Why Utah is the Place to Be for Fintechs

A lot comes to mind when people think of Utah, but something else has begun to come up more often — Fintech. Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox took the main stage at the Money20/20 USA conference to discuss just that. 

Governor Cox spoke to what makes Utah such a profitable and unique place for fintech companies to flourish. He emphasized Utah's home-grown talent, progressive regulatory structure, and strong fintech foundation.

Utah has long cultivated both innovators and disruptors in the field of fintech. When asked what makes the talent in Utah different and successful in fintech, Governor Cox started by assuring the audience that people in Utah “are not as weird as you think.” He went on to elaborate by noting that “we (Utah) are not San Francisco, we are not New York. And, we do not want to be.” He describes Utahns wanting to live in a beautiful place, raise families, and be away from the hustle of more traditional fintech hubs. But in no way does that diminish the state's commitment to fintech.

Utah universities are establishing foundational cross-discipline fintech degrees to foster a bright future for home-grown success in fintechs. And, for those seeking to move to Utah, Governor Cox is ready to welcome them with open arms and just one requirement. He said that any company looking to move to Utah only has to require each of their employees to volunteer 20 hours of service every year, e to give back to the state community that will give them a place to call home. 

In speaking to the role of government, Governor Cox said it “can hamper innovation, but we wanted to foster it.” For example, Utah has an established technology advisory board aimed to help build new regulations from the bottom up rather than the top down. MX’s own Chief Advocacy Officer, Jane Barratt, serves as a member of this council. Governor Cox explained that rather than trying to catch people breaking the rules, the government's “job is to help people do things the right way.” 

Merging compliance with innovation can be difficult. For many fintech hubs, balancing the motivations of banking and tech is a challenge. According to Governor Cox, “every bank needs to be a fintech. And, every fintech needs to be a bank.” Utah is where that contradiction may be a reality. 

One specific example Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final Section is the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final rule under Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act for consumer-permissioned data sharing. Cox said, “data sharing (regulations) was driven by Utah companies” (like MX). 

We’re proud to have our headquarters in Utah as the state continues to strive to be a place for fintech innovation to flourish.