Fintech firms fight it out for Barclays programme places

EARLY stage Irish fintech companies are preparing to compete for places on a lucrative international startup accelerator programme.

Barclays Bank Ireland is to host a series of one-on-one meetings in Dublin this week with prospective applicants to the Barclays Accelerator — one of the major programmes of its type in Europe, which is held in conjunction with one of the world’s most prominent startup venture capital firms Techstars.

The 10 successful applicants from around the world will take part in an intensive 13-week programme. Last year’s programme attracted a record number of applicants from Ireland, with one of those making it to the final 10 successful participants. This year, Barclays Bank Ireland is expecting higher levels of applications from Ireland and is optimistic given the success of last year’s Irish entrant Courtsdesk.

“An increasing number of technology startups are flourishing in Ireland and we’re keen to see more successful Irish entries emerge from our Accelerator programme and benefit from the significant support on offer. We hope to attract startups working on payments, big data management, machine learning and artificial intelligence and other ground-breaking technologies,” said Martin Cass, vice president, Barclays Bank Ireland.

“This is a superb opportunity for Irish technology startups with a focus on financial services to benefit from access to investment to progress their business, as well as receiving exposure to the global capabilities of Barclays and Techstars.”

In a first for Ireland, Dublin startup, Courtsdesk, was awarded a place on the programme last year. Its news and data service which simplifies online access to the Irish courts, was a graduate of the most recent intake. It built a strong advisory board, raised seed capital and set up an office in Barclays’ high tech innovation site, Rise-London. The 10 companies successfully chosen to participate will receive investment up to $120,000, exclusive access to technology, mentorship from industry experts and the ability to work closely with Barclays’ and Techstars’ extensive professional networks.