Harrington Starr

The Top 1% Workplace Awards 2026

Celebrating the organisations setting the standard for workplace excellence across financial technology.

Established in 2016 | 150+ Award Submissions Last Year | Free to Enter | Independent Industry Judges
Video Interviews Open: 22 June 2026 | Nominations Close: 9 September 2026
The Top 1% Workplace Awards 2026

Nominations Now Open!

Recognising the organisations setting the standard for workplace excellence across Financial Technology and Financial Services.

The companies that attract, develop and retain exceptional talent are the companies that thrive.

The Top 1% Workplace Awards celebrate the organisations leading the way in workplace culture, leadership, innovation, inclusion, employee experience and talent development.

As technology continues to transform the industry, the organisations that combine great people, strong leadership and innovation are setting themselves apart. This year's awards recognise those businesses and the environments they have created for their employees to succeed.

Open to organisations across the globe, the awards celebrate workplace excellence wherever it exists, recognising the companies helping shape the future of Financial Technology and Financial Services.

Now entering their tenth year, the awards have become a platform for organisations to showcase their culture, celebrate their people and gain recognition for the work they are doing to create exceptional workplaces.

Nominations are free and open to FinTech and Financial Services organisations of all sizes.

Apply Now
Recognising Excellence Across FinTech

Award Categories

With 16 categories available, you can choose the one that best reflects your company’s strengths, or nominate across multiple areas.
the-best-workplace-for-technologists-award

The Best Workplace for Technologists

Celebrating firms where technologists thrive, whether building next-gen platforms, experimenting with AI, or solving complex problems that really matter.

The Best Emerging FinTech Workplace

For start-ups and scale-ups making serious waves, think rapid innovation, fresh thinking, and a mission that challenges the status quo.
the-best-workplace-culture-award

The Best Workplace Culture

Recognising cultures that inspire, whether through mentorship, wellbeing initiatives, CSR, or career development that genuinely delivers.
team-excellence-award

Team Excellence

For teams who are unstoppable together, excelling in delivery, collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and doing it all with heart.
the-best-sales-professionals-award

The Best Workplace for Sales Professionals

This award recognises organisations that provide an exceptional environment for sales professionals to succeed, develop, and grow their careers.
talent-investment-award

The Best Workplace for Investing in Talent

For businesses that back their people through training, progression, mentorship and benefits that go far beyond the basics.
best-internal-talent-team-award

The Best Internal Talent Team

Recognising the talent teams who hire with care, combining structured process with a personal touch, inclusive job ads and human-first recruitment.
dei-champion-fintech-award

The Inclusion Champion

Recognising individual trailblazers who lead by example, creating space for all voices and turning values into visible action.
diversity-equity-inclusion-fintech-award

The Top 1% Inclusion Initiative

For initiatives that truly move the dial, such as inclusive language guides, disability support, psychological safety and menopause education.
the-top-1percent-leader-fintech-award

The Top 1% Leader of the Year

Celebrating exceptional leaders who lead with vision, care and courage, balancing commercial impact with a deep understanding of people.
the-best-workplace-for-data-and-ai-award

Best Workplace for Data and AI Professionals

For the companies giving data and AI pros room to shine, working on cutting-edge models, tools and real-world impact projects.
the-best-workplace-for-digital-assets

The Best Workplace for Digital Assets

For the pioneers shaping the digital asset space, combining innovation, inclusion and a bold vision for the future of finance.
the-best-workplace-for-product-innovation-award

The Best Workplace for Product Innovation

Celebrating companies where product innovation thrives, where teams are empowered to experiment, build bold solutions, and bring transformative ideas to life.

The Best Workplace in Payments

This award recognises payments organisations that excel in workplace culture, leadership, and talent development.
the-best-cyber-team-award

The Best Cyber Team

Celebrating cyber teams that excel in collaboration, innovation, and resilience, defending organisations against threats while driving trust and security across the business.

The Best Boutique Quant Trading Firm

This award recognises a boutique quantitative trading firm that demonstrates excellence in performance, innovation, culture, and talent development.

The Best Workplace in Trading Technology

This award recognises trading technology organisations that excel in workplace culture, leadership, and talent development.

An Independent Panel of Industry Leaders

Our judging panel brings together some of the most respected voices across FinTech and Financial Services.

With expertise spanning leadership, workplace culture, innovation, technology, talent and inclusion, every judge brings valuable insight into what exceptional organisations look like in practice.

