Barclays launches new physical and virtual global community for fintech innovation in New York

Rise, a new physical and virtual global community for fintech innovation, launches today in New York; new site will host the first US cohort of the Barclays Accelerator program, powered by Techstars

New York and London, 17-7-2015 — /EuropaWire/ — Barclays today opened the doors of Rise New York, a physical space and virtual global community designed to pioneer the future offinancial technology. By the end of 2016, Barclays plans to have opened Rise hubs in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

In each location, Rise will provide a physical site for innovative companies, offering a co-working environment, world-class event spaces, and meeting rooms. Rise will also house the Barclays Accelerator, a 13-week program for fintech startups, run in partnership with Techstars. In addition, Rise will be a global digital network aimed at promoting online collaboration and participation in innovation challenges. Barclays’ existing open innovation sites in London and Manchester (previously known as Escalators) will be rebranded as Rise locations.

Rise New York is based in the city’s iconic Castro Building on 23rd Street, in the heart of Silicon Alley, and will be the home of the first New York cohort of the Barclays Accelerator. The Barclays Accelerator is a 13-week intensive startup program designed to help businesses deliver breakthrough innovations in fintech; two prior cohorts have completed the program in London.

“It is time to redefine financial services,” said Michael Harte, Barclays’ Chief Operations and Technology Officer. “Rise is designed to help shape the future of our industry and drive growth. We’re seeking to connect the world’s most active innovators to each other, to corporates, and to resources and support networks. By accelerating the development of groundbreaking products and services, we know that we can help to keep Barclays at the cutting edge of financial services, all while helping to revolutionize the industry.”

The 11 companies participating in the New York cohort of the Barclays Accelerator were selected from hundreds of applications received over the past four months from companies based in 55 countries. The companies are:

• LiveOak Technologies (US) – a real time communication, collaboration and eSignature platform. Skype meets Docusign with an added layer of security
• <remesh (US) – an application that allows decision-makers to understand quickly what a crowd is thinking. Using the power of artificial intelligence, users can understand the thoughts and opinions of a group in real-time
• Syndicated Loan Direct (US) – a research platform to convert customized legal documentation into actionable financial information. The platform streamlines the workflow of lawyers and bankers, ultimately creating a marketplace for the various parties
• The First Mile Group (US) – building APIs (application programming interfaces) to make building and using financial services easier, faster and safer
• Wayerz (Israel) – an integrated platform that optimizes international bank wire transfers, correspondent inter-bank reporting and reconciliation
• Vequrity (Estonia) – a cloud-based platform for developing, selling and executing live, hands-on cyber trainings on real systems, creating a market place for security trainings
• OGY (Israel) – creating a safer, faster and more advanced Bills of Lading for the shipping industry
• Chainalysis (Denmark) – building the layer of compliance and networking for the future of value exchange on the blockchain
• Seeds (US) – a platform that boosts gaming revenue and payer conversion through in-app purchases channeled toward real world microloans in developing countries
• Logrr (Canada) – an identity-as-a-service platform that enables employees to connect to cloud-based business applications without passwords. Allows enterprise and government employees to log in to their websites using just their phones
• Cashforce (Belgium) – a platform for providing CFOs at international mid-size / large companies with transparent, accurate and efficient cash forecastingThe New York cohort of the Barclays Accelerator will follow in the footsteps of the two London cohorts and will build on the many milestones already achieved:
• 21 startups already participated in the Barclays Accelerator programs, powered by Techstars
• More than 80% of those companies achieved their self-defined funding goals within several months of completing the program
• Seven out of the ten companies from the most recent London Accelerator cohort are currently exploring opportunities with Barclays
• 3,800 startups have been engaged through events hosted at our London and Manchester sites
• 130+ companies have used a Rise site for co-working spaces

“We are thrilled to build on the success of the Barclays Accelerator, powered by Techstars, in London,” Jenny Fielding, Managing Director, Techstars, said. “ Bringing this same focus to the U.S. will provide this new class of fintech companies with the same access to our worldwide networks in addition to providing new resources and benefits that come with being part of the Rise community in New York.”

Derek White, Barclays’ Chief Design and Digital Officer added: “With Rise and the Barclays Accelerator, we are unlocking the power of open innovation. By using our collective resources, we hope to accelerate the speed of innovation in financial services, and potentially unlock significant benefits for millions of people across the globe.”

Notes to editors

For more information please contact:

Joanne Walia: +44 (0) 20 7116 3030 / joanne.walia@barclays.com

Mark Lane: +1 212 412 1413 / mark.lane@barclays.com

About Techstars
Techstars is a global ecosystem that empowers entrepreneurs to bring new technologies to market wherever they choose to build their business. With 18 mentorship-driven accelerator programs worldwide, Techstars exists to support the world’s most promising entrepreneurs throughout their lifelong journey. Techstars provides access to over 5,000 founders, mentors investors, and corporate partners, allowing entrepreneurs to accelerate the pace of innovation and do more faster. Techstars makes entrepreneurship more accessible by providing access to capital, guidance, marketing, business development, customer acquisition, and recruitment. For more information, visit www.techstars.com.

About Barclays
Barclays is an international financial services provider engaged in personal, corporate and investment banking, credit cards and wealth management with an extensive presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. Barclays’ purpose is to help people achieve their ambitions – in the right way.

With 325 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs over 130,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide.

For further information about Barclays, please visit our website www.barclays.com.