Barclays seeks startups for new fintech accelerator program in Tel Aviv

Registration for the fourth cycle of the program will close December 16; selected startups will start working in March

Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter

Entrepreneurs at work at Barclay's RISE accelerator in Tel Aviv, June 25, 2018 (Shoshanna Solomon/Times of Israel)
Entrepreneurs at work at Barclay's RISE accelerator in Tel Aviv, June 25, 2018 (Shoshanna Solomon/Times of Israel)

A three-month startup accelerator program in Tel Aviv run by Barclays Plc and Techstars, a Colorado, US-based firm, has opened registration for its fourth cycle, which will focus on the fields of fintech and information security.

The program, like the three preceding ones, will operate at the Rise FinTech workspace in Tel Aviv. Participants of the program will benefit from close mentoring and access to the international network of experts at both Barclays Bank and Techstars.  Registration for the program will close December 16, the organizers said in a statement, with the program starting in March 2019.

The third round of the accelerator, which ended in September, conited entrepreneurs from all over the world, including Israel, Italy, Ecuador, the US and Montenegro.

“The demand for innovative Fintech solutions and investments has grown from year to year,” said Hilla Ovil-Brenner, a serial entrepreneur who is running the accelerator in Israel for Barclays and Techstars. “The world’s capital and banking markets are developing thanks to the innovative developments in Fintech and experts predict continued growth in these areas in the coming years.”

Hilla Ovil-Brenner in charge of the Barclays, Techstars accelerator program in Tel Aviv (Shoshanna Solomon/Times of Israel)

Israel’s fintech sector continued to grow in 2018 , with the first six months of the year showing record numbers for funding and investment deals: more than $400 million was raised in 45 deals, according to a report by Start-Up Nation Central, a non-profit organization that tracks the nation’s tech industry.

Some 73% of all venture capital-backed investment in Israeli fintech since the beginning of 2018 has involved foreign money — a trend that’s been steadily increasing since 2016, when foreign investors participated in only  60% of Israeli fintech deals.

For its new program, the accelerator is looking for companies that develop advanced solutions for Blockchain technology, open banking, risk management, payments, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, computer learning and big data, Ovil-Brenner said.

The program introduces fledgling entrepreneurs to mentors from a wide variety of fields and shows them how to put together their story, set up a business model and speak to potential customers.

“Tel Aviv has quickly become a hotbed for FinTech innovation and continues to punch well above its weight on the global stage,” Len Rosen, CEO Barclays Israel, said in the statement. “However, the challenge for many local start-ups is the ability to tap into the appropriate international network of contacts required to significantly scale a potentially global business. Our accelerator program is specifically designed for elite FinTech and cybersecurity companies to gain access to advice, connections, and funds.”

The aim of the Barclays accelerator is for the transatlantic bank to be able to tap into new technologies it can both use for its own purposes and invest in.

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