Tampa Bay becomes financial technology hub with more startups setting down roots, innovators say

TAMPA, Fla. - More and more financial technology startup companies are setting down roots in Tampa Bay, and innovators said they believe the area is becoming a hub for the industry.

Brian Alvarez-Bailey has worked in financial technology for a little more than a decade. He said he moved to Tampa not only for the good weather but also for the area’s promise in the industry. 

"Ultimately for me when I first got here, I said to myself this has the Austin 2010-ish feel right before Austin kind of blew up with South by Southwest," said Alvarez-Bailey, who founded his own startup, Allison. "Tampa really gave off that vibe, and so we’ve really tried on the Allison team, really tried to build deep roots here."

Financial technology is also known as fintech, combining financial services and technology for consumers on all types of platforms, from payment services and consumer banking to lending and cryptocurrency.

MORE: Cryptocurrency conference increases Tampa's clout in financial-tech sector

"So everyone at this point in 2022 has heard of PayPal. That’s an example of a fintech company," said Alvarez-Bailey.

Alvarez-Bailey runs his fintech startup, Allison, out of University Mall in Tampa.

"So if a bank or a credit unit wanted to offer cryptocurrency services, both for consumer, i.e. I want to manage my portfolio in your app, or I want to have a merchant that takes crypto, they would use Allison to be that tool kit," said Alvarez-Bailey about his company.

Fintech companies like his are landing more and more in Tampa Bay. Central Florida’s banking and tech jobs are a big plus.

"I can live in this area and be a hop, skip away from a pretty large community and interact and build and network. That’s a pretty good thing," said Alvarez-Bailey.

Building that network is a mission for the University of South Florida.

READ: $14 million gifted to USF for financial technology initiative

"There's a long list of businesses that have moved from some of the traditional high-tech centers around the country to Tampa Bay in the last especially three or four years," said Michael Wiemer, the inaugural director of USF’s new FinTech Center.

USF launched its new FinTech center this year, and Wiemer said they want to recruit business and create a pipeline.

"So certainly we're attracting business, helping businesses, but really recruiting the leaders of tomorrow," said Wiemer. "It will be an attraction for certainly students that want to study fintech or entrepreneur that'd like to come here to engage in the ecosystem." 

Investing where you live matters to innovators like Alvarez-Bailey, so he said he also plans to tap into the community to grow Tampa’s fintech future.

"We’re a fairly tight-knit group as compared to other industries such as healthcare of different things like that," said Alvarez-Bailey. "So if we have a breeding ground of talent here, folks are going to want to just come to be a part of it."