Smart Pension picks up Digital Leadership Awards

Workplace pension provider Smart Pension has picked up two top tech awards in a global initiative aimed at rewarding effective digital transformation.

The auto enrolment platform was named FinTech Innovation of the Year, and Overall Winner at the Digital Leaders awards, which has previously picked out promising tech talent like Eileen Burbage and Mike Bracken. Previous winning tech has also included PayPal Working Capital.

Smart Pension was recognised by judges for developing the technology that has "helped to make auto enrolment affordable and accessible" for a new generation of business owners and their employees.

Smart Pension co-founder and MD Will Wynne said:

"We set out from the beginning to build intelligent digital systems capable of making auto enrolment work seamlessly for businesses while transforming the way the established pension industry works.

"As a consequence it is the fastest auto enrolment platform on the market to sign up with and advisers and employers can use it for free.

"We are now seeing a new business enrol their staff in a pension every seven minutes. We are successful because the tech we've developed means we can be highly responsive and build features to suit the needs of business. That's not the usual way to approach pensions and this award bears testament to that.

"We're delighted to have our work recognised by these important awards"

Robin Knowles, founder and CEO of Digital Leaders, said:

"Smart Pension is an outstanding company that has put tech at the heart of its business. Its work digitising pensions has helped make auto enrolment affordable and accessible to the small and micro businesses that are now having to comply with new regulations and offer a pension for the first time.  

"This is truly in the spirit of these awards, which recognise those that seek to effect positive change through digital leadership.

"We are really pleased for them - past winners have achieved bigger things since so these awards are a wonderful launch pad to the next chapter."

The annual 'DL100 Awards' recognise the achievements of digital leaders including the public sector, apps and collaborations and is led by Digital Leaders, an initiative that promotes cross-sector digital transformation through initiatives including Digital Leaders Week.

Shortlist judges included digital public sector heavyweights Cabinet Member for Finance, Technology and Growth at Camden Council Theo Blackwell, former Cabinet Office Minister Lord Francis Maude, Chief Executive of Islington Council Lesley Seary and Chief Executive of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) Oliver Morley. There were also representatives from the tech world including Maggie Philbin, CEO of Teentech and Jacqueline de Rochas, president of Tech UK.

Smart Pension finished ahead of fintech firms including the likes of Tide, Huddlestock and Monzo, which were in the same Fintech innovation category.

Smart Pension was launched in May 2015 to help provide a fast, affordable auto enrolment solution that dramatically improves the experience of hundreds of thousands of small and medium-sized businesses that must comply with new pension legislation.

Earlier this month the firm announced it had successfully completed a £15m Series B funding round.

Last year it secured investment from Europe's largest institutional asset managers, Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), and Emma Douglas, head of LGIM's defined contribution pensions business, continues to play an active role in the business as a non-executive member of the board.

Smart Pension has been recognised by its innovative and highly automated platform, as well as Master Trust Assurance Framework accreditation (MAF) and it is a featured provider on TPR's website.