Successfully kick starting new FinTech partnerships and collaboration

11 April 2017, Hong Kong – SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator, along with main partners, Standard Chartered Bank – also a founding member, and Fidelity International, today announced the successful outcomes of the programme enabling international growth stage companies to expand their operations within Asia.

Standard Chartered Bank has initiated Proof of Concept projects with two companies:

– Robo-advisory for wealth management: Bambu is a B2B Robo-advisory company that builds intelligent software and investment solutions to improve the efficiency of wealth management.

– RegTech utilising distributed ledger technology: KYC Chain is a platform to provide greater convenience and security to users of distributed ledger technology. It allows users to manage their digital identities securely while businesses and financial institutions are able to manage customer data in a reliable and easy manner.

– Mr Shameek Kundu, Standard Chartered’s Global Head of Data, Technology Strategy and Innovation, said: “Standard Chartered Bank is proud to partner the Supercharger FinTech Accelerator Programme, which gives us the opportunity to team up with the brightest technology companies in our Asian footprint and to deliver the best service to our clients. We are delighted that the programme is taking place in Hong Kong, a key market for us, giving promising fintechs a springboard to the rest of Asia.”

– Mr Stuart Morley, Head of Technology for Asia & Central at Fidelity International, said: “We believe innovation, in terms of solutions and operating behaviour, is critical to providing the best possible service to our clients and should be at the heart of everything we do as a firm. We also believe in the power of collaboration and the SuperCharger program has enabled us to partner with some of the best startups and talent based in Hong Kong and also globally – partnerships that have enabled us to evolve our understanding of the potential of the fintech market and allowed the startups to evolve their own, exciting business propositions. SuperCharger is an important and valued component of our global innovation approach.”

This announcement at today’s SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 Demo Day marked the successful completion of another 12-week programme from the world’s first fintech accelerator dedicated to both start-ups and scale-up global fintech companies aiming to capture the growth markets of Asia. The programme leverages on Hong Kong’s strength as Asia’s finance and technology gateway.

The success of the accelerator has been attributed to its strong partnership with corporate backers and designing the selection process to be demand-led by concrete business cases. Ms Veronika Kuznetsova, SuperCharger’s Managing Director, explained: “Such an achievement highlights the effectiveness of SuperCharger as a sustainable model for facilitating dialogues between the decision makers of the financial industry and the forward-thinking techpreneurs from startups, which ultimately leads to the advancing of the fintech ecosystem in Asia.”

Built from the ground up in just two years, SuperCharger has gained significant momentum. Its location is strategic as Asia is now the largest market in the world for fintech with US$10 billion invested in 2016. Mr Janos Barberis, SuperCharger’s Founder, said: “Our goal is to make SuperCharger the leading partnership builder between financial institutions and fintech companies. With this Demo Day, we now have the track record, team, alumni network and partners we can reach this goal and firmly establish ourselves, and be recognised, as Asia’s leading fintech accelerator.”

SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 3.0 will open for applications in the summer of 2017, enabling up and coming fintech companies to scale across Asia.

SuperCharger Fintech Accelerator
Leveraging on Hong Kong’s traditional strength as Asia’s finance and technology gateway, SuperCharger is a 12-week Fintech Accelerator Programme backed by Standard Chartered Bank, Fidelity International and Cyberport, among others. In its first batch, SuperCharger 1.0 received over 160 applications from more than 25 countries globally and selected 8 Fintechs. The selected companies had raised between US$ 200,000 and 150 million and ranged from early-stage to late-stage growth Fintech companies. Throughout the programme, SuperCharger’s 2000 sq. ft. co-working office was enriched by the participation and mentorship of more than 150 individuals, including VCs, mentors, government officials, journalists and the next generation of young entrepreneurs.

SuperCharger’s finalists and alumni are shaping the future of finance in Hong Kong and beyond. For more information about SuperCharger and its Demo Day, please visit www.fintechsupercharger.com, or contact hello@fintechsupercharger.com.

SUPERCHARGER FINTECH ACCELERATOR 2.0 – COHORT LIST

1. Bambu – Wealth Management – is a B2B Robo-advisory company that builds intelligent software and investment solutions to improve the efficiency of wealth management.

2. Clare.ai – Artificial Intelligence and Chatbots – Clare.ai is building a white-label chatbot to help banks deliver customer service with more controls and cost efficiencies. It provides a conversational solution based on machine learning algorithms and natural language processing.

3. Entersoft – Cybersecurity – Entersoft is an application security provider based in Australia. It integrates offensive assessment, proactive monitoring and managed security to provide cost-effective and reliable solutions.

