Embedded finance firm Swan has called upon FleishmanHillard for a retained pan-European media relations brief.
Following a competitive pitch process, FleishmanHillard will lead message development and communications at a European level with the UK serving as a global and European hub for the finance and technology industries.
Swan, an emerging European leader in embedded finance whose Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform allows companies to embed banking features, is fast emerging as a serious player in the embedded finance space and was recently tipped by Business Insider as one of the most exciting European fintech startups to watch in 2023. The Paris-based fintech firm has already seen momentous growth since its inception in 2019, boasting customers such as Carrefour and Pennylane, reaching over 100 employees and processing around 400 million euros of transactions per month for almost 100 companies across 10 European countries.
The partnership will see FleishmanHillard’s fintech team develop and amplify Swan’s messaging and support with key business milestones to engage with influential European media houses. The team will coordinate and work closely with Swan’s in-market teams to create a consistent and seamless communications function across Europe with a London-based FleishmanHillard team leading the media engagement strategy and execution for titles with international reach. FleishmanHillard’s TRUE Global Intelligence (TGI) team will also deliver integrated intelligence to provide Swan with “always on” market monitoring and insights across channels.
Sarah Hanafy, CMO at Swan, commented, “FleishmanHillard’s deep understanding of our sector and strong European media relations expertise was a key factor in our decision to hire the agency. We are entering an inflexion point in the evolution of embedded finance: BaaS 2.0. The first players in the space targeted financial institutions, and while this is still an important segment, Swan is committed to embedding finance for all types of businesses and unleashing the significant benefits they stand to gain. FleishmanHillard has the knowledge and media know-how to communicate this key message for us at a pan-European level to ultimately reach our primary audiences.”
Gemma Lingham, director and head of fintech, UK at FleishmanHillard, added: “Anyone who has an eye on the fintech scene will know that embedded finance is the hottest area to watch right now. The ability for companies to embed banking features into their services via a BaaS platform is a real game changer and stands to not only improve customer experience but revenues too. Far from being a buzzword, BaaS is truly changing the way businesses operate for the better and Swan is leading the charge in this movement. Working together, we will create a communications programme that reaches the European audience and positions Swan as the most advanced partner in the space to help businesses take advantage of this lucrative opportunity.”
