Florida FinTech Moves HQ To Alabama Following Local Investment

Allison, a low-code visual API startup connecting community banks and FinTechs, is moving to Birmingham, Alabama following an investment from the Alabama Futures Fund (AFF)

The move, announced this week, is strategic for the banking-as-a-service startup. Brian Alvarez-Bailey, Allison’s CEO, started the company while living in Tampa. After receiving a “significant investment” from AFF, he is relocating to Birmingham and told Hypepotamus that he is ramping up hiring plans within the local university scene and the startup ecosystem already in place in the city.

Details of the investment from AFF were not disclosed, though the company called it a “key strategic move” in a recent blog post. 

“The biggest factor for me [moving] was the support we would get from AFF and Birmingham as a whole. With a deep and rich history, Birmingham is anchored in the idea of supporting Black and underrepresented founders. Mayor Randall Woodfin came to our first visit reception party. That gesture spoke volumes to me about where the city is headed. I was sold from that moment,” Alvarez-Bailey told Hypepotamus.

As the team grows from within the Magic City, Alvarez-Bailey said that Allison will maintain a presence in Tampa and will also open up operations in Austin.

 

Moving & Shaking In Birmingham

Allison joins a growing number of startups regionally and nationally that have relocated to Birmingham over the last several years.

Startups like HealNow from New York, Prepaid2Cash from San Francisco, Case Status from Atlanta, Stroma from Istanbul, and The Office Exchange from Denver have moved directly because of an investment from the Alabama Futures Fund, a Birmingham-based seed-stage venture capital fund.

Since launching in 2018, Alabama Futures Fund has invested in 17 startups

Some startups have relocated due to efforts by the non-profit Birmingham Bound or after going through Techstars Alabama, an EnergyTech-specific accelerator in town that spurred the building of the B.HOME Startup House in town. Others, like SportAI, were drawn to relocate to Birmingham through work going on at the Innovation Depot, a technology and startup hub in the city. 

As for the startup Allison, Alvarez-Bailey said the team is focused on nation-wide growth. 

Hypepotamus last covered Allison in August of 2022 as the startup was gaining traction in Florida. Following the AFF investment news, we asked Alvarez-Bailey to tell us how the banking-as-a-service platform has evolved. He told us that “given the increased focus on banking, nationally, we’ve centered our product around the notion that we want our community bank and credit union partners to offer their customers the safest and most secure financial experiences possible. We aren’t providing a panacea, but we are providing peace of mind.”