Dubai - Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai just announced the ten startups selected for their second cohort. The accelerator program launched its first cohort in 2018 and it is backed by UAE's FinTech leaders, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), HSBC, Visa and Mashreq Bank.

After four months of rigorous recruitment period, and more than 450 applications received, 10 startups were selected to join Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai's second cohort. The new cohort features startups from the UAE, Singapore, USA, India, Finland, Egypt, Uzbekistan, South Africa, Kazakhstan, and Lebanon.

"We are very proud of the success of our first cohort and excited to announce that for our second cohort, we attracted some of the world's most prominent FinTech startups in the fields of payments, lending, Islamic digital banking, employer gratuity management and others” said Khaled Lababidi, Managing Director of Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai. "The 10 teams will go through an intensive three-month acceleration program, in the heart of the DIFC and will work with top-notch mentors and corporate partners to secure proof-of-concepts to validate their business models."

The 10 selected for the 2020 cohort are:

  • Coil Pay (USA): a bank-issued smartwatch designed for payments at zero cost to the end consumer.
  • Datacultr (India): a platform-as-a-service that reduces credit risk for lending companies on 'New to Credit' customers by converting their smartphones into a virtual collateral
  • DD-Ready (Finland): an intelligent data management platform built specifically for the due diligence process.
  • ePension (UAE): a cloud-based platform that helps SMEs design, implement and report their employee’s end of service gratuity plans.
  • Fawaterak (Egypt): an online invoicing and payment platform between merchants and clients which integrates local and global payment networks.
  • Lending Star (Singapore): marketplace connecting SMEs and investors to enable supply-chain financing
  • Marta (Uzbekistan): a platform-as-a-service that makes it possible to accept non-cash payments via mPoS and tap-on-phone where there is a lack of internet connectivity
  • SnapSlip (South Africa): digital receipts and analytics applications.
  • Tayyab (Kazakhstan): an Islamic digital bank that makes everyday money management easy in a shariah-compliant way.
  • Trade Quant (Lebanon): an equity investment portfolio management application that manages your investments using a Quantitative Investment Model (QIM) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The startups will now participate in the three-month extensive FinTech program starting in January 2020 and culminating with Demo Day, where they will pitch their projects to the region's top investors for an opportunity to raise funds and sign pilot collaboration projects.

Corporate partners play a pivotal role in the Startupbootcamp FinTech program, and they have all shown their excitement and support for the new cohort.

Dubai International Financial Center DIFC

Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer, DIFC Authority said: “As part of our focus on developing new and innovative FinTech start-ups from the DIFC, our continued partnership with Startupbootcamp builds on the successes of its first cohort which has already delivered great results. The future of finance is firmly in our sights and we are doing everything to provide a solid growth platform for entrepreneurs, start-ups, and venture capital firms. By benefitting from our international expertise and world-class technological infrastructure, we look forward to witnessing the great achievements of the second cohort, reflecting the importance we place on advancing our finance technology ecosystem.”

HSBC

Ghinwa Baradhi, MENAT CIO, HSBC, said: “The UAE has established itself as a global FinTech hub and as a bank helping shape the future of finance, HSBC is excited to be working with such a diverse, talented and ambitious group of entrepreneurs in the Startupbootcamp program.”

Visa

Otto Williams, Head of Strategic Partnerships, Fintech, and Ventures at Visa for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: “Visa is delighted to continue this association which is supporting the UAE’s evolution into a global Fintech hub.  We are excited about mentoring and working with this next wave of global start-ups joining the Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai Accelerator, and nurture them in growing the payment innovations that consumers and ecosystem partners can hope to see in the future.”

Mashreq Bank

Subroto Som, Executive Vice President – Group Head of Retail Banking Group, Mashreq Bank said “In the past few years, the financial industry has witnessed significant digital disruption driven by a greater level of innovation which has benefitted everyone in the industry. The UAE has exhibited a strong willingness to develop a Fintech eco-system in the country and the success of the first cohort of Startupbootcamp is very much aligned with this concept. At Mashreq we are proud to be a part of this journey. We believe that the second cohort has some innovative FinTech startups and Mashreq will continue to play a leading role to encourage and support these companies, with the final goal of deploying these innovative solutions to improve the overall customer banking experience.”

-Ends-

For more information about this press release, contact:
Sarah Shokr, Marketing Manager, Startupbootcamp MENA
Mail: sarah.shokr@startupbootcamp.org 

For more information about the Startupbootcamp Fintech Dubai Accelerator:

Website: www.startupbootcamp.org 

Facebook: @sbcFinTechDubai 

Instagram: @startupbootcamp 

Twitter: @sbcFinTech 

LinkedIn: @startupbootcamp-fintech

About Startupbootcamp FinTech

Launched in 2014, Startupbootcamp FinTech is the leading global FinTech accelerator focused on innovation for the financial services industry. Based in London, Singapore, New York, Mexico City, Amsterdam, Cairo, and Dubai, each program is supported by a network of leading financial players as well as an extensive mentor and alumni network from more than 30 countries across the globe. Startupbootcamp FinTech is part of the global award-winning Startupbootcamp, a network of industry-focused startup accelerators.

About Dubai International Financial Centre

The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is one of the world’s top financial centres, and the leading financial hub for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. The Centre provides a world-class platform connecting the region’s markets with the economies of Europe, Asia and the Americas and facilitates growth in South-South trade and investment. An onshore, international financial centre, DIFC offers a stable, mature and secure base for financial institutions to develop their wholesale businesses.

The Centre offers all the elements found in the world’s most successful financial industry ecosystems, including an independent regulator and judicial system with a common-law framework, a global financial exchange, inspiring architecture, powerful, enabling support services and a vibrant business community. The infrastructure within the district features ultra-modern office space, retail outlets, cafes and restaurants, art galleries, residential apartments, public green areas and hotels.

Located midway between the global financial centres of New York, London in the West and Singapore, Hong Kong in the East, DIFC (GMT +4) fills a vital time-zone gap with a workday that bridges the market and business hours of financial centres in both Asia and North America.

In 2015, DIFC launched its 2024 growth strategy, a blueprint for the next decade of growth of the financial hub. This strategy aims to stimulate trade and investment flows along the South-South economic corridor encompassing the Middle East, Africa, Southern Asia and Latin America. Currently, 2,003 active registered companies operate from the Centre, with a combined workforce of 22,768 professionals. DIFC continues to pursue expansion into new services and sectors within the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, an area comprising over 72 countries with an approximate population of 3 billion and nominal GDP of US$7.7 trillion.

For further information, please visit our website: https://www.difc.ae /, or follow us on Twitter @DIFC.

About HSBC in the MENAT Region

HSBC is the largest and most widely represented international banking organisation in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey (MENAT), with a presence in 9 countries across the region.  HSBC has operations in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Turkey, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait and Algeria. In Saudi Arabia, HSBC is a 29.2% shareholder of Saudi British Bank (SABB), and a 51% shareholder of HSBC Saudi Arabia for investment banking in the Kingdom.

This presence, the widest reach of any international bank in the region, comprises some 350 offices and around 10,500 employees. In the year ending 31st December 2018, HSBC in the MENAT region made a reported profit before tax of US$ 1,557m.

About Visa 

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network - enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce.

For more information, visit www.visamiddleeast.com , www.visanewsmena.tumblr.com  or follow us on Twitter @Visamiddleeast.

About Mashreq

Established in 1967, Mashreq is the oldest bank in the UAE with award-winning financial solutions and services. Throughout its 50 years’ history, Mashreq has differentiated itself through innovative financial solutions, making it possible for its customers to achieve their aspirations. Today, Mashreq has a significant presence in 11 countries outside the UAE with 26 overseas branches and offices across Europe, USA, Asia, and Africa. Mashreq launched its new Vision and Mission in 2016, outlining its commitment towards its clients, colleagues and the community. In line with its new Vision to be the region’ s most progressive bank, Mashreq leverages its leadership position in the banking industry to enable innovative possibilities and solutions for its customers across Corporate, Retail, International, Treasury and Islamic Banking. Mashreq is proud to be the first financial institution in the UAE to be awarded the Gallup Great Workplace Award for five consecutive years from 2014-2018. Mashreq also continues to invest in recruiting, training and developing future generations of UAE National bankers.

© Press Release 2020

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