A two-day B2B festival in Oradea, Romania, connecting banks, fintechs, regulators, technology providers, and investors from Central and Eastern Europe and beyond to advance financial innovation, regulatory dialogue, and cross-border collaboration.
UNCHAIN Fintech Festival is an annual two-day B2B festival held at Oradea Fortress in western Romania, gathering financial institutions, regulators, fintech founders, technology providers, and investors from Central and Eastern Europe. The festival format combines conference programming with pitching competitions, startup showcases, and structured networking. Its geographic focus positions it as a dedicated venue for CEE-specific regulatory, banking, and financial innovation dialogue.
UNCHAIN Fintech Festival addresses a gap in the European fintech calendar: a focused, regionally grounded gathering for decision-makers operating in Central and Eastern European markets. With representation from 40+ countries according to the organiser, the event brings together parties whose daily work intersects around cross-border payments, embedded finance, banking transformation, and evolving EU regulatory frameworks. The festival setting, held within a historic fortress, is intended to support informal interaction alongside structured programming, including closed-circle high-level sessions and a Startup Tournament that gives early-stage companies structured access to investors and financial institutions.
The 2026 edition lists sponsors across banking, payments, technology, and professional services. Named sponsors include Visa, Raiffeisen Bank Romania, BRD Groupe Société Générale, Banca Transilvania, Payten Romania, Garanti BBVA, Worldline, Amazon Web Services, TSYS, Global Payments, BLIK, and SurePay, among others. Additional sponsors include fme Romania, Profile Software, Axe Finance, Finshape, Namirial, CMS Cameron McKenna, VeritaHR, Digital Systems, SIBS Romania, Noda.live, FORT, Imobiliare.ro Finance, RebelDot, and Hellas Direct.
Official media partners are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
Note: Only a single documented edition is available in the verified data. Prior editions are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
| Attendees | 800 (organiser figure) |
| Countries represented | 40+ (organiser figure) |
| Duration | 2 days |
| Format | Festival (B2B) |
| Venue | Oradea Fortress, Romania |
The festival is specifically structured around Central and Eastern European financial markets. Rather than a broad pan-European programme, it focuses on the regulatory, infrastructure, and cross-border challenges that are particular to CEE jurisdictions. The festival format, including closed-circle sessions and a Startup Tournament, is designed to facilitate deals and regulatory conversations rather than broadcast-style keynotes alone.
Yes, to a degree. Speakers and sponsors include global institutions such as Visa, Worldline, Amazon Web Services, and TSYS, and the organiser reports representation from 40+ countries. However, the programme's primary framing is CEE-centric, which means participants without business interests or partnerships in the region may find the content less directly applicable.
Early-stage fintech companies can apply for a dedicated Startup pass at discounted rates. The Startup Tournament provides a structured pitching format with access to investors and senior bank executives. Demo zones allow product demonstrations to a qualified audience. Specific criteria and application timelines are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
Oradea Fortress, known in Romanian as Cetatea Oradea, is a historic fortification located in Oradea in the Bihor county of western Romania, close to the Hungarian border. The venue address is Piata Emanuil Gojdu 41, Oradea. The fortress has undergone restoration work in recent years and is used for cultural and public events. Its unconventional character relative to standard conference centres reflects the festival positioning of the event. Specific capacity and technical infrastructure details for the 2026 edition are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
UNCHAIN MEDIA SRL is a Romanian event production agency founded in 2022 and headquartered in Brasov, Romania. The company employs between 2 and 10 people and specialises in fintech and financial technology conferences for Central and Eastern Europe. It produces the annual UNCHAIN Fintech Festival as its primary event. No other events are publicly listed in verified data.
Given its size and single-event focus, the organisation operates as a specialist producer for CEE fintech audiences rather than as a large multi-vertical events group. Its LinkedIn presence is maintained under the festival brand at the address listed in the Resources section.
UNCHAIN Fintech Festival occupies a specific and underserved position on the European fintech calendar: a CEE-focused gathering that brings regulators, banks, and fintechs into the same room in a format that prioritises direct dialogue over broadcast programming, held in a region where EU financial regulation and local market dynamics are creating genuine operational urgency.
Registration is open to all qualified attendees via the official ticketing page. Three pass categories are available. The standard Delegate pass, the VIP pass (which includes additional perks, selected merchandise, and access to private invite-only events), and the Startup pass (for early-stage fintech companies, application-based with discounted rates available) are all listed on the website. Specific pricing for each tier is not publicly disclosed as of verification. The early-bird deadline is not publicly disclosed as of verification.
UNCHAIN Fintech Festival supports structured networking through a B2B matchmaking tool and advance meeting scheduling, allowing attendees to identify and book meetings with other participants before the event. An official festival app is available to support scheduling and communication on-site. Replay access to sessions is not available. The organiser publishes a newsletter on an ad-hoc basis for updates related to the festival and related topics.
The call for papers for the 2026 edition is open. Submissions are invited for panel and roundtable proposals on fintech innovation topics. The submission URL and deadline are not publicly disclosed as of verification. Prospective speakers and session facilitators are advised to check the official website for submission details.
An awards programme is organised as part of the festival. Award category names, eligibility criteria, submission URL, and deadline are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
Oradea is located in western Romania near the Hungarian border, approximately 150 kilometres from Cluj-Napoca and accessible by road and rail. Oradea International Airport (OMR) serves the city with connections to several European destinations. Attendees travelling from Western Europe may also route through Budapest or Cluj-Napoca airports. Specific travel guidance for the 2026 edition is not publicly disclosed as of verification.
Yes, the official language of UNCHAIN Fintech Festival is English.
Startup passes are application-based and intended for early-stage fintech companies. Applications and eligibility criteria are managed through the official ticketing page. Specific application requirements and timelines are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
| Official website | https://unchainfestival.com/ |
| Register | https://unchainfestival.com/tickets/ |
| https://www.linkedin.com/company/unchain-festival/ | |
| Twitter / X | @UnchainF |
| Organiser website | https://unchain.media/ |
| Programme | not disclosed |