5. FinChat – RegTech – FinChat Technology is a mobile-compliance monitoring service provider based in Singapore. Through its all-in-one mobile compliance solution, FinChat ensures regulatory compliance and facilitates collaborative pursuits between financial institutions.

6. Foris – Payments – Foris is Southeast Asia’s universal money application. Launching in Hong Kong and Singapore in Q1 2017, it will provide a multi-currency account that allows users to manage money at perfect interbank exchange rates.

7. KYC Chain – RegTech – is a platform to provide greater convenience and security to users of distributed ledger technology. It allows users to manage their digital identities securely while businesses and financial institutions are able to manage customer data in a reliable and easy manner.

8. Squirro – Big Data / Data Visualisation – Squirro is a data insights solution developer based in Zurich. Squirro works with global data-driven organisations and provides solutions in risk, service, and customer insights.

9. Xnotes Alliance – Blockchain – XNotes Alliance provides business-driven, currency-agnostic and energy-efficient enterprise class blockchain-based solutions. It provides users with full accessibility control across the transaction process, empowering them to run more efficiently and securely.

SuperCharger will be holding a Demo Day on April 11, 2017 on the historic Hong Kong Exchange trading floor. The day will announce exciting new partnerships, deals, and news from the program, followed by SuperCharger’s start-ups showcasing the accelerated progress they have made in the past 12 weeks through pitches and demo of their cutting-edge products. The event will also feature speeches from corporate partners and special guests, followed by networking. You will also have the opportunity to have more private interactions with our start-ups at their dedicated booths.

Sign up here to be part of our grand finale. For more information on the Demo Day, please email hello@fintechsupercharger.com.

The participating start-ups are:

• Bambu [Wealth Management]: Bambu is a Singapore-based Robo-advisory company that just won Best Early Stage Startup in the Next Money Fintech Finals 2017. It provides innovative, cost-effective and efficient entry points into investing and wealth management.

• ai [Artificial Intelligence]: Clare.ai is building a white-label chatbot to help banks deliver customer service with more controls and cost efficiencies. It provides a conversational solution based on machine learning algorithms and natural language processing.

• Entersoft [Cybersecurity]: Entersoft is an application security provider based in Australia. It integrates offensive assessment, proactive monitoring and managed security to provide cost-effective and reliable solutions.

• FinChat [Regulatory Techology]: FinChat Technology, winner of MAS FinTech Awards during Singapore FinTech Week, is a mobile-compliance monitoring service provider based in Singapore. Through its all-in-one mobile compliance solution, FinChat ensures regulatory compliance and facilitates collaborative pursuits between financial institutions.

• Foris [Payments]: Foris is Southeast Asia’s universal money application. Launching in Hong Kong and Singapore in Q1 2017, it will provide a multi-currency account that allows users to manage money at perfect interbank exchange rates.

• KYC-Chain [RegTech]: KYC-Chain is a digital identity platform that uses Distrubted Ledger Technology to help banks and other financial institutions to comply with regulatory requirements.

• Squirro [Big Data / Data Visualisation]: Squirro is a data insights solution developer based in Zurich. Squirro works with global data-driven organisations and provides solutions in risk, service, and customer insights.

• XNotes Alliance [Blockchain]: XNotes Alliance provides business-driven, currency-agnostic and energy-efficient enterprise class blockchain-based solutions. It provides users with full accessibility control across the transaction process, empowering them to run more efficiently and securely.

8 finalists announced including some of the hottest start-ups and scale-ups in wealth management, RegTech, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and blockchain

Hong Kong, 7 November 2016 – As an indication of the rising FinTech trends in Asia, wealth management, regulatory technology (RegTech), artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and blockchain were the areas with the most compelling submissions for the 2017 SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 programme, Hong Kong’s 12-week FinTech accelerator programme sponsored by Standard Chartered Bank and Fidelity International.

For a second year running, SuperCharger, which aims to help the most promising start-ups and scale-ups grow in Asia, has surpassed other Hong Kong FinTech accelerators with almost 200 applicants from 33 countries from which 8 finalists were selected.

Mr Shameek Kundu, Standard Chartered’s Global Head of Data, Architecture and Innovation, said: “As the founding sponsor of the SuperCharger, Standard Chartered has a demonstrable record for encouraging the development of the FinTech ecosystem in Asia by investing in FinTechs as well as cultivating and collaborating with several exciting start-ups to help them grow. From the SuperCharger Fintech Accelerator 2.0 cohort, we hope to provide the launchpad for more interesting collaborations that can help us make banking simpler and improve the client experience.”

