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One ambitious mission: to empower 100 million people to make better financial decisions. The solution: collaborating with inspiring innovators from all over the world. Yesterday, the Think Forward Initiative (TFI) selected the 8 startups that will be working with them to help them achieve their goal.
One whole day of business meetings, networking and deal-making opportunities. 14 promising startups were present and eager to find out if there would be a match between them and Think Forward Initiative’s purpose. TFI is a partnership between Amazon, ING, Deloitte, DellEMC, Dimension Data and CEPR.
The startups described the setup of the event as a very good one, since it allowed them to have a conversation with th/e corporates instead of just pitching without feedback. “I appreciated the different partners and perspectives. It was a good mix of participants and a lot of interaction between people, because, in the end, it’s all about people”, believes Joakim Sjoblom, from Minna Technologies.
This year, Get in the Ring was responsible for scouting innovators with solutions to fit the needs of TFI and their partