NINE financial technology (fintech) companies have been selected for the sixth annual FinTech Innovation Lab Asia-Pacific, a 12-week mentorship programme created by Accenture.
This year’s programme set a record for applications, with submissions from more than 170 companies. The tremendous interest underscores expectations of growing demand from financial services firms for digital solutions to streamline their businesses, keep costs in check, and launch innovative products to boost their bottom line.
Leveraging on AI, RegTech, blockchain and other technologies, the nine selected startups have developed innovations addressing financial education and planning, corporate banking and other key areas.
The solutions are designed to help financial institutions address a variety of challenges, from keeping up with compliance requirements and analysing large volumes of structured and unstructured data to building more-personalised customer products and services. “The programme is going from strength to strength, as demonstrated by the record number of applicants this year,” said Piyush Singh, a senior managing director in Accenture’s Financial Services practice in Asia-Pacific and Africa and regional programme sponsor for the Lab.
“The programme gives startups the opportunity to fine-tune their business plans and services while enabling participating financial institutions to get a glimpse of innovations that will shape the industry for years to come.”
Five of the nine startups selected are from Hong Kong and one is from Shenzhen, a sign of the growing importance of the so-called Greater Bay Area in southern China as a mecca for technology and finance. “Leading Chinese companies, startups and more established institutions are exploring new ideas and spurring continuous innovation to stay ahead of the game, which is building a more robust fintech ecosystem in the Greater Bay Area,” Singh said. “The region can serve as a significant catalyst for growth and innovation going forward.” The FinTech Innovation Lab Asia-Pacific is a collaboration between Accenture and leading financial institutions. The principal financial institutions for the 2019 Lab are: Bank of America Merrill Lynch; BlackRock; Credit Suisse; Goldman Sachs; J.P. Morgan; Macquarie Group; Morgan Stanley; Societe Generale; Standard Chartered; Sun Life; and Zurich Insurance Company Ltd. Supporting financial institutions are: AIA International Limited; China CITIC Bank International; Dah Sing Bank; Generali; Manulife; Maybank; Natixis; Saxo Markets; and ZA International.
The Lab will partner the fintech startups with senior executives from the financial institutions, as well as with technology entrepreneurs and industry experts, to help the companies fine-tune and develop their technologies and business strategies through a series of one-on-one meetings and user-group sessions, workshops, and networking opportunities, helping them connect with potential customers at top institutions.
Cyberport, one of the Lab’s founding partners, will provide workspace to participating startups. It houses the largest fintech community in Hong Kong, with 350 companies, offering startups funding, incubation programmes and a dynamic network of like-minded innovators from around the world. The Lab culminates in November with selected participants presenting at Demo Day in front of an audience of venture capitalists and financial industry executives.
The 2019 FinTech Innovation Lab Asia-Pacific participants are:
Launched in Hong Kong in June 2014, the FinTech Innovation Lab Asia-Pacific has received nearly 800 applications since its inception, with 41 companies participating to date. Alumni companies from the Lab have raised US$520 million after participating in the programme.
The FinTech Innovation Lab Asia-Pacific is modelled on similar programmes that Accenture co-founded in New York and London in 2010 and 2012, respectively. Globally, the Labs’ alumni companies have raised a total of about US$1.9 billion in venture financing after participating in the programme.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
CORWIN GROUPLatest News Archives
October 2021
CategoriesBy submitting this form, you provide consent for Corwin Group to email you occasionally with industry news and promotions. You may unsubscribe from these emails at any time.Testimonials & Disclaimer
Important Disclosure: By visiting this site, you agree to be bound by CorwinGroup’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. CorwinGroup.com is intended for accredited investors and otherwise qualified investors who understand and accept the risk associated with private investments. Investing in private investments on CorwinGroup involves risks, including, but not limited to market and industry risks, risks related to a specific property, currency fluctuation risk and liquidity constraints. Investments are not bank deposits and are not guaranteed. There is a potential for loss of part or ALL of the investment capital. CorwinGroup does not endorse any of the opportunities that appear on the site, nor does it make any recommendations regarding the appropriateness of particular opportunities for any investor. No correspondence or information provided on CorwinGroup.com or by any representative of CorwinGroup should be construed as a recommendation of a security. Each investor is advised to conduct his/her own due diligence as CorwinGroup does not provide any investment advice, business advice, or tax or legal advice. CorwinGroup is not registered under the Securities & Futures Act or the Financial Advisor’s Act. Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission in the country nor any federal or state securities commission or any other regulatory authority has recommended or approved of the investment or the accuracy or inaccuracy of any of the information or materials provided by or through the website. Please read Corwin’s Terms of Use for more detailed terms and conditions to which users of CorwinGroup are subject. |