Every nomination is reviewed independently against clear criteria, ensuring a fair, transparent and rigorous assessment process.

These are the industry leaders helping define what workplace excellence means in 2026.

How the Process Works

A step-by-step guide of the process

Submit a nomination for your own organisation or a company you believe deserves recognition.

The nomination process is quick, free and open to FinTech, Financial Technology and Financial Services organisations of all sizes.

No lengthy written submission is required at this stage.

Once you've submitted your nomination, we'll invite you to take part in a short video conversation.

It's just 15 minutes, and we'll send guidance in advance so you have time to prepare.

You'll be asked one question:

Why should your organisation win this award?

We'll also provide guidance on the areas our judges will be considering for your chosen category. This may include workplace culture, leadership, employee experience, career development, innovation, wellbeing, inclusion, onboarding, and investment in talent.

Video interviews open: 22nd June 2026
Deadline to submit: 9th September 2026

No high production needed, just your authentic voice and story.

Our panel of industry experts carefully reviews submissions across every award category.

Judges assess organisations against clear criteria including culture, leadership, innovation, inclusion, employee experience and talent development.

Finalists, highly commended organisations and winners are selected following this independent review process.

We’ll contact all entrants before the public announcement.
Winners will be revealed in the upcoming issue of The Financial Technologist: Top 1% Workplace Awards 2025.

Winners Receive:

Personalised promotional assets to share your achievement

Dedicated exposure across our platform and social channels, with over 350,000 industry followers

A featured profile in The Financial Technologist Magazine, read by over 350,000 FinTech professionals

A spotlight in our upcoming awards content campaign 


Application Deadline: 9th September

Winner announcement date: 19th October

Previous Winners & Finalists

Submit Your Nomination

Know a company that deserves recognition? Whether you're nominating your own organisation or recognising another company that is setting the benchmark for workplace excellence, we'd love to hear their story.

The Top 1% Workplace Awards celebrate the organisations leading the way across FinTech, Financial Technology and Financial Services.

Nominations are free, and the initial submission takes just a few minutes to complete.

Complete the form below to begin your nomination.

Nomination details

Which award category are you nominating this organisation for?
This is a required field
Why does this organisation deserve recognition: please tell us why this organisation deserves recognition in this category. Share any achievements, initiatives, workplace programmes, leadership examples or outcomes that make them stand out.

FAQs

Have Questions? We’ve Got Answers.

Absolutely. Many nominations come directly from organisations proud of their culture, achievements and people. We welcome self-nominations from individuals, teams and leadership groups.

The awards are open to organisations of all sizes across Financial Technology, Financial Services and the Capital Markets ecosystem.

Whether you're a FinTech, bank, trading firm, payments provider, digital asset business, market infrastructure provider or technology vendor, nominations are welcomed from companies across all global regions and markets.

No. Entry to the Top 1% Workplace Awards is completely free.

Once your nomination has been received, our team will contact you with the next steps, including details about the video interview stage.

Anyone with insight into an organisation's workplace culture and achievements can submit a nomination, including employees, leaders, colleagues, clients and partners.

Yes. Multiple nominations are welcome where organisations demonstrate excellence across workplace culture and employee experience.

All nominations are reviewed by an independent judging panel against clearly defined criteria. Finalists, highly commended organisations and winners are selected following this assessment process.

Yes. The Top 1% Workplace Awards welcomes nominations from organisations across the globe.

As workplace excellence is not limited by geography, we celebrate outstanding companies from across FinTech, Financial Services and Capital Markets, regardless of location.

Winners, finalists and highly commended organisations are featured in The Financial Technologist, a global publication reaching industry leaders across multiple international markets.

Winners will be announced in The Financial Technologist Magazine: The Top 1% Workplace Awards 2026 edition and promoted across Harrington Starr's media platforms.

The Financial Technologist is Harrington Starr's flagship industry publication, featuring insights from leading voices across FinTech, Financial Technology and Financial Services. It serves as the official publication for the Top 1% Workplace Awards and showcases the organisations helping shape the future of the industry.

Harrington Starr's magazine, The Financial Technologist, offers insights on industry trends, thought leadership, and best practices. We support professional development and foster a sense of community within the fintech sector. Through sharing knowledge and promoting discussion, we help drive the industry's growth and innovation. Our goal is to inform, inspire, and connect professionals, driving success in the financial technology field.

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