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At Money20/20 Europe this year, the PaymentGenes team engaged in hundreds of conversations with fintechs, banks, merchants, and partners, and one message came through loud and clear: everyone’s looking for clarity, not just hype. Across our three core areas: Consulting, Fintech M&A Advisory, and the PG Academy, we saw the same patterns emerge: sharper focus, higher expectations, and an urgent need to turn complexity into capability.
Here are the five key strategic insights our team brought home from Amsterdam.
“There’s always a buzzword at Money20/20. This year, it was agentic AI and stablecoins, but what matters is how you turn that into action.” – Ward Hagenaar, Co-Head of PaymentGenes Consultancy
AI was everywhere, but companies need a way to embed intelligence into real business processes, not just pilot chatbots. Similarly, account-to-account (A2A) payments are gaining traction fast, but the industry still underestimates their impact on the consumer experience, especially when seamlessly integrated with mobile banking.
We help our clients, whether fintech, banks, or large merchants, cut through the noise and implement strategic, scalable payment solutions.
“Banks are launching premium APIs. It’s no longer just a compliance exercise, it’s a revenue strategy.” – Ward Hagenaar, Co-Head of PaymentGenes Consultancy
Open Banking has matured into Open Finance, and forward-thinking institutions are looking to monetise infrastructure, not just meet regulatory minimums. But enterprise clients, especially large merchants, are no longer interested in experimentation. They want real, validated use cases, supported by fit-for-purpose rails and high-quality execution.
Our role as a consultancy is to help translate this shift into concrete roadmaps, partner selection strategies, and market positioning.
“What we’re really seeing at Money20/20 isn’t consolidation for the sake of it — it’s companies needing help to scale, enter markets, and secure funding faster.” – Simon Stokes, Head of Fintech M&A, PaymentGenes Capital
M&A is back in focus, but not in the way many expected. It's less about classic consolidation and more about strategic acceleration:
“The misconception we still hear is that M&A is always slow, expensive, and complex. But with the right partner, like PaymentGenes Capital, that process becomes focused, efficient, and value-driven.”
Across our consulting and capital teams, we're helping clients position strategically, map future scenarios, and navigate high-impact deals, not just for exits but for growth.
“There’s a real hunger to learn, not just what’s changing in payments, but how it connects to the full value chain.”
– Jeroen [Last name], Head of PG Academy
At the PG Academy booth, one recurring theme emerged: companies know they’re facing a knowledge gap, especially as seasoned Gen X professionals start passing the torch to Gen Z and Millennial teams. The complexity of the payments landscape has only increased, and without foundational understanding, strategic decisions suffer.
Our Payments Foundation Course, completed by over 600 professionals, is being used by fintechs, PSPs, and merchants to:
We're releasing a new version after summer, with updates on A2A, alternative payment methods, and a series of deep-dive modules, developed in response to learner demand.
The takeaway across is that companies no longer want fragmented support. They want partners who understand the industry across strategy, execution, education, and M&A.
That’s what sets PaymentGenes apart. We help you:
Money20/20 reminded us that the fintech space is moving fast, but success belongs to those who think long-term, move with purpose, and build capability across every level of the organisation.
Last week’s Money20/20 in Amsterdam gave us a clear signal: the competition for fintech talent is only getting tougher. We spoke with clients, candidates, and peers across the ecosystem, and here are the recruitment insights that stood out most.
The most pressing challenge in 2025? A shortage of specialised talent. Roles in AI, machine learning, and blockchain are in high demand, but candidates with real, hands-on experience are scarce. Similarly, as crypto, cyber, and digital ID regulations tighten, companies are now urgently looking for compliance and risk experts, especially MLROs and regulatory specialists.
While compensation still matters, the modern fintech employee is driven by more: like culture, mission, flexibility, and growth potential.
With remote work now the norm, companies are no longer just competing with their local market; they’re competing globally. And with that comes increased pressure to differentiate through benefits, vision, and purpose.
Remote work has unlocked new talent pools, but also new challenges. Companies are hiring across borders through EOR (Employer of Record) setups or freelance/B2B contracts, but need to adjust for local expectations in terms of benefits, pension schemes, and work styles.
“Hiring remotely means navigating nuance. What motivates a candidate in Berlin isn’t necessarily the same in Barcelona.”
– Harrison Williams, Team Lead of PaymentGenes Recruitment
At PaymentGenes Talent, we work beyond the job description:
“We’re not here to pitch roles. We’re here to tell our clients’ stories in a way that gets the right people to listen.”
From navigating a competitive global market to securing rare talent for emerging roles, fintech hiring is evolving, and we’re evolving with it.
Money 20/20 Europe 2024 proved to be more than just another industry event; it was a turning point. After a turbulent 2023 marked by economic headwinds, regulatory uncertainty, and cautious investor sentiment, the 2024 edition felt like a collective exhale. Optimism returned, innovation accelerated, and most noticeably, attendance surged, with significantly more companies represented in Amsterdam than the previous year.
