WeMoney & female leaders shine at 2025 Finnie Awards
FinTech Australia has revealed the winners of the 2025 Finnie Awards, recognising a broad range of achievements across the country's fintech sector.
Top awards and new categories
Among the standout winners were WeMoney, which secured three awards, including FinTech Organisation of the Year. The company's recognition this year marks the first time it has clinched the top accolade at the Finnies, following three separate wins in 2024. Primary, a finance management platform, was named Emerging FinTech Organisation of the Year.
The awards also celebrated leadership within Australia's fintech community, notably with both Gaby Rosenberg from Blossom App and Anna Hawter from Lumi receiving individual honours. Rosenberg was named Emerging FinTech Leader of the Year, while Hawter took home the Outstanding FinTech Leader of the Year award. Caroline Tran from Hello Clever was presented with the Female FinTech Leader of the Year award.
This year's Finnies introduced several new categories while consolidating others. RedOwl picked up the inaugural Most Innovative Application of AI in Finance Award, and PathZero received the first-ever award for Excellence in Green FinTech and Sustainability Initiatives. Monoova figured prominently as well, winning multiple awards, including for Excellence in Industry Collaborations & Partnerships with Carsales, and Excellence in Payments alongside Sniip.
Diversity and representation recognised
Recognition of women's achievements was identified as a key trend, with this year marking another step towards greater diversity in the fintech ecosystem. Notably, three women took home top individual awards at the Finnies in 2021. Anna Hawter had previously been named Female FinTech Leader of the Year, while this year's award shifted to Caroline Tran.
Rehan D'Almeida, CEO of FinTech Australia, commented on the awards' ongoing role in the ecosystem:
"The Finnies play an important role in reflecting progress and achievement within Australia's fintech industry, and this year we've seen just that. To see WeMoney pick up multiple awards last year and now go on to win the top prize is reflective of the company's broader growth journey over the past 12 months, and sets a path for other fintechs in the industry to follow. We launched the Female Fintech Leader of the Year Award several years ago to champion equality and representation in our sector. Then in 2021, we saw three women — Katherine McConnell, Simone Joyce, and Jill Berry — take home top prizes, really driving this shift home. To see this trend continue, with both Gaby and Anna surpassing all other entries in these highly competitive categories, is another key milestone for the industry and its broader push for diversity."
This year's judging process was designed to ensure confidence and robustness, with 348 entries assessed across 21 categories. A strict two-round evaluation involved a fresh panel of judges in the final stage.
Recognition spread across the sector
The awards recognised a diverse group of companies, with honours extending to organisations including Upcover for Best Workplace Diversity, Assurance Lab for Excellence in Establishing Global Market Presence, and FrankieOne for Excellence in RegTech. Block Earner was awarded for Excellence in Web3 (Blockchain and Crypto), DAS (Digital Agriculture Services) for Excellence in InsurTech, and JustFund for Excellence in Lending.
Other winners included Fortiro for Most Innovative FinTech Product or Service, Stone & Chalk for Giving Back to the FinTech Community, Lift Women for the Positive Impact Award, and King & Wood Mallesons in the corrected category of Excellence for Provision of FinTech Support Services.
D'Almeida remarked on the changes to the awards themselves, highlighting the aim to keep them relevant:
"While we tweak the awards every year to ensure they are reflecting the ecosystem, this is the first year where we've had a much bolder overhaul -- combining categories and launching new ones. The diverse list of companies tonight receiving a Finnie is a positive sign for these changes -- also demonstrating just how tough it is to win a Finnie. This makes getting onto the finalist list a significant achievement in and of itself. So I'd also like to extend my congratulations to those companies who made it onto the shortlist."
D'Almeida also addressed the broader context for this year's winners:
"I'd also like to congratulate all of our winners for the 2025 awards. It's a fantastic milestone for your company and a hard won achievement amid the current funding and regulatory environment. We're marking ten years of operation at FinTech Australia this year, and we're thrilled to be able to continue to support the broader ecosystem and our members as we grow our local and global footprint."
The list of winners this year was wide-ranging, reflecting both the breadth and depth of development across Australia's fintech sector.
