F2: Future of Fintech 2026: AI, Banking, Payments and Digital Finance

September 24, 2026 • Upcoming Events

F2: Future of Fintech 2026 brings several major financial technology questions into one program: how AI could change lending, how open banking may evolve, where blockchain and digital assets fit into financial services, and how banks can manage growing digital and cyber risks. Organized by BUG, the conference will examine how technology is changing money, financial services, and the institutions that support them.

Event overview

Event: F2: Future of Fintech 2026
Date: November 25, 2026
Location: Sveučilište Algebra Bernays, Gradišćanska 24, Zagreb, Croatia
Format: In-person and online
Programme: 7 hours
Keynotes: 2
Expert sessions and panel discussions: 12+
Organizer: BUG d.o.o.

What the conference will cover

The official event description highlights artificial intelligence in banking and lending, cryptocurrencies and blockchain, open banking, digital payments, credit and debit cards, insurtech, fintech disruption, cybercrime and financial security, and the changing role of traditional banks.

One central question for the 2026 program is whether AI will increasingly take part in credit decisions. Open banking, meanwhile, remains a major area of discussion as financial institutions and fintech companies continue rethinking how financial data and services connect.

AI and the future of banking

Artificial intelligence is expected to remain a major theme at F2. Specifically, the conference asks whether AI will approve loans, placing automated decision-making alongside broader questions about the future role of banks.

For financial institutions, the conversation extends well beyond customer-facing chatbots. AI can affect credit assessment, fraud monitoring, customer service, risk analysis, and operational processes. As a result, F2 is relevant to banks, fintech companies, and technology providers looking at how AI can be incorporated into regulated financial services.

Payments, cards, and open banking

Payments remain another core focus of the conference. F2 will examine the future of credit and debit cards, while open banking raises questions about how financial institutions, fintechs, and customers interact within an increasingly connected ecosystem.

Together, payments, account services, and open financial infrastructure create new opportunities for fintech companies developing alternative products around traditional banking services. The official F2 description places these developments alongside wider questions about who will control the financial infrastructure of the future.

Digital assets and blockchain

Cryptocurrency and blockchain are also explicitly included in the 2026 event’s scope. Rather than treating digital assets as a standalone technology story, F2 places them within the broader transformation of financial services. This creates space for discussion around blockchain infrastructure, digital assets, and how new financial technologies interact with established institutions and regulatory frameworks.

Financial cybersecurity and digital risk

The event also puts cybercrime within its fintech agenda. As more financial activity moves through digital platforms, security becomes closely connected to payments, banking infrastructure, and customer data. Consequently, for banks and fintech businesses, financial innovation increasingly has to develop alongside stronger cybersecurity and risk controls. F2’s inclusion of cybercrime alongside blockchain, banking, and fintech disruption reflects that close relationship between innovation and financial security.

What past editions looked like

F2 has a track record of bringing together financial-sector, technology, and regulatory perspectives. At the 2025 edition, for example, speakers discussed Croatia’s Fiskalizacija 2.0, artificial intelligence in banking, the digital euro, and wider fintech developments, with representatives from financial institutions and public-sector bodies also taking part.

That background provides useful context for the 2026 edition. However, the final 2026 speaker list and detailed agenda should still be treated as pending official publication.

Who should attend?

Bank and financial-services executives
Fintech founders and senior leaders
Payment companies
Digital banking and open-banking providers
Insurtech companies
Blockchain and digital-asset businesses
Cybersecurity professionals
Financial technology developers
Investors and industry professionals
Technology and financial-services decision-makers

Networking and business value

The conference offers an opportunity to connect financial-services professionals with technology companies working across banking, payments, digital assets, AI, and security. For fintech businesses specifically, the event can also provide a focused setting to understand the issues affecting financial institutions and identify potential technology, partnership, and business opportunities.

Tickets and access

F2 offers both physical attendance and online participation:

Physical attendance + recordings: €65
Online access + recordings: €65
Student ticket + recordings: €20

According to the organizer, the €65 standard tickets are priced at €52 plus VAT. Tickets can be purchased through the BUG webshop, with payment available by online banking, card, or cryptocurrency.

Event location

The conference takes place at Sveučilište Algebra Bernays, Gradišćanska 24, Zagreb.

Why it matters

The 2026 edition sits at the intersection of AI, banking, payments, digital assets, cybersecurity, and financial infrastructure. As the detailed program is released, the event page will likely be updated with confirmed speakers, session titles, and timings. For now, the official information establishes F2 as a focused fintech conference examining the technologies and business models shaping the future of money.

Official Event page: F2 – Future of Fintech

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