hack-it! The New Era of Banking – SpringboardLabs’ Inaugural Hackathon Event

The hackathon opened with inspiring keynote talks that provided deep insights into fintech innovation trends. Experts in banking and technology discussed the rapidly evolving landscape, highlighting both the opportunities and obstacles of digital disruption. These sessions sparked creative thinking and laid the foundation for participants to develop AI-powered banking solutions designed to transform the financial services industry.

Day one was dedicated to ideation and collaboration. With expert guidance and insight from keynote sessions, teams began building prototypes tackling core issues in banking—such as fraud detection using AI, improving customer service with automation, and enhancing banking cybersecurity.

One major differentiator of hack-it! was the strong fintech mentorship provided. Participants had access to experts in banking, artificial intelligence, and product development who offered real-time guidance and feedback. This hands-on support enabled teams to overcome technical hurdles and fine-tune their concepts to ensure real-world viability.

After 24 hours of intense brainstorming and development, participants showcased their AI-driven financial solutions to a distinguished panel of judges. Each pitch was evaluated across several criteria, ensuring that each solution not only demonstrated Innovation & Creativity (25%) and Technical Execution (20%) but also addressed real-world challenges. The judging panel assessed factors such as Feasibility & Relevance (20%), Impact & Sustainability (20%), and Presentation & Communication (15%) to identify the most viable and transformative ideas for the future of banking.

As the event concluded, the results of hack-it! The New Era of Banking was met with excitement. The winning fintech solutions demonstrated creativity, practicality, and potential to create real change in the banking industry.

Loan Wolves received ₱10,000 worth of prizes for Kita Kita, an AI-powered app that simplifies personal finance by helping users track expenses, budget smarter, and make informed investment decisions.

Dash 2 won first place and ₱25,000 worth of prizes for their project Dash Guard, an AI-powered platform that detects and blocks scam messages in real-time, preventing fraud before it occurs.

Pandas earned ₱15,000 worth of prizes for GaBank, a comprehensive digital banking solution that combines budgeting, saving, and financial education into a smart wallet powered by AI.

While these teams emerged as top performers, the event was about more than just winning. It was about exploring the immense potential of AI and emerging technologies to innovate and disrupt the financial industry.

The success of hack-it! The New Era of Banking was made possible through the incredible support of our partners, sponsors, and community. Robinsons Offices provided a dynamic and collaborative venue, while Orange & Bronze contributed their technical expertise through mentorship, ensuring teams had the guidance they needed. Springboard Philippines, the driving force behind SpringboardLabs, coordinated every aspect of the hackathon to ensure a seamless experience for all participants.

The event was powered by generous sponsors who played key roles in its success. work.able by Robinsons Land Corporation hosted the venue, Draft Coffee by Lew’s kept participants energized, and KORSA Pitstop Cafe offered exciting prizes for the winners. Industry players like Complink, SyncTalents, PSIA, ScaleUp Solutions, and Predictive Systems also contributed valuable resources and support, enhancing the overall event experience.

Dedicated community partners further enriched the hackathon, offering their networks, resources, and technical guidance. Groups such as Github Campus Experts, Gen AI Philippines, The Programmers Guild – PUP, KakaComputer, Flutterflow Developer Group Manila, Animo Labs, Open Verse, and Google Developer Group UP Manila ensured that the event was not only inspiring but also impactful.

The speakers of hack-it! shared invaluable knowledge with participants. Calen Legaspi (Orange & Bronze) discussed “Keynote: Why is Fintech Hard?”, Krizanne Ty (JIA Financing, Inc.) explored “Unlocking Business Growth in Emerging Markets”, and Armielyn Obinguar (TARS AI) delved into “Agentic Reasoning for LLMs.” Their expert talks provided valuable perspectives on fintech challenges, business growth, and AI technologies.

The mentors played an equally vital role in guiding participants to create innovative fintech solutions. Armielyn Obinguar (TARS AI), Arjay Rosel (Gen AI Philippines), Kevin Lee (ScaleUp Solutions), Calen Legaspi (Orange & Bronze), Paul Amerigo Pajo (Cybots), Ritz Chu (Labsky), Joshua Bumanlag (ING Hubs), Jentz Rabacio, and Jake Go (Springboard Philippines) all shared their expertise in AI, development, and product design, ensuring teams had the knowledge and support they needed.

The judges also contributed their industry expertise to evaluate and assess the participants’ solutions. Georwin Ng (Maharlika Investment Fund), Miguel Fermin (White Cloak Technologies, Inc.), Ernest Pascual (BBDO Guerrero), and Mel Nava (1Export) provided valuable insights from their backgrounds in investment, technology, and creative strategy, helping to select the most innovative and impactful fintech solutions.

The inaugural hack-it! The New Era of Banking set a strong precedent for future hackathons. It showed that with the right mentorship and resources, young innovators can craft powerful solutions to real-world challenges in the banking sector.

Building on this momentum, SpringboardLabs plans to grow the hack-it! series—diving deeper into fintech and opening more doors for participants to showcase their creativity. Each event we will explore other industries in the future, not just finance, aiming to spark solutions that drive meaningful change.

SpringboardLabs is already planning the next chapter of hack-it!. With the success of The New Era of Banking, future events will continue exploring how AI and fintech can solve real-world problems—not just in banking, but across other industries as well.

The hackathon reaffirmed SpringboardLabs’ mission to empower the next generation of digital banking innovators. As banking technology trends evolve, platforms like hack-it! will be instrumental in building a future-ready financial ecosystem.

In line with this vision, Springboard Philippines is dedicated to helping businesses navigate the evolving digital landscape with tailored solutions in product development, digital strategy, and innovation. Our team collaborates with clients to build scalable, future-ready products that drive success.

Whether you’re a developer, student, or business, Springboard Philippines offers exciting opportunities to engage with the evolving digital landscape. Be on the lookout for the next chapter of hack-it! to showcase your skills, or partner with us for AI solutions to drive innovation within your organization.

Contact Springboard today to unlock the full potential of your business.