A Birmingham-based mobile payment provider was crowned a double winner at the
PM Connect was named both FinTech and Global Challenger Business of the Year at the annual awards last night which are run by our sister websites BirminghamLive and CoventryLive (see gallery of the winners below).
The Longbridge-based company launched in 2012 and its technology allows consumers to pay for lifestyle and sport content, videos and articles through carrier billing, adding any purchases directly to their phone bill.
Its clients include WWE, the NBA and former rugby star James Haskell and it operates in domestic and global markets including Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
The judging panel praised the firm's commitment to sustained investment in technology, its focus on establishing a strong position in a growing market for mobile payments and executing its business plan well.
Group commercial director Chris Purdie said: "PM Connect is incredibly proud of this double win.
"The two awards are thanks to the hard work of the entire team and it's fantastic to be recognised for driving tech innovation and international success.
"This rounds off a year of record growth, increasing our headcount by 48 per cent, doubling our Longbridge office space and recruiting a new chief technical officer as we expanded into new markets and signed more deals with global carriers and brands.
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"We are committed to driving tech success in the West Midlands region - attracting and retaining talent, pioneering best practice and putting the city on the map for our international clients."
Other winners at the awards included joint honours for Coventry University and School of Code in the Innovation in Education category while Sarah Dowzell, co-founder of Natural HR, was crowned our West Midlands Woman in Tech.
She launched the business with her husband Jason after identifying a need for a HR system when running her own cleaning business ten years ago.
The West Midlands Tech Awards, which again welcomed NatWest as headline sponsor, celebrated tech and digital innovation across nine categories.
Read the full 2019 West Midlands Tech Awards shortlist here
Marc Reeves, editor-in-chief of BusinessLive publisher Reach Midlands, said: "It was wonderful to receive so many applications from such a broad range of sectors and individuals this year so congratulations to all of our winners who stood out from a strong set of entries.
"And special recognition must go to our double winner PM Connect which continues to strengthen its presence in the mobile payment market and is showing strong signs of international growth.
"As the business community continues to battle the economic and political uncertainty which dominate the headlines, it's heartening to know this region is leading the way in the tech and digital sector."
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The awards were held at the ICC and hosted by Gadget Show presenter and tech journalist Georgie Barrat.
The full list of winners at the West Midlands Tech Awards 2019 is below and click through here to read their profiles:
Digital Start-up of the Year, sponsored by CoventryLive
Fluence World
Digital Development team of the Year, sponsored by The Development Manager
Delta Financial Systems
PropTech Business of the Year, sponsored by BirminghamLive
Colonel Duck Productions
Innovation in Education Award, sponsored by ICC
Joint winners - Coventry University and School of Code
Young Tech Talent, sponsored by Severn Trent
Joint winners - Becki Hemming, Freestyle, and Raj Patel, Vanti
Highly Commended - Camran Khan, brightLET, Lyndsey Miles, Delta Financial Systems, and Josh Turbill, McDonald Butler
West Midlands Woman in Tech, sponsored by BusinessLive
Sarah Dowzell, NaturalHR
Scale Up Business of the Year, sponsored by NatWest
CrowdProperty
FinTech Business of the Year, sponsored by Bruntwood SciTech
PM Connect
Global Challenger Business of the Year, sponsored by Mills & Reeve
PM Connect