TECH Nation, the growth network for technology companies and leaders, has pledged to accelerate the growth of the financial technology sector in a partnership with major banks.

The Fintech Pledge, with support from HM Treasury (HMT) and the Fintech Delivery Panel, will kickstart the sector by through enhanced collaboration between banks and leading fintech firms.

The first-of-its-kind initiative will set global standards for efficient and transparent commercial partnerships between the two groups.

This involves banks providing clear guidance and feedback to encourage good practice and improvement.

Banks can now volunteer for the pledge, with five major banks - Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest Group and Santander - already on board.

The pledge formalises the continued work of banks, which look to evolve and improve engagement with the fintech sector.

Victoria Roberts, director of Fintech Delivery Panel at Tech Nation, said: “Building partnerships with established institutions is a fantastic route for fintechs to drive positive change in finance, be it underpinning new customer solutions or transforming regulatory reporting.”

Financial technology firms like Sage, Virgin Money, Newcastle Strategic Solutions, Kani Payments and Atom Bank all have major operations in the North-East.

Juan Gomez Reino, chief technology officer, Lloyds Banking Group said: “We are committed to enhancing and strengthening our customer experience.

"Partnering and working with fintechs enables us to accelerate that transformation, delivering innovations that push the boundaries of what is possible. This is why we believe it’s important to make it as easy as possible for fintechs to work with us, and why the pledge is so important.”

The partnership also hopes to drive better consumer and client outcomes while also creating an environment for a globally competitive and world-leading fintech ecosystem.

Stephen Dury, director of innovation at Santander UK, added: “Collaboration between financial services institutions and fintechs is more important than ever in strengthening the UK’s position as a world-leading fintech centre.

"Fintechs are key to driving innovation in the financial services sector, and by pledging to work collaboratively with them, we will be able to open up new services and bring greater choice to our customers. We already have a successful record in partnering and investing in Fintech and I look forward to building on this.”