Melbourne's fintech footprint grows with Stone & Chalk

Melbourne, a latecomer to fintech, is growing its strides

The fintech workplace provider is coming to Melbourne. 

Fintech co-working space provider Stone & Chalk will open shop in Melbourne in August, with the help of deep-pocketed corporate partners such as AustralianSuper and National Australia Bank.

The new Melbourne office, which will provide more than 60 desk spaces to startups, will give fintech a centre of gravity in Melbourne and discounted real estate in the city’s central business district.

Alan Tsen, head of the government-funded advocacy group Fintech Victoria, will be at the helm.

“[The Melbourne hub] will be a centre of gravity that allows residents to collide with each other, and to learn from people who have common experiences,” said Mr Tsen.

“I'm excited to further help amplify and growth the Victorian fintech ecosystem.”

While Melbourne has arrived late to the fintech party compared to rival city Sydney, it hosts some of Australia’s most successful fintechs. These include Timelio, the invoice financer. Moula, the marketplace lender. Airwallex, the digital wallet, and CoinJar, the bitcoin company.

Stone & Chalk’s entry into Melbourne, all parties involved hope, will help grow out Melbourne’s fintech footprint.

As part of the growth spurt, Stone & Chalk has also linked arms with SproutX – a so-called “agritech” startup. By partnering, the two companies hope to bring new technologies to farmers in rural Victoria.

“There is a huge but often overlooked connection between agriculture and financial services, and savvy startups are starting to take notice,” said Andrew Lai, director of SproutX