Open Banking Start-Ups Join Cohort of 20 Companies Selected for Accenture’s Seventh Annual FinTech Innovation Lab London

One year after PSD2 took effect, start-ups offering open banking solutions are among the 20 innovative technology companies joining the FinTech Innovation Lab London, which Accenture (NYSE: ACN), leading banks and venture capital companies launched in 2012.

During the three-month fintech accelerator programme, which runs Jan. 7 – March 28, fintech start-ups will be partnered with executives from banks and insurers to fine-tune and develop their technologies and business models. More than 280 start-ups from 41 countries applied to this year’s programme, with the shortlisted start-ups being mentored by the program’s biggest-ever cohort of financial services executives.

The addition of the ‘open banking’ stream this year expands the programme to companies that are capitalising on regulatory changes to serve banking and insurance customers. The programme’s other streams include corporate and investment banking, RegTech, Tech4Tech and InsurTech.

“Open banking is revolutionising the financial landscape, and we want to nurture the relationship with banks, insurers and the start-ups that are driving change,” said Julian Skan, executive sponsor of Accenture’s FinTech Innovation Lab London. “The U.K. is a hotbed for fintechs, which are starting to bite at banking revenues, but banks and insurers are also capitalising on the opportunity to work with emerging technologies and new talent to compete. With our accelerator programme in its seventh year, we’re looking forward to exploring how start-ups are using the changes to evolve the financial industry for the better.”

Regulation is increasing competition in the financial services industry and challenging the dominance of established banks. In fact, Accenture’s analysis found that 63 percent of banking players in the U.K. didn’t exist before 2005. Further, investment in fintech ventures reached an all-time high in 2017, with the value of deals in the U.K. almost quadrupling, to US$3.4 billion*, according to Accenture’s latest research, reflecting demand for new digital innovations.

The 20 start-ups selected for the FinTech Innovation Lab London (see list below) will be mentored by executives from the following 35 financial institutions: AXA XL (a division of AXA), AXIS Capital, BAML, BlackRock, CIBC, Citi, Credit Suisse, Direct Line, Goldman Sachs, Hiscox, HSBC, ING, Intesa Sanpaolo, Irish Life, JPMC, Lloyds Banking Group, LV=, Marsh, Morgan Stanley, Nationwide, Nordea, OP, Rabobank, RBS/NatWest, Royal London, Santander, Scottish Widows (LBG), Societe Generale, State Street, TP ICAP, UBI, UBS, Wells Fargo, Willis and Zurich.

Scott Condron, managing director of digital wealth at BlackRock, said: “Having participated in the New York Fintech Innovation Lab for many years, BlackRock is delighted to join the London chapter of the Lab. The vibrancy of the London fintech scene rivals New York, and BlackRock is keen to both learn from and mentor these emerging firms as they begin their enterprise scale journey.”

The companies on this year’s list of innovative start-ups — which come from the U.K., Switzerland and Germany — leverage data analytics, artificial intelligence, open banking data and other innovative technology solutions to address many pressing business and societal issues, including automating and simplifying the production of self-assessment tax returns; solving the cross-border distribution, product and tax-suitability issues of financial institutions; and helping individuals take control of their retirement savings.

Shortlisted start-ups

The 20 start-ups selected to participate in the 2019 FinTech Innovation Lab London are:

• CreditEnable Ltd
• Investment Navigator
• Fregnan
• Zeroflows
• Signal RegTech
• Exate
• Team HUB85
• Xelix
• ContactEngine Ltd
• FutureFlow
• Lifetise
• Neotas Limited
• Anaorak
• Matterway
• LvlFi
• Penfold
• Trust Elevate
• Untied
• WealthKernel
• OpenWrks

A subset of the start-ups will present to venture capitalists and financial-industry executives at the programme’s Graduation Day on March 28.

Accenture and a dozen major banks launched the FinTech Innovation Lab London in 2012, with support from the city’s mayor and other government bodies. Since its launch, 75 start-ups have participated in the London Lab, securing more than 50 contracts with global banks.

The London Lab is modelled on a similar programme that Accenture co-founded in 2010 with the Partnership Fund for New York City, the US$160 million investment arm of the Partnership for New York City. In 2014, Accenture launched FinTech Innovation Labs in Asia-Pacific and Dublin. Globally, the Labs’ alumni companies have raised US$1.1 billion in venture capital financing after participating in the programme.

Learn more at fintechinnovationlab.com/london.