferences and Expos.

The Isle of Man has a long-established international insurance sector, representing more than 19% of the Island’s GDP with approximately £75bn of funds under management and 2,000 people employed in the industry. The maturity of the insurance market means they are ideally positioned as a hub for growth, and plan to increase the number of Insurtech start-ups based on the Island, working closely with the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority.

Scotland is home to over 200 FinTech firms spanning across the full spectrum of financial technologies from payments to blockchain, open banking to RegTech, and has made plans to drive a fourfold increase in job creation in this sector over the next decade.

This collaboration follows the recent announcement that Insurtech Isle of Man – which is a part of Finance Isle of Man and in charge with developing the insurance sector – has launched its first joint Acceleration Program with F10 for growth-stage Insurtech start-ups. Successful entrants will receive coaching on open innovation and collaboration best-practices, personalized mentoring, as well as the opportunity to work with leading insurers.

The Acceleration Program will also include pitching opportunities for participating Insurtech start-ups during the Scotland FinTech Festival. Taking place this autumn, the Festival will be the fifth hosted by FinTech Scotland and brings together a broad range of innovation themes, as well as participants from FinTech entrepreneurs, large global enterprises, universities, the public sector and regulators.

Michael Crowe, CEO of Finance Isle of Man, said: “We very much welcome this new and exciting collaboration opportunity with FinTech Scotland and look forward to deepening our relationship with them.

The strength and maturity of the Isle of Man’s insurance sector and unparalleled access to the global market means we are ideally placed to help develop and grow innovations in the market, and working with FinTech Scotland will allow us to further support start-ups and scale-ups in this sector.”

Nicola Anderson, CEO of FinTech Scotland, said: “We’re delighted to advance collaboration and FinTech opportunities with Finance Isle of Man as we continue to develop international connections for the FinTech Scotland’s cluster. Since inception we have developed global connections with other hubs inside and outside of the UK to create new opportunities around innovation, collaboration and talent. With the Isle of Man, we’re particularly excited by its focus on insurance, supporting the capabilities and aspiration of many Scottish FinTechs who are developing new and innovative solutions.”