Proto is proud to announce that its CEO Curtis Matlock is the founding chairman of the newly formed SupTech Industry Group (SIG). The SIG brings together leading suptech companies with the shared goal of scaling technology beyond pilot projects to address critical challenges in the financial inclusion and consumer protection landscapes.
The Cambridge SupTech Lab plays a central role in convening the SupTech Industry Group. Acting as the group’s secretariat, the Lab is responsible for coordinating peer exchanges, facilitating governance, and managing group communications.
Through its partnership with SIG, the Cambridge SupTech Lab will also showcase the collective work of members at major industry events, such as the upcoming SupTech Week 2024 with the World Economic Forum.
Cambridge SupTech Lab Co-Head, Matt Grasser, said, “We at the Lab are excited to support the SupTech Industry Group in a shared mission to bridge the gap between suptech pilots and sustainable, globally-scaled deployments. By creating a safe, collaborative, industry-led space for solution providers to share insights and tackle common challenges, the SIG will empower members to draw intelligence from otherwise siloed engagements. This, in turn, will drive more efficient solution development to more effectively address the ever-evolving needs of financial supervisors. Through coordination of financial resources, technical innovations, and industry insights, the SIG will arm industry players to meet a growing demand for suptech to offset emerging risks across the financial sector.”
Scaling beyond pilots and procurement challenges
Under Matlock’s leadership, the SupTech Industry Group is focused on supporting private sector growth via the sustainable deployment of innovative suptech solution for citizens. The SIG’s primary goals include:
- Scaling SupTech Solutions: The SIG is focused on moving beyond proof-of-concept and pilot stages to implement suptech solutions at scale with government agencies. Vendors will share best practices and strategies to overcome barriers to widespread deployment.
- Facilitating Collaboration Among Vendors: Vendors will share lessons learned from past projects, in order to reduce redundancies, speed up innovation, and create an industry-wide network effect where a breakthrough for one vendor benefits the entire ecosystem.
- Addressing Procurement Challenges: Public sector procurement processes can often be lengthy and complex, hindering the ability of vendors to bring innovative solutions to market quickly. The SIG will work to develop scalable engagement models with government agencies that reduce reliance on burdensome procurement cycles that delay socially beneficial suptech solution.
- Responding to Growing Regulator Demand: With increasing demand for suptech solutions to address issues such as consumer protection, financial inclusion, and the fight against financial crimes, the SIG will help vendors seize these opportunities by aligning their innovations with the needs of regulators.
- Building Sustainable Deployment Models: A key focus of the SIG is to ensure that suptech solutions are sustainable and scalable in the long term. This includes sharing models for financial stability, strategic collaborations, and technology integrations that enable solutions to succeed across markets.
Founding members
The SupTech Industry Group’s founding member consist of Proto and leading suptech companies, including FNA, Winnow Technologies, FT Solutions and EMTECH. These companies, often in partnership with the Cambridge SupTech Lab, have been at the leading edge of applying new technologies such generative AI and image recognition to government and regulatory use cases.
Proto CEO, Curtis Matlock, said, “The SupTech Industry Group is overdue. Following five years of pilot projects, stakeholders in our industry — including donors, vendors, and government agencies — are ready for an industry-led that speaks with a clear voice for long-term sustainability, efficient procurements, and enduring suptech solutions that protect citizens.”
The first SIG session will be held at SupTech Week 2024 in New York on December 9-10. Following this, a report will be generated for all stakeholders on industry growth priorities for 2025.
About the SupTech Industry Group
The SupTech Industry Group will meet regularly for peer exchanges, with plenary sessions held quarterly and ad hoc meetings on specific topics. Founding members will also participate in high-profile events, including SupTech Week 2024, where they will showcase their solutions to global financial authorities. With the ongoing support of the Cambridge SupTech Lab, the group is well-positioned to drive innovation and scale within the suptech ecosystem.
About the Cambridge SupTech Lab
The Cambridge SupTech Lab accelerates the digital transformation of financial supervision and supervisory agencies. The Lab delivers online leadership education, experiential training, research and market intelligence, new analytical frameworks, innovative digital tools, and cutting-edge suptech applications. It drives collaboration across the ecosystem of financial supervision to empower a financial sector that is more sustainable and inclusive. Cambridge SupTech Lab is an initiative of the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School. (www.cambridgesuptechlab.org).
