Boston, MA (February 2nd, 2023) – MassChallenge, the global network for innovators, is thrilled to announce the 20 startups invited to participate in the 2023 FinTech cohort. Meet them here:
MassChallenge FinTech accelerates outcomes-driven partnerships between startups and enterprises to fuel innovation in financial services. From February to June, participating fintech startups will work 1:1 with one or more corporate partners to tackle industry-specific challenges. These challenges focus on managing data for a better customer experience, leveraging ESG for sustainability-focused decisions, tackling potential use cases with blockchain technology, and much more!
“We are so excited to welcome the 20 selected startups into our 5th Fintech cohort! Once again, this year’s pool of applicants exceeded expectations in terms of their quality and potential,” said Hope Hopkins, Head of Accelerator Programs at MassChallenge. “With this cohort we see great opportunity for strategic relationships to take root between innovators and established organizations, which will lead the way in disrupting the status quo of local and global financial ecosystems.”
These intentional challenge-driven partnerships produce meaningful results including pilots, proofs of concept or long-term engagements, and supports fintech startups in achieving sustainable growth while enterprises sustain their position at the forefront of innovation. MassChallenge connects the dots between corporate innovation expertise, startup curriculum and access to a diverse global network of experts, mentors and investors.
After three rigorous rounds of judging 109 fintech applications, and a 3-day live pitch event, six FinTech Challenge partners extended 21 offers to 20 startups for potential partnership opportunities. One of these partners is MassMutual, a founding partner of MassChallenge FinTech. “We have had tremendous success partnering with over 30 startups over the last four years and are excited to match with another eight startups this year,” said Mohammed Dastigir, Head of FinTech and HealthTech Partnerships at MassMutual. “Each year, the startups that we meet through the MassChallenge program inspire us to think differently and help foster innovation throughout the company.”
MassChallenge FinTech is excited to welcome its newest FinTech Challenge partner, IBM. Startups participating in the challenge will be able to access IBM mentors and build their solutions on IBM Cloud for Financial Services. Select startups may have the opportunity to co-sell their solutions with IBM.
Startup and Challenge partner collaboration is unique depending on area of need, expertise and strategic priority but are all centered around startup success. MassChallenge FinTech is a key player in the fintech ecosystem, serving as a connector and champion for startups from around the world. Since its founding in 2018, 111 startups have participated in MassChallenge FinTech. Last year alone, the cohort experienced an average funding increase of 151% and 147% increase in revenue during the program.
Meet the MassChallenge FinTech Partners
Founding Challenge Partners: MassMutual, Putnam Investments, Citizens Bank, State Street
Challenge Partners: Columbia Threadneedle Investments, KPMG, IBM & Intel
Community Partners: Laika, FinTech Sandbox, Brandeis International Business School
About MassChallenge
MassChallenge is the global network for innovators. Headquartered in the United States with eight locations worldwide, it is the non-profit’s mission to help bold entrepreneurs disrupt the status quo and create sustainable change. Since launching in 2009, MassChallenge has run programs in 18 countries, supported more than 3,000 startups from around the world, and awarded over $17M in equity-free cash and prizes. Learn more about MassChallenge at masschallenge.org.