Mr Stuart Morley, Head of Technology – Asia at Fidelity International, said: “At Fidelity, we believe in a collaborative philosophy when engaging with the FinTech ecosystem. The SuperCharger accelerator is a high quality program that enables us to partner with some of the brightest startup prospects from around the world and on themes that are of particular interest and importance to Hong Kong and the Financial Services industry more broadly right now. We are excited about our involvement with the SuperCharger once again and are committed to developing, in conjunction with the 8 finalists, new and progressive solutions for our clients.

Mr Janos Barberis, Founder of SuperCharger, said: “SuperCharger is strongly establishing itself as Hong Kong’s leading FinTech accelerator. The quality of this year’s cohort is a testament to that and reflects the role our accelerator plays for the sourcing of products, solutions and talent in the financial services industry in this region.”

The 8 finalists for SuperCharger 2.0 are (alphabetical order):
1.  Bambu – Wealth Management
2.  Clare.ai – Artificial Intelligence and Chatbots
3.  Entersoft – Cybersecurity
4.  FinChat – Regulatory Techology
5.  Foris – Payments
6.  KYC Chain – Regulatory Technology
7.  Squirro – Big Data
8.  Xnotes Alliance – Blockchain

The 8 selected companies are highly complementary and present clear partnership opportunities with SuperCharger corporate partners. Each company’s founder will participate in a robust curriculum structured around bespoke content and gain access to an extensive network of partners and mentors. Following the 12-week programme, the companies will have supercharged their growth within the Asian FinTech Market, currently the largest in the world by nominal investment amounting to US$2.6 billion in Q1 of 2016 (source: KPMG: The Pulse of FinTech Q1 2016).

The total number of applications rose by 24% compared to the previous year, as a result of greater awareness and popularity of the programme. More than an accelerator, SuperCharger keeps the pulse on FinTech markets globally. It increasingly attracts mature companies (54% are revenue generating) and supports cross-border activity of start-ups as they internationalise themselves. In that respect, Hong Kong plays a key role as Asia’s FinTech super connector.

In addition to the programme’s main sponsors Standard Chartered and Fidelity, SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 is also supported by Cyberport, a venue partner providing the participants the newly opened Cyberport Smart-Space FinTech Centre as their co-working space. Other supporting organisations include Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, VISA, Baker and McKenzie, Arbor Ventures, General Assembly, Amazon Web Services, InvestHK, FinnovAsia, Mambu, FinTech St, e27, Crowdfund Insider and the University of Hong Kong.

SuperCharger
Leveraging on Hong Kong’s traditional strength as Asia’s finance and technology gateway, SuperCharger is a 12-week FinTech Accelerator Programme backed by Standard Chartered Bank, Fidelity International and Cyberport, among others. In its first batch, SuperCharger 1.0 received over 160 applications from more than 25 countries globally and selected 8 Fintechs. The selected companies had raised between US$ 200,000 and 150 million and ranged from early-stage to late-stage growth FinTech companies. Throughout the programme, SuperCharger’s 2000 sq. ft. co-working office was enriched by the participation and mentorship of more than 150 individuals, including VCs, mentors, government officials, journalists and the next generation of young entrepreneurs.

SuperCharger’s finalists and alumni are shaping the future of finance in Hong Kong and beyond. If you have any questions or comments, please reach us at hello@fintechsupercharger.com.

Hong Kong, October 2016 – SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator is proud to announce the renewal of its partnership with Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing (“HKEX”), aimed at advancing FinTech innovation in Hong Kong. For a second consecutive year, HKEX has established its supporting organization status behind Hong Kong’s leading FinTech Accelerator for its 2.0 cohort. The partnership will provide SuperCharger finalists with dedicated mentors from the HKEX team, as well as an outstanding location for the Accelerator’s April 2017 Demo Day, namely the Exchange Auditorium and Exchange Exhibition Hall situated right next to HKEX’s iconic trading floor.

SuperCharger Managing Director Veronika Kuznetsova said of the renewed partnership: “We are happy to be working with established players in the industry like HKEX who are taking bold steps in ensuring Hong Kong’s bright future as an international FinTech Hub. With a Demo Day venue near the HKEX trading floor, we are certain to cement HKEX’s image as a ‘supercharged’ destination for financial innovation.”

