UK-based Octopus Labs announced it celebrated the five fintech startups that participated in twelve-week accelerator program at The Gherkin in London. Nearly 200 fintech investors and financial advisers reportedly gathered to celebrate the program on Wednesday.
The twelve-week accelerator program, which was launched last year, saw Octopus support five startups, each developing fintech products for financial advisers and their clients. The company noted that over 80 applications were received to join the accelerator program. The final five were chosen after pitching to a panel of high-profile judges, which were ex-head of Google UK Dan Cobley, CEO of Dunelm John Browett and joint COO of St James’s Place Iain Rob Rayner.
The startups that participated in the program were the following:
- Advicefront: An online support platform for Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs), which is re-inventing the way they plan for their clients’ future and deliver compliant financial advice.
- CityFALCON: A personalized financial news feed for non-institutional traders and investors.
- Freetrade: A mobile app bringing disruption to the stock market by making investing commission free and mobile-first.
- Moola: A low cost and high quality investing platform that allows anyone to save simply and invest wisely.
- Squirrel: A personal finance app designed to help users have more control over their money.
During the program, each of the startups was supported with mentoring from financial industry experts and successful entrepreneurs, which includes Nicole Anderson, CEO at FinTech Circle Innovate, Alan Chang, Head of Operations at Revolut, and Adam Price, Founder of VouchedFor. The startups were also provided with access to the company’s network of over 3,500 financial advisers. Richard Wazacz, Head of Octopus Labs, added:
“Our inaugural accelerator program has been a huge success. We’re delighted to have been able to support five such inspirational companies, all of whom are developing products that have the potential to scale quickly and change the way financial advisers and their clients make the most of their money. But it’s been a two-way exercise. We’ve learned a huge amount from having the companies with us over the last few months, and have been bowled over by the entrepreneurial passion and commitment that the teams have shown. We’re sure they’re headed for success.”