[Krakow] – MassChallenge, Fundacja Przedsi?biorczo?ci Technologicznej (FPT), and PKO Bank Polski today announced the launch of Bridge to MassChallenge Poland at impact CEE 2017 in Krakow, Poland. As the first Bridge to MassChallenge program in Eastern Europe, MassChallenge, FPT, and PKO Bank Polski will partner to accelerate the European startup community, and to strengthen the Polish innovation ecosystem.
MassChallenge is proud to partner with FPT to stimulate innovation and catalyze entrepreneurial activity in Poland by supporting high-impact, high-potential, early-stage startups, said Mike LaRhette, President of MassChallenge. We look forward to working with entrepreneurs throughout the region to help them realize their full potential.
PKO BP is executing Strategy 2020, which is focused on the banks digital transformation and increasing the innovation of provided services. Cooperation with MassChallenge complements banks current activities, supporting the technology startup ecosystem in Poland, and extending our access to interesting ideas in FinTech, that could benefit our clients. We also want to attract startups from other countries in order to increase innovativeness of Polish economy. After full implementation of the project, Poland will be hosting the biggest startup program in the European Union, said Szymon Wa?ach, Managing Director at PKO Bank Polski.
Within the existing MIT Enterprise Forum Poland program, we accelerate startups at a very early stage of development. MassChallenge offers a different path for early-stage startups. We invite young enterprises that are already selling their products and services on the market to apply for Bridge to MassChallenge Poland, said Pawe? Bochniarz, President of Fundacja Przedsi?biorczo?ci Technologicznej. For Bridge to MassChallenge Poland, we are not limited to Polish startups. We are looking for interesting projects with high development potential in whole CEE region.
Bridge to MassChallenge Poland is an international startup competition that identifies and accelerates the top startups in the CEE region, and connects those startups to the global market. Following an international application process, selected startups will participate in intensive, multi-day boot camps in Warsaw and Boston where they will receive tailored training, one-on-one mentorship from top international business leaders, networking opportunities, and access to the cities business ecosystems. Applications for Bridge to MassChallenge Poland will open in early fall 2017.
Bridge to MassChallenge strengthens innovation ecosystems and drives the creation of high quality jobs by supporting entrepreneurs and connecting them to MassChallenges global network. The program collaborates with local entities to understand the potential and strategic value of their unique ecosystem, empowers them to build their innovation communities, and connects them to global markets.
About MassChallenge
MassChallenge is the most startup-friendly accelerator on the planet. No equity and not-for-profit, we are obsessed with helping entrepreneurs across any industry. We also reward the highest-impact startups through a competition to win a portion of several million dollars in equity-free cash awards. Through our global network of accelerators in Boston, the UK, Israel, Switzerland, and Mexico, and unrivaled access to our corporate partners, we can have a massive impact – driving growth and creating value the world over. To date, 1,211 MassChallenge alumni have raised over $2 billion in funding, generated approximately $900 million in revenue, and created over 65,000 total jobs. For more information, please visit masschallenge.org.