“FinTech is an important and growing part of the financial industry, bringing new innovations and benefits to the entire transaction value chain,” said Romnesh Lamba, HKEX’s Co-head of Market Development. “HKEX, as a leading financial institution in Hong Kong, is ideally positioned to embrace this trend, share its expertise, and help plant the seeds for the next big FinTech success story.”

The first round of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator was launched in January 2016 with success stories featuring a US$71 million capital investment that a late-stage Accelerator participant MicroCred secured for its expansion in China and the development of their Internet finance strategy. In addition, other alumni reached key milestones such as: Funding Societies’ raise of US$7.5 million from Sequoia Capital to build a P2P lending platform; the partnership between Amareos and Thomson Reuters to combine financial services and AI analytics technology to inform clients’ investment decisions; and the partnership formed between MicroCred and Gatecoin, an early-stage start-up, allowing Gatecoin to scale up beyond Asia into Africa.

In addition to its partnership with HKEX, SuperCharger 2.0 is also supported by Main Partners Standard Chartered Bank and Fidelity International; Cyberport as the venue partner providing the FinTech companies the newly opened Cyberport Smart FinTech Centre as their co-working space; as well as Arbor Ventures and East Ventures who are SuperCharger’s investment partners. Other supporting organizations include international law firm Baker & McKenzie, InvestHK, General Assembly, AWS, FinnovAsia, e27 and Crowdfund Insider, among others.

Applications for SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 are open until 20 October 2016. FinTech companies (both start-ups and scale-ups) may apply online via http://www.fintechsupercharger.com/. Throughout September and October 2016, roadshows will be conducted in a number of key cities in Asia including Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Bangalore and Kuala Lumpur. The programme will commence on 9 January 2017, and conclude on 11 April 2017, with a Demo Day held at HKEX in Hong Kong.

About SuperCharger

Leveraging on Hong Kong’s traditional strength as Asia’s finance and technology gateway, SuperCharger s a 12-week FinTech Accelerator Programme backed by Standard Chartered Bank, Fidelity International, HKEx, and Cyberport, among others. In its first batch, SuperCharger 1.0 received over 160 applications from more than 25 countries globally and selected 8 FinTech start-ups and scale-ups. The selected companies had raised US$ 200,000-US$150 million and ranged from early-stage to late-stage growth FinTech companies. Throughout the programme, SuperCharger’s 2000 sq. ft. co-working office was enriched by more than 150 individuals, including VCs, mentors, government officials, journalists, and the next generation of young entrepreneurs.

SuperCharger’s cohorts and alumni are shaping the future of finance in Hong Kong and beyond.

If you have any questions or comments, you can reach us at hello@fintechsupercharger.com.

Hong Kong, 4 October 2016 – Baker & McKenzie announced today that it has become a sponsor of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0, a programme that gives participants access to market entry resources, outstanding advice from mentors as well as joint-venture opportunities.

Baker & McKenzie was also a supporting organization of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 1.0, which formally concluded in April 2016 with a Demo Day at the Hong Kong Maritime Museum.

Gavin Raftery, Head of Global Acquisition Finance and a member of the Asia Pacific Banking & Finance Steering Committee, said: “Baker & McKenzie focuses on how digital disruption impacts different industries. With investment and interest in fintech on the rise, it presents both opportunities and challenges to financial institutions. While there are new areas, such as big data, cryptocurrencies, artificial intelligence and blockchain, many challenges are familiar. With our strong on-the-ground Financial Services and sector capabilities, we are uniquely positioned to help both local and international companies navigate the legal and regulatory fintech landscape.”

Andrew Lockhart, a partner of the Finance and Projects Practice Group in Hong Kong/China, commented: “Baker & McKenzie is proud to support and partner with the SuperCharger Accelerator programme again this year and we look forward to sharing knowledge as well as exploring collaboration with its participants. We are excited about the opportunity to assist fintech start-ups and help them with their innovation process together with other talented mentors.”

Baker & McKenzie sector specialists Karen Man and Frank Meier (financial services regulatory) and Paolo Sbuttoni (technology, communications & data privacy) joined Andrew to mentor and share knowledge with the participants of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 1.0 throughout the programme. Alumnus of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 1.0, Eko India Financial Services’s Co-Founder, Abhinav Sinha said, “The experience was great for our business. We want new investment to help us grow and through this, we got to meet and pitch to investors from Hong Kong, China and Southeast Asia. Also, with a mix of early-stage start-ups and more established companies together in one place, it gave us a chance to explore new ways of working together.”

Applications for SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0, which starts on 9 January 2017, are now open and being accepted until 20 October 2016. FinTech startup and scaleup companies may apply online via www.fintechsupercharger.com. Throughout September and October 2016, roadshows have been conducted in a number of key cities in Europe and Asia including London, Paris, Geneva, Singapore, Shanghai, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong and Jakarta. Baker & McKenzie also participated in the roadshow as one of the Accelerator sponsors.

In addition to Baker & McKenzie’s sponsorship, this year’s SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 is also supported by Standard Chartered Bank and Fidelity International as the Main Partners in the programme; Cyberport, as the venue partner providing the FinTech companies the newly opened Cyberport Smart-Space FinTech Centre as their co-working space; as well as other supporting organizations such as Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Arbor Ventures, General Assembly, AWS, FinnovAsia, e27 and Crowdfund Insider, among many others.

About SuperCharger
Leveraging on Hong Kong’s traditional strength as Asia’s finance and technology gateway, SuperCharger is a 12-week FinTech Accelerator Programme backed by Standard Chartered Bank, Fidelity International and Cyberport, among others. In its first batch, SuperCharger 1.0 received over 160 applications from more than 25 countries globally and selected 8 Fintechs. The selected companies had raised between US$ 200,000 and 150 million and ranged from early-stage to late-stage growth FinTech companies. Throughout the programme, SuperCharger’s 2000 sq. ft. co-working office was enriched by the participation and mentorship of more than 150 individuals, including VCs, mentors, government officials, journalists and the next generation of young entrepreneurs.

SuperCharger’s finalists and alumni are shaping the future of finance in Hong Kong and beyond. If you have any questions or comments, please reach us at hello@fintechsupercharger.com.

Hong Kong, 19 September 2016 – Standard Chartered Bank and SuperCharger Limited invite applications from international FinTech start-ups and scale-ups to participate in “SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0”, a 12-week innovation programme aimed at helping promising FinTech companies grow their footprint in Asia.

For the second year running, SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 will give participants access to market entry resources, outstanding mentors, unrivalled technology advice from industry experts and joint-venture opportunities. The selection panel will be looking out for FinTech companies that will shape the next trends in banking and FinTech, including innovative solutions for supply chain and trade finance, wealth management, cross-border Renminbi, distributed ledger technologies (DLTs), artificial intelligence (AI), and mobile and cloud technology.

May Tan, Chief Executive Officer for Hong Kong, Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, said: “Standard Chartered is committed to investing in innovation. Following the successful launch of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator last year, we are excited about gathering another cohort of talented FinTech professionals and helping them accelerate in their innovation process. Standard Chartered is pleased to see the Hong Kong Government’s strong support for FinTech in particular for the banking sector. As one of the key banks in the city, we will continue with our efforts in facilitating Hong Kong as an open market for FinTech development.”

Standard Chartered’s Chief Data Officer, Shameek Kundu, said: “SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 is designed for entrepreneurs to explore and seek expert advice on every aspect of the journey to become successful internationally. We are proud to continue to be a founding sponsor.”

The first round of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator was launched in January 2016. Success stories include the US$71 million in capital investment that MicroCred secured for its expansion in China and the development of their internet finance strategy; Funding Societies’ US$7.5 million raised from Sequoia Capital to build a P2P lending platform; the partnership between Amareos and Thomson Reuters to combine technology and data to facilitate clients’ investment decisions on a financial application; and the partnership formed between MicroCred and Gatecoin, an early stage start-up, allowing Gatecoin to scale up beyond Asia into Africa.

Alumnus of the first round of SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator, MicroCred’s Founder and CEO, Arnaud Ventura, said: “SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator has created tremendous networking and collaboration opportunities for MicroCred China by putting us in front of FinTech and venture capital communities. With the right platform for us to fine-tune our strategy and develop our P2P business models, we were able to secure concrete corporate partnerships that will help our company achieve our next stage of growth.”

Application for SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 is now open until 20 October 2016. FinTech companies may apply online via www.fintechsupercharger.com. Throughout September and October 2016, roadshows will be conducted in a number of key cities in Asia including Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Bangalore and Kuala Lumpur. The programme will commence on 9 January 2017, and conclude in April 2017 with a Demo Day in Hong Kong.

In addition to Standard Chartered’s sponsorship, this year’s SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 is also supported by Fidelity International, a Main Partner in the programme; Cyberport, as the venue partner providing the FinTech companies the newly opened Cyberport Smart-Space FinTech Centre as their co-working space; as well as other supporting organisations such as Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, VISA, Arbor Ventures, General Assembly, AWS, FinnovAsia, e27 and Crowdfund Insider, among many others.

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About the SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 – click here

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