SIX, the operator of the Swiss financial market infrastructure, is opening its fintech startup accelerator F10 to more firms in the Swiss financial center under the umbrella of its newly formed F10 Incubator and Accelerator. The first companies to support the accelerator are Julius Bär and PwC.
The aim of the association is to promote Switzerland's fintech ecosystem on a long-term basis, forge global links and strengthen the innovative capacity of the Swiss finance and insurance sectors. This will ensure a lasting contribution to the development of a state-of-the-art, future-fit Swiss financial center.
The association can already count on two well-known members in the form of Julius Bär, Switzerland's leading private banking group, and PwC Switzerland, Switzerland's leading professional services firm. Through their respective expertise, together with SIX, they strengthen the innovative capacity of the Swiss financial center and thus invest in the future. The association brings together financial services providers, academia, fintechs and startups, and network them with the relevant opinion formers and subject leaders in the financial sector.
In summer 2014, SIX began a project to industrialize and accelerate innovation processes within its own organization. One of the key milestones was the opening of the F10 FinTech Accelerator/Incubator in August 2015. Since opening, F10 has continuously expanded technology scouting, staged two international hackathons, as well as built over two dozen prototypes. As part of the F10 Incubator program, it has also supported a selected startup and successfully helped create a marketable product in six months.
The next stage in its growth begins in November 2016, when F10 – as an independent association – starts offering its comprehensive Accelerator program for startups in collaboration with other Swiss companies from the banking, insurance and consulting sectors. This will be aimed at technologies from the fintech sector (including regtech and insuretech), with future F10 members and startups alike benefiting from the program.
The F10 offer is sustainable and comprehensively structured, and comprises four sub-programs along the startup development cycle: idea to prototype, prototype to product, product to market and a members' round table; it therefore extends beyond the single aspect normally offered by the typical accelerator program.
The aim of the F10 with its program is to successfully establish the startups on the market with the focus on sustainable strengthening of the innovative capacity of the F10 participants. Over 120 startups from around the world have applied for the program.
(Press release)
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