The world of financial technology continues to change drastically at a near-daily pace. From Apple Pay to robo-advisors, fintech has come out from behind the shadows to disrupt the established ranks of blue-chip consumer finance companies.

And seemingly everyone wants a piece of the fintech action. Companies involved in the New York Fintech Innovation Lab, a joint program run by Accenture and the Partnership Fund for New York City, have already raised $163 million in 2015 alone. Accenture-sponsored innovation labs in other cities continue to raise large amounts of money as well for fintech startups. Globally, more than $3 billion was invested in fintech during Q4 of 2014, according to data from Silicon Valley Bank. 

For more proof of fintech’s staying power, head on over to the third annual Fintech Startups Conference at Webster Hall in Manhattan, showcasing the best and brightest from the city’s very own “Silicon Alley.” The event will feature expert panel discussions on themes such as mobile payments, big data and other trending topics.

Additionally, some of the latest hot startups in the financial technology space will be providing exclusive demos to the audience. These include Moven, a digital only “branchless bank”; automated investing service Betterment; real estate data aggregator Compstak; Quiver, a provider of digital file tracking and storage; and Seedinvest, a digital equity investment platform.

The panels will also be discussing the latest trends in fintech. Of particular interest to us is a discussion on how fintech companies can best utilize APIs, not just by exposing them and hoping for the best, but how they can nurture the development community to ensure the platform becomes a success.

Another topic that whets our appetite is real estate technology. New York is one of the real estate hubs of the world: How will fintech disrupt the traditional broker-backed buy-and-sell real estate industry?

We will find out on Tuesday, so stay tuned for our updates via the Cognito Twitter account, as well as blog posts highlighting our key takeaways. One thing’s for sure: Fintech is not just about the back office anymore.

The New York Fintech Startups Conference takes place Tuesday, April 7 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Webster Hall in Manhattan.