Accelerating Dutch Fintech

On behalf of Online Payment platform, I am happy to share this letter with you. Dutch fintechs play a crucial role in the transition to a sustainable and prosperous society. We ask the government to support the next generation of fintechs and work together for an innovative future for the Netherlands.

- Maurice Jongmans, CEO at Online Payment platform

Accelerating Dutch Fintech

The Netherlands has the ambition to transition to a more sustainable, fairer society whilst retaining an international competitive economy. As Dutch fintechs, we believe that we can and are delivering a significant contribution to this major transition. For example, by supporting SMEs to transition into more sustainable models, by providing large audiences with access to financial markets and by contributing to our future innovative economy.

While traditional financial institutions seem to follow a more conservative approach, preventing them from fundamental innovation and investing in our future economy, we are producing more space for innovation. As digital native companies, driven by ambitious entrepreneurs, our vision is to deliver accessible, trustworthy, and cost-efficient services.

We believe we should leverage the strong position The Netherlands has in fintech – and facilitate the next generation of fintechs in Europe. To counterbalance the power from non-EU online players that are entering the banking, trading, and payments-markets rapidly. And to benefit from the innovative power it can bring to our economy and society.

Success story of Dutch fintech innovation
The Netherlands excels at developing fintechs. In the last decades this has resulted in at least 5 unicorns, and many more local and global frontrunners, delivering the following advantages:

• Breaking down inefficiencies directly translates into better liquidity, lower operational costs, higher savings interest rates and lower investment cost for customers;
• Access to data-driven insights provides companies with new opportunities, while growing their business through secure online transactions;
• Data and AI-based financial trading helps financial markets to maintain stability, combat fraud, understand customer needs and deliver enhanced and cost-efficient services.

To leverage our position, propel Dutch and EU businesses, and to minimize dependencies on foreign services, we believe it is key to facilitate the next generation of Dutch fintechs in Europe.

How to lead the way
The current success in the Netherlands is based on the right composition of talent, innovative business climate, and ambitious spirit of entrepreneurship. To inspire the next generation, we need to:

• Focus on innovation - Innovation leads to more innovation, leading to the emergence of next generation fintechs. We need well-considered policies: practicable, European harmonized regulatory frameworks that leave room for adjustment if rules in practice turn out differently than intended. In the end, consumers pay the price for withholding innovation.
• Focus on added value - More cooperation, both between governments, with regulators, and between government and private sector, could help maximize the benefits of the Dutch fintech sector for society and show the opportunities the sector can bring.
• Focus on talent -Encourage and boost high-skilled talent, from within the Netherlands and from abroad. This requires a broader focus on the larger ecosystem, which includes access to education, housing, and sufficient infrastructure.
  
  

As CEOs of these innovative fintechs, we would like to set this into motion. We invite policymakers, politicians, and wide society to engage with us, to further stimulate responsible innovation in the Dutch fintech sector, as we are part of our future-proof economy and are very keen to contribute.

Signatories