finnCap Ambition Nation Listed 50: in conversation with Alpha FX Group founder & CEO Morgan Tillbrook

After launching the Alpha FX Group in 2009, the company has challenged the status quo in its field and undergone seismic growth. Today, the group is listed on the London Stock Exchange and has a team of over 100 people. In the driving seat today, is Alpha FX Group founder & CEO Morgan Tillbrook.

The powerful FX risk management and payment solutions company is featured on the Ambition Nation Listed 50. The prestigious list, which was launched by finnCap, is a distinguished collection of leading smaller UK-listed companies that offer the best blend of growth and quality as ranked by finnCap’s equity analysis tool, The Slide Rule.

Before founding the company, Morgan Tillbrook established Poker Project Ltd,  an online poker league and social network which later formed part of Sky Poker. He then teamed up with Jonathan Currie, who now serves as Commercial Director, to create Alpha FX after identifying the opportunity for providing a high-quality foreign exchange advisory service that was different from other foreign exchange providers.

Watch the discussion with Morgan Tillbrook, founder & CEO of Alpha FX Group, here

Here’s what was covered in the conversation:

• Introduction to Alpha FX (0:45)
• The volatility of the FX market could be pretty troubling for any FD or FC. Could you tell us what sort of transactions would they need you for? (1:09)
• With your personal background, have you always been interested in those numbers, those opportunities, spotting those different savings? (1:37)
• Were there people along the way that said, “Morgan, what do you think you’re doing? You don’t know anything about it”? (1:59)
• How is Alpha FX different to the services you would get from a regular bank? (2:41)
• The company was founded mid-2009 financial crisis. Could you tell us some key turning points on the journey since then? (3:26)
• You took a big decision to list the business. Could you tell us why you chose to do that? (4:00)
• What opportunities come with being a listed company? (4:28)
• You mention that “collective ownership is a big part of our culture”. Could you explain the structure of the business and what inspired the idea? (5:12)
• Outside of the 2020 pandemic, what are the biggest challenges Alpha FX has experienced during the journey to where you are now? (6:15)
• Focusing on the pandemic now, what have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced and how you responded to themto them? (7:02)
• How do you believe your culture has evolved over time? (8:04)
• When an entrepreneur starts a business, they’ve got a blank sheet of paper. How do you go about creating a positive culture? (8:44)
• How have you seen attitudes to foreign exchange changing over the last year? (10:16)
• As there’s more of a spotlight on being environmentally friendly, how have your company’s attitudes and actions changed? (11:30)
• What do the next five years look like for AlphaFX? (12:48)
• And what do the next five years hold in store for you personally as a leader? (13:32)
• At AlphaFX, you’re in a business with a co-founder. Give us a top tip for a healthy co-founder relationship? (14:04)
• You are driving AlphaFX as a business. What would you say is driving you? (14:44)
• If you could go back to when you were starting AlphaFX and give yourself a piece of advice, what would it be? (15:37)
• If you could go back to the day you floated the business, what advice would you give yourself? (16:01)

Catch up with the rest of the interviews in the Driving Ambition series here.

finnCap advise ambitious companies and promote their stories to find the right investment for growth. They also help these companies access the growth capital that’s right for them. See the finnCap website for information.