Financial Technology Partners
Financial Technology Partners (FT Partners) is a San Francisco-based, privately held investment banking boutique exclusively serving the financial technology sector. Founded in 2003 by former Goldman Sachs banker Steve McLaughlin, the firm provides M&A advisory, private capital financing, and IPO advisory to FinTech companies across payments, banking, lending, insurance, wealth management, and digital assets from offices in San Francisco, New York, Miami, and London.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2001
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Financial Technology Partners does
Financial Technology Partners (FT Partners) is a privately held investment banking boutique headquartered in San Francisco that operates exclusively in the financial technology sector. Founded in 2003 by Steve McLaughlin, formerly a senior investment banker in Goldman Sachs' Financial Technology Group and Financial Institutions Group, the firm delivers strategic and financial advisory services - including M&A advisory, private capital financing, and IPO advisory - to FinTech companies spanning payments, banking, lending, insurance, wealth management, and blockchain. FT Partners' senior bankers are all alumni of Goldman Sachs' FinTech, M&A, and investment banking groups across New York, San Francisco, London, and Los Angeles, and the firm positions itself as the only investment bank entirely dedicated to FinTech.
The firm monetizes through advisory fees on completed transactions, supported by regulated broker-dealer entities (FTP Securities LLC, FINRA/SIPC member, for US securities activity, and FinTech Partners Ltd, an FCA Appointed Representative in the UK). Its distribution is direct and relationship-led: senior bankers engage CEOs, founders, and boards of FinTech companies on strategic alternatives, with marketing amplified through proprietary research publications (monthly CEO market updates, the FinTech Almanac, executive interviews, and VIP video conferences) and co-authored thought leadership such as the Global FinTech Report with Boston Consulting Group.
FT Partners operates from four offices - San Francisco (headquarters), New York, Miami (opened 2022), and London - and has advised on hundreds of transactions across its history, including recent marquee deals such as the $4.2B sale of Equiniti to Bullish, $4.3B sale of Deribit to Coinbase, $1.25B sale of Hidden Road to Ripple, $4.5B sale of Heartland to Global Payments, and IPO co-management roles for Accelerant ($724M) and PicPay (NASDAQ: PICS). The firm has received numerous industry awards, including "Dealmaker of the Year" and "Investment Banking Firm of the Year" from The M&A Advisor, with founder Steve McLaughlin consistently ranked #1 Most Influential in FinTech by Institutional Investor's FinTech Finance 40.
Financial Technology Partners firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Financial Technology Partners
- Legal name
- Financial Technology Partners LP
- Website
- http://www.ftpartners.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2001
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Financial Technology Partners (FT Partners) is a San Francisco-based, privately held investment banking boutique exclusively serving the financial technology sector. Founded in 2003 by former Goldman Sachs banker Steve McLaughlin, the firm provides M&A advisory, private capital financing, and IPO advisory to FinTech companies across payments, banking, lending, insurance, wealth management, and digital assets from offices in San Francisco, New York, Miami, and London.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Financial Technology Partners industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Investment Banking — FinTech Sector
- NAICS
- Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage (5231), Other Financial Investment Activities (5239)
- SIC
- Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Fintech & Payments Partner / ISO Referral Networks (FSAEAMAK)
Keywords
Where Financial Technology Partners is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Financial Technology Partners business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Investment Banking Advisory: Provides strategic and financial advisory services to FinTech companies for M&A transactions, private capital financings, IPOs, and other capital markets activities. Revenue is generated through advisory fees on completed transactions.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Financial Technology Partners product offering
Product offeringCore offering
FT Partners is a specialist investment banking firm that delivers strategic and financial advisory services exclusively to companies in the financial technology sector. Its core work covers sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory, private capital financing advisory (venture, growth equity, and debt), and IPO advisory and co-management. The firm supports these engagements with proprietary FinTech research, monthly sector market updates, and the annual Global FinTech Report co-authored with BCG.
Product overview
Financial Technology Partners (FT Partners) is the only investment banking firm focused exclusively on the financial technology sector. The firm provides a comprehensive suite of strategic and financial advisory services for FinTech companies, including M&A advisory, private capital financing advisory, and IPO advisory/co-management. Rather than offering a unified software platform, FT Partners delivers expert investment banking services tailored to the FinTech industry. The firm's offerings include deal advisory across hundreds of completed transactions, proprietary FinTech market research and strategic insights reports, monthly CEO market update reports covering sector-specific public company comparables and deal activity, executive interviews and VIP video conferences, and co-authored annual industry reports such as the Global FinTech Report with BCG. The advisory services are organized around transaction types (M&A, financing, IPO) rather than modular software products.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- M&A Advisory Mergers and acquisitions advisory services for FinTech companies, including sell-side sale processes, buy-side acquisitions, divestitures, and strategic alternatives, representing both private and public companies across payments, banking, lending, insurance, wealth management, and blockchain.
- Capital Financing Advisory Advisory services for FinTech companies raising private capital, including venture financings, growth equity rounds, strategic investments, and debt financings across all stages from Series A through pre-IPO rounds.
- IPO Advisory and Co-Management Initial public offering advisory and co-management services for FinTech companies seeking public market access, including recent IPO co-management roles for PicPay (NASDAQ: PICS) and Accelerant ($724 million IPO).
- Global FinTech Report Annual comprehensive report co-authored with BCG analyzing the global FinTech landscape, trends, market data, and sector outlook, drawing on FT Partners' proprietary FinTech transaction database and BCG's FinTech Control Tower platform and primary research.
- FinTech Strategic Insights Reports In-depth strategic insights reports covering FinTech market trends, sector analysis, and industry research published regularly by FT Partners for FinTech CEOs and executives.
- Monthly CEO Market Update & Analysis Reports Monthly sector-specific reports including public company comparables, recent financing and M&A transactions, industry conference information, and CEO market updates distributed to FinTech executive subscribers.
- VIP Executive Conferences and CEO Interviews Exclusive VIP video conferences and executive interviews featuring FinTech CEOs and executives discussing industry trends and insights on topics including Tokenization of Real World Assets, Blockchain Economy, Women in FinTech, and Stablecoins.
Companies that use Financial Technology Partners
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Financial Technology Partners technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Financial Technology Partners partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Boston Consulting Group (BCG)coreFT Partners co-authors the annual Global FinTech Report with BCG, drawing on FT Partners' deep industry knowledge and proprietary FinTech database, and BCG's FinTech Control Tower platform and extensive primary research.
- Blue Dot InvestorscoreFT Partners co-authored The Coming FinTech Liquidity Supercycle report with Blue Dot Investors, curating a definitive list of top 100 largest private FinTech companies by valuation.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Financial Technology Partners competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Financial Technology Partners social profiles
Digital presenceFinancial Technology Partners compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Financial Technology Partners financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Financial Technology Partners leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Financial Technology Partners subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Financial Technology Partners funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Financial Technology Partners M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments8 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Financial Technology Partners
What does Financial Technology Partners do?
FT Partners is a specialist investment banking firm that delivers strategic and financial advisory services exclusively to companies in the financial technology sector. Its core work covers sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory, private capital financing advisory (venture, growth equity, and debt), and IPO advisory and co-management. The firm supports these engagements with proprietary FinTech research, monthly sector market updates, and the annual Global FinTech Report co-authored with BCG.
Is Financial Technology Partners a public or private company?
Financial Technology Partners is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Financial Technology Partners founded?
Financial Technology Partners was founded in 2001. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Financial Technology Partners based?
Financial Technology Partners is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Financial Technology Partners make money?
One revenue line is on record: investment Banking Advisory.
Does Financial Technology Partners have an API?
No public API is recorded for Financial Technology Partners.
What industry is Financial Technology Partners in?
Financial Technology Partners's product category is Investment Banking — FinTech Sector. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAEAMAK, Fintech & Payments Partner / ISO Referral Networks. Its NAICS code is 5231 and its SIC code is 6211.