Istanbul Fintech Week, Türkiye’s first and largest global financial technology event, will open its doors at Hilton Istanbul Maslak on October 5-7, 2026. Applications are underway for the fourth edition of the Pioneers of Digital Finance Awards, organized in partnership with KPMG Türkiye as part of the event. The program, which launched in 2023 with the participation of the Presidency Finance Office by honoring seven institutions, has since received more than 100 applications and brought over 20 banks and fintechs to the stage.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 18
Banks and fintechs developing a new financial technology solution, digital banking service, or financial inclusion initiative can complete their applications at istanbulfintechweek.com/awards. The final application deadline for this year’s Pioneers of Digital Finance Awards has been set as September 18.
CENTRAL BANKS IN THE ROOM TOO
Organized with contributions from BEX Digital Wallet, this year’s supporters of Istanbul Fintech Week 2026 also include TÖDEB and Invest in Türkiye. The participation of representatives from the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye as well as central banks from around the world takes the awards ceremony beyond a mere industry gathering.
WHAT DO WINNERS RECEIVE?
Brands deemed worthy of an award under the Pioneers of Digital Finance Awards will be announced at a ceremony to be held at Hilton Istanbul Maslak on October 6, 2026, in front of thousands of industry professionals. Award-winning projects will receive an award bearing the KPMG name and gain the opportunity to share their story with a wide audience and access the region’s strongest fintech network.
This year’s program at Istanbul Fintech Week, which brings together fintech ecosystems across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, is structured around the themes of sustainable finance, AI in finance, payments, digital banking, digital assets — tokenization and stablecoins — and a leadership forum.
EIGHT CATEGORIES, TWO SEPARATE COMPETITIONS
On the banking side, there are four award categories. Institutions that pave the way and set direction in digital banking compete in the Pioneer category; those placing AI and other emerging technologies at the center of their products compete in Visionary; those growing alongside the ecosystem through APIs and fintech partnerships compete in Collaborative; and projects that bring financial services to broader audiences are evaluated in the Financial Inclusion category.
There are also four award categories on the fintech side. Companies that originated in Türkiye and have grown beyond its borders compete in Global Fintech; startups no more than three years old compete in Emerging Fintech; those bringing genuine innovation to the market compete in Innovative Fintech; and those expanding financial inclusion compete in the Financial Inclusion category.
LEADING INDUSTRY FIGURES ON THE JURY
The 2026 jury is made up of leading figures from both the banking and fintech sides of the industry, with the panel expanded this year. Two separate juries, convened for banks and fintechs respectively, evaluate each submitted project directly. Every application is scored using a 100-point framework consisting of common and category-specific questions, with the top three finalists determined in each category. Applying does not only mean a chance at an award — it also means having the project reviewed by these industry figures.
COLENDI AND TARFIN HAVE TAKEN THE STAGE TOO
In previous years, Pioneers of Digital Finance award winners on the banking side have included Türkiye İş Bankası, Akbank, Kuveyt Türk, Fibabanka and QNB Finansbank. On the fintech side, companies that have expanded abroad such as Colendi, Sipay and United Payment have taken the stage, alongside Tarfin, Cenoa, FaturaLab, TeamSec, Mall IQ, AIATUS, GTech and Garanti BBVA Kripto.
The fact that winners have also included teams still in their growth stage shows that the award is not limited to a single scale of company.
Istanbul Fintech Week Co-Founder Demet Zübeyiroğlu commented on the program: “When I look at this list, what I see isn’t a scoreboard — it’s a trajectory. Some of the names we’ve seen on stage were startups nobody knew a few years ago. A team that applies gets to present its project to a table made up of the industry’s most senior figures — even if they don’t win the award.”
KPMG Türkiye Fintech and Digital Finance Leader Sinem Cantürk commented on the evaluation process: “For four years, we’ve been asking the same question: what has really changed in this sector? What we see when reading the applications isn’t a list of technologies — it’s the story of teams that have grown their business. That’s also why we expanded the jury this year — more perspectives means a more accurate evaluation.”
