OREANDA-NEWS. January 21, 2016. Bank Innovation and Fiserv today announce the launch of Bank Innovation INV, a revolutionary fintech accelerator that will cultivate financial services startups around the world. INV is now accepting applications for its first accelerator class, which will commence this quarter.

INV is the first non-geographically specific fintech accelerator, open to startups from anywhere in the world, with a particular focus on the world’s four major fintech hubs: Silicon Valley, Europe, Israel and New York.

The partnership between Bank Innovation, one of the world’s leading fintech strategy news services, and Fiserv, a leading provider of financial services technology — and which includes the participation of U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest bank in the United States — will foster startup success via INV.

“Bank Innovation INV will uniquely embrace fintech startups no matter where they are on the planet,” said JJ Hornblass, Principal, Bank Innovation INV. “Our partnership with Fiserv means startups in the accelerator program will get exceptional technology mentoring and access to potential technology users, which will lead to better results.”

“As part of our role in the Bank Innovation INV accelerator, Fiserv has an opportunity to not only further innovation, but to serve as a connection point between financial services startups and our thousands of bank and credit union clients,” said Matt Wilcox, SVP, Marketing Strategy and Innovation, Fiserv. “There are many nuances to navigate when developing and delivering new solutions in our industry, and we have the expertise to help ensure technologies that can transform the way people interact with financial services make their way to market.”

Also participating in INV is Cross River Bank. Cross River Bank and U.S. Bank will provide mentorship and select financial services to accelerator startups, in addition to opportunities for proof-of-concept initiatives.

“The banking and technology industries are increasingly working together to make the customer experience better,” said Dominic Venturo, Chief Innovation Officer at U.S. Bank. “INV provides the opportunity for us to engage and collaborate more closely on fintech innovation, and we are pleased to work together in this venue.”

Additionally, the following companies will make their application programming interfaces (APIs) exclusively available to INV startups: Xignite, ChartIQ, Estimize, Open Bank Project, QuantConnect, and Streamdata.io. Some of these API providers are part of the #FintechRevolution, which INV supports.

INV will also be part of Bank Innovation’s two annual industry events, in Seattle (www.bankinnovation.info) and Tel Aviv (www.bankinnovationisrael.com), where the INV participant companies will have exposure to hundreds of influential fintech professionals.

INV startups will receive a multitude of services, including:

  • Consultation with Fiserv technology mentors
  • Direct feedback from financial institutions
  • Specific recommendations on technology, strategy, sales and marketing
  • Beta-testing and/or proof-of-concept opportunities
  • Goal-setting and project management assistance  
  • Access to independent legal professionals
  • Access to valuable APIs and banking services
  • Marketing support through Bank Innovation
  • Financial support

“We want INV to not just foster the evolution of fintech, but revolutionize it,” Hornblass said. “We’ve got a grand opportunity to change the face of fintech, and we’re going for it.”

ABOUT BANK INNOVATION

Bank Innovation tracks and encourages innovation in banking and explores the world of bank customer acquisition and retention. The digital information service records customer acquisition innovation successes and failures at a site at which bankers of common ilk and dreams can come together to share ideas and insights. Irreverent? Maybe. But our goals are true: to make banking better.

For more information on INV, visit www.BankInnovationINV.com.

Startups that want to apply for admission into INV should click here.

Find INV on Angel List here.

Financial institutions that want to learn more about participating in INV should contact Phil Ryan at pryan@royalmedia.com or visit http://bankinnovationinv.com/for-institutions.

Read the blogpost, “Why We’ve Launched a Fintech Accelerator”

ABOUT FISERV

Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV) enables clients to achieve best-in-class results by driving quality and innovation in payments, processing services, risk and compliance, customer and channel management, and business insights and optimization. For more than 30 years, Fiserv has been a leader in financial services technology, and today is among FORTUNE magazine’s World’s Most Admired Companies and Forbes magazine’s America’s Best Employers. For more information, visit www.fiserv.com.