Experience Bank member, Angus Kidd, tells the story from his perspective…

As a Banking professional with 25 years International experience and originally from the North East, I was introduced to the Experience Bank in July 2018 by Peter Neal and was immediately made to feel very welcome.

Adaptive Technologies (ATS) founder Jonathan Addison had approached the Experience Bank in April 2018 for some assistance.

ATS is a North East based Fin Tech start up focussed on developing surveillance software for investment banks to use to better monitor, manage and escalate irregular activities undertaken by trading staff and/or clients.

ATS are in the process of acquiring start up funding to develop a PoC.

Irregular activities performed by employees within an Investment Bank has always been a major focus for all banking regulators. In the last few years, this has lead to billions of pounds being invested to improve banking systems to detect financial crime.

One of the main high alert topics is Insider Trading – illegal buying & selling of stocks/bonds/currencies by collusion of bank staff and clients who have access to market sensitive data to gain unfair advantage.

The Experience Bank, with its strong network, has benefited Jonathan and ATS by:

• Introducing Jonathan to me, a Banking Compliance expert at Credit Suisse, based in Poland but originally from the North East. Through my network and regular meetings; ATS have met with Financial Crime partners at PwC; the head of Trader and Electronic Communications Surveillance at Credit Suisse; the head of Compliance at an Investment Bank based in London; the head of Financial Engineering at a prominent IT vendor that develop bank surveillance applications. I was able to provide direct feedback to refine the product for the must-have features and provide input to develop a business plan and broad business advice.
  
• Introducing and arranging various meetings with Corporate Finance experts across the region to provide advice and guidance.
  
• Introduced ATS to a local Fund Manager to develop a funding proposal.
  
• Arranged meetings with various local entrepreneurs to provide advice who have been through the whole concept stage to fully operational company lifecycle.

In addition, The Experience Bank invited Jonathan and myself to a Tees Valley Business Club event to talk about the journey so far, raising the profile of ATS and demonstrating the value The Experience Bank can offer.

I have found The Experience Bank to be a unique, safe, free-to-access, network of business leaders, curated by business leaders, with the sole purpose of supporting the sustainable growth of the North East’s SMEs.