A recently launched fintech consortium in Greater Sacramento is already generating partnerships between local technology providers and financial institutions.

The Fintech Consortium Governance Committee is a cluster of technology companies and financial institutions that promotes collaboration and idea sharing within Sacramento’s financial services ecosystem, according to panelists during a webinar hosted by the Greater Sacramento Economic Council Wednesday. The consortium, launched six weeks ago, includes top executives from JP Morgan Chase, U.S. Bank, Bank of America and Golden 1 Credit Union, among others.

“With more than 50 fintech companies that we already know of in the region, and nearly 60 financial institutions operating in our region, we have an opportunity to leverage our collective research, market intelligence and insights to really make a difference,” said Dave Roughton, CEO of SAFE Credit Union. “Banks, credit unions and fintech companies are all interconnected … The fact is, we have common interests — to advance data security, data management and analysis, automation, online banking, mobile banking, open banking solutions, banking as a service — there’s just a myriad of ways I think the marketplace is demanding us to move forward, and we have an opportunity to do that through this consortium.”

SAFE Credit Union, which has $3.5 billion of assets and 240,000 members, has already inked partnerships with a couple of fintechs in the consortium.

The credit union has partnered with Zennify, a Salesforce consultancy firm for financial services, to implement and deploy the Salesforce’s marketing cloud across the organization. For wealth management, Safe uses various tools from data and analytics firm Riskalyze to help consumers and business owners understand and evaluate their risk tolerance as they manage their financial resources, Roughton added.

Meanwhile Suncrest Bank, which is a commercial lending institution with $1.3 billion of assets, is leveraging the Sacramento network to tap new markets.

“We’re working with, in the latter stages, a local fintech partner that will help us add a completely new revenue stream by helping us acquire customers outside of our natural geographic footprint,” said Ciaran McMullan, president and CEO of Suncrest. He declined to name the fintech and specific details of the deal, but noted it should finalize by yearend.

Looking ahead, artificial intelligence and machine learning will be a focus of the consortium, according to Barry Broome, who heads up the consortium. He is the president and CEO of the Greater Sacramento Economic Council.

“There’s a tremendous array of opportunities for locally-based fintechs to work with locally based banks and credit unions,” said Suncrest’s McMullan. “The receptivity of local banks and credit unions and our regulators to promote and connect with and work with fintechs, not [only] improves our own business models, but helps to create economic opportunity for the region.”

Bank Innovation Build, which takes place Sept. 9-10 as a virtual experience, is a must-attend industry event for professionals overseeing financial technologies, product experiences and services. Register here.