Nexus invites Leeds to think FinTech, collaboration and digital with spring calendar of events

Nexus is opening up its doors to co-host a series of events this spring, focusing on the North’s FinTech potential, the benefits of collaboration between business and academia and the digital landscape in Leeds.

The calendar of events will kick off on Monday 8th April with the University of Leeds and Leeds University Business School’s (LUBS) annual event: Festival of Ideas. Nexus will be partnering with LUBS for a day of thought-provoking talks and discussions. Bringing academia and business together, the event will see academics and industry leaders share their expertise and showcase opportunities for collaboration.

The morning will deliver sessions on research collaboration, technology and digital disruption, communication and behaviour. While the afternoon will cover finance at a global and local scale, as well as the human side of artificial intelligence. The closing plenary is hosted at Nexus, A Tale of Two Cities: International Collaboration between Academia and Industry in Action is headlined by Nexus members, Barry Singleton (IMC BA) and David McKee (University of Leeds & Slingshot Simulations) together with Alicja Piotrkowicz (Leeds Institute of Medical Education). The session will explore and offer advice on the benefits of collaboration between business and academia. The event will close with a drinks reception in Nexus’ new £40m state-of-the-art building. Those interested in attending should register on the Leeds University Business School website.

This April sees the return of Leeds Digital Festival, which last year attracted over 20,000 attendees to the city. As part of the University of Leeds’ sponsorship, Nexus will host four events:

• Tuesday 23rd April – The Data Shed and AWS – Handling More Hits Than Barclaycard on Black Friday

• Wednesday 1st May – University of Leeds Showcase Day

• Thursday 2nd May – Women In Leeds Digital (WILD) event

• Friday 3rd May – Leeds FinTech Day

The WILD event is set to equip the city’s female tech talent with everything they need to advance their careers. This session showcases the range of activity within the digital sector and highlights the careers opportunities available to the women in tech across our region. The morning session is packed with insights to educate and inspire the city’s female students who are looking to break into the sector. Whilst the afternoon, aimed at Leeds tech professionals, will celebrate the female powerhouses and tech role models from the region. The event will close with a drinks reception and networking opportunities within the Nexus building.

A brand new event for this year’s festival is the Leeds Fintech Day breakfast event which will provide the opportunity to discuss how the University of Leeds and the wider region, is championing FinTech and establishing Leeds as an incubator location for FinTech activity. Key speakers include Chelsea Hardy, Nexus Engagement Manager; Julian Wells, Whitecap Consulting Director and John Smith from Leeds University Business School, who will present a showcase of FinTech activity from across the North. This will be followed by a Q&A panel session, titled ‘Bridging the gap between business and academia’, which will explore how universities and business can collaborate to support one of the fastest growing tech sectors in the region.

Commenting on the line-up of events, Nexus Network and Events Manager, Alan Gallacher, said: “Our Spring line-up marks the start of a year-round programme of events, which will see us collaborate with many fantastic organisations and professionals from around the region. The programme has been carefully designed to help facilitate new connections between business and academia, as well as support the growing Nexus community with regular industry insight.

“It’s fantastic to be working in partnership with key organisations to shine a spotlight on the region’s strengths in FinTech, cutting-edge research and digital. We hope people can join us to celebrate our thriving region and its booming industries.”

For more information on all of the events and to register visit our events page.