Uncovering FinTech’s kingdom

In the world of FinTech, Fexco is a formidable player. Begun as a Bureau de Change business in 1981, the company has grown, adapted and evolved to meet the needs of its partners both in Ireland and around the globe. 

As Fexco’s chief technology officer, David O’Brien knows a thing or two about the communication and tech needs of a high-powered financial services provider. 

“The demands of my role include creating, developing and implementing a technology strategy that aligns with the company’s short and long-term goals,” O’Brien explains. “From identifying, comparing, selecting and implementing technology solutions to meet current and future connectivity needs, ensuring that we can access systems and data and keep in touch with our teams across the globe from Japan to Dubai to Brazil and everywhere in between while also discovering new technologies that yield competitive advantage.

“I supervise system infrastructure to ensure functionality and efficiency and track and control the development of annual operating and capital budgets for IT purchasing, staffing and operations.”

The breadth of O’Brien’s role gives an idea of just how big of a machine this company is. Fexco manages more than $17 billion (about €16.1 billion) in transactions annually and employs 2,300 people in more than  29 countries, with the most significant percentage in Killorglin, Co Kerry. 

“Traditionally, our main areas of focus have been Retail Foreign Exchange [FX], Payments and FX, and Managed Services,” he says. “Fexco has proven that Kerry has everything that an international technology company could need to support growth and expansion across the globe.” 

At the backbone of its reach, diverse offering and adaptability, O’Brien says, is its connectivity technology. “We’ve proven that with market-leading connectivity and access to great talent in Kerry, you can build a truly global success story. For our people, the ability to work on cutting edge projects is only enhanced by the standard of living and work-life balance, which is a unique benefit that this beautiful location offers.”

They offer world-class expertise and experience in the unified communications and networking areas

But back to that connectivity technology, which he acknowledges is one of the superpowers at Fexco’s core. The company has been in partnership with Vodafone for more than 10 years, supporting it with everything from Global SIP, SD-WAN, WLAN, mobile telephony, IPVPN, hosting and M2M services. The collaboration has helped Fexco achieve its more ambitious goals.

“They offer world-class expertise and experience in the unified communications and networking areas,” O’Brien says. “With Vodafone operating one of the largest global networks across voice and data, choosing them as a partner gave us the confidence that our solutions would provide the resilience and support required for us to service a wide variety of partners both in Ireland and abroad, be they Utility customers in our Managed Services division or our relationships with the world’s largest Acquiring Banks across every continent through our Payments and FX businesses.”

Vodafone’s network and telephony services are embedded in Fexco and support complex mission-critical technology platforms for both their own products and those of their partners. O’Brien credits the partnership with enabling them to defiantly expand and take its place as a major player in the FinTech world. 

Financial technology has developed in Ireland to the point that many global financial services companies now have their European headquarters here, with many Irish homegrown FinTech companies holding their own against international players. O’Brien has a few theories about why this country has become such an attractive base. 

“The financial technology industry has developed enormously over the last 40 years with Ireland at the forefront of this development, not least because of the technology innovation and the ability of Irish companies to provide solutions,” he explains. “Traditional financial products and services are continually being challenged as customers seek improved experiences and value as they transact globally. Companies like Stripe and Fexco offer some unique and innovative solutions in the payments area.”

The global challenges of the last two years have not dampened Fexco’s ambitions. In February 2020, just before the pandemic hit,  Fexco opened its state-of-the-art, €21 million research and development centre in Killorglin. The opening symbolises Fexco’s upward trajectory, facilitates in-person and virtual working, and contains multiple co-creation spaces. It also includes The RDI Hub, a Public-Private Partnership with Kerry County Council and IT Tralee, which promotes innovation and start-ups in the FinTech and related technology sectors. 

We’re actively recruiting and plan to add 150 new roles in Ireland by the end of 2023

Fexco took advantage of increased demand at the end of 2021 as markets reopened and is now on track for even further growth and development. O’Brien is excited about the next steps in the company’s journey, which include new job opportunities and segueing into the green economy. 

“We’re actively recruiting and plan to add 150 new roles in Ireland by the end of 2023. Market needs are changing, and we’re expanding in spaces such as sustainability linked technology, fractional asset management.”

O’Brien found a personal  opportunity in the pandemic, citing his recent completion of an MSc in business as a major achievement. “I’m a big advocate of continuous learning and the advantages and opportunities it brings. Completing a master’s during a global pandemic while holding down the ‘day job’ can be challenging to say the least, but I am pleased to have completed it all the same.”

For O’Brien and his team, the future is exceptionally bright. Over the years, as regulations, customer needs and technologies change, Fexco continues to evolve and expand. New businesses and, in some cases, new industries have been developed by the company using technology to solve problems in currency solutions across cash, card and digital payments. “Today we create technology-enabled solutions to deliver better outcomes for our partners and their customers,” he says. 

Of course, underpinning it all is that technology piece he mentioned earlier. “For us, working with Vodafone has provided us with the control and confidence that our network and telephony services are reliable, secure and scalable,” he concludes. “It’s a network that enables us to connect globally from our offices in Killorglin, Co Kerry to our global offices, hybrid working environments and partners worldwide.”

For them, connectivity is what allows Kerry to be its FinTech kingdom.

To find out more, visit https://ie-business.vodafone.com/ BusinessReimagined