The Innovators Awards

Innovations will be honored in the following areas:

• The Most Innovative Financial Institutions and the Most Innovative Financial Technology Companies globally. Entries Encouraged But Not Required

• The Most Innovative Financial Institutions and the Most Innovative Financial Technology Companies in the following regions: Africa, Asia- Pacific, Central & Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, North America and Western Europe. Entries Required

• Global Top Financial Innovations – the past year’s groundbreaking financial industry developments worldwide. Entries Encouraged But Not Required

• Regional Top Financial Innovations in the following regions: Africa, Asia- Pacific, Central & Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, North America and Western Europe. Categories for consideration may include, but are not limited to: disruptive technologies, e.g., AI and blockchain, open banking initiatives, user experience and value propositions, sustainable finance, financial inclusion, regtech, corporate treasury innovation, payments, fraud protection, and cybersecurity. Entries Required

• The Best Financial Innovation Labs around the world—a separate call for entries is available at GFMag.com. Entries Encouraged But Not Required

In some cases, entries are required for consideration, as indicated above. Even in cases where entries are not required, Global Finance encourages submissions from banks, technology providers and non-bank financial entities. Entries are particularly helpful for evaluating innovations, which by their nature are new and less well understood than established products and services. In addition, entries also increase the chance of success because they are often able to present information and perspectives that may not be readily available to the editors of Global Finance. There is no entry fee to participate.

Global Finance’s awards and recognition programs are the trusted standard of excellence for the financial industry. They are backed by a 39-year history of editorial accuracy and integrity. Global Finance’s corporate and financial audience depends on these awards because they are credible, reliable and have stood the test of time.

In past years, Innovator honorees have been celebrated at awards ceremonies held in New York, London, and Dubai. The 2026 event is still in the planning stage and all winners will be notified on the details as soon as possible.

Entry Preparation

Global Finance invites entrants to make their case by citing specific innovations and describing the culture or process by which they support breakthrough thinking and new solutions. Specific innovations could fall into any of the four categories of innovation as defined by the OECD’s Oslo criteria: Product Innovation (a good or service that is new or significantly improved), Process Innovation (a new or significantly improved production or delivery method), Marketing Innovation (a new marketing method involving significant changes in product design or packaging, product placement, product promotion or pricing) or Organizational Innovation (a new or better approach to business practices, workplace organization or external relations).

If your organization has a trailblazing innovation to nominate for consideration, or another organization to recommend for inclusion, please respond succinctly to the following questions. Each organization or division should make a single submission, describing all of its latest innovations, as appropriate.

Please include the contact information requested below so that your submission is processed properly.

• Name of Organization (exactly as it should to appear on awards-related announcements)

• Submission Contact: Name/Title/Email/Telephone

• Communications/Marketing Contact: Name/Title/Email/Telephone

Please provide the following details for EACH innovative product/service/program separately.

1. Name of Innovation

2. Date of launch or implementation 

3. An innovation must be new in some way, a first. In a single sentence that uses the word “first,” describe how this innovation is new and in what context. 

4. Did the innovation arise through work with an innovation lab, hub or accelerator? 

5. Additional details supporting the above statement. How does this disrupt the status quo? What problem does it solve? Does it challenge existing models and incumbents, offering new solutions or approaches to old problems? Does it leverage emerging technologies in a novel and impactful way?  Does it simplify financial processes, save time and money, and offer a better user experience? Does it cater to individual needs and preferences, offering customized products and services? 

6. The story behind the innovation. How did the idea come up? What was the inspiration? What adjustments were made along the way? How did the organization deploy resources or structure workflow to support this project? Which departments were involved? What clients or partners were involved? 

7. Idea champions (if applicable) – Were there individuals in the organization who played key roles in shepherding the project through? 

8. Please repeat steps 1 through 7 for each individual innovation. 

Global Finance maintains best journalistic practices to protect the confidentiality of information supplied. Any information provided that is not appropriate for the public domain should be clearly identified in a separate section of the entry.