Belfast financial regulation specialist named ‘Fintech/Payments Leader of the Year’ by European Women in Payments Network

A director at Belfast-based governance, risk and compliance consulting firm fscom, Alison was awarded the title at the annual EWPN conference and awards ceremony in Amsterdam.

The award recognises one woman in the European fintech community who has led the way in financial services and helped shape fintech across Europe while also promoting diversity and inclusion within the sector.

With a career background in financial regulatory policy, Alison is a former Financial Conduct Authority e-money specialist and works across fscom’s client base in Belfast, London, and Dublin to ensure fintech and payments companies are meeting their growing regulatory obligations.

Within fscom, Alison established the payments division of ex-regulators, ex-bankers and in-house compliance experts, drawing on her governance, risk, and compliance consultancy expertise.

The EWPN awards are designed to celebrate individuals and organisations in financial services who dedicate time to advancing and impacting the industry positively.

As a director at fscom, Alison has supported the development of a diverse and inclusive workforce in line with company growth, while working to achieve Diversity Mark accreditation for the company every year since 2020.

Alongside her role, she works to raise the standards of financial compliance professionals through her work as a Fintech Corridor ambassador, as Payments Association (PA) project regulator lead and with the Association of Compliance Consultants, the Compliance Institute and the Fintech and Payments Association of Ireland.

Alison is a previous winner of The Payments Association 2021 ‘Industry Contributor of the Year’ award and was also featured on the Innovate Finance Women in Fintech Powerlist 2021.

Praising EWPN as ‘a forward-thinking organisation’ Alison, said: “It is an incredible honour to be named Fintech/Payments Leader of the Year by the European Women Payments Network. The EWPN is a forward-thinking organisation doing important work right across Europe to not only build a community of women in the industry but empower us to take the fintech and payments space forward in a wholly inclusive way.”

Thanking the entire team at the Belfast firm, fscom managing director Jamie Cooke, added: “Collaborating with peers across the sector is the best way to achieve real change, and I am thrilled to be connected with the EWPN community in this way. It is a privilege to be recognised after another busy year at fscom and I thank the whole team for their encouragement and support.

“It is fantastic to see Alison’s contribution to the fintech and payments industry recognised at such a prestigious level by the European Women in Payments Network. Alison is a well-known, respected policy expert whose work has driven change right across the regulatory landscape for payments companies. She is a strong voice and advocate for diversity and inclusion within the company and we at fscom are not surprised to see her named Fintech/Payments Leader of the Year and are delighted to celebrate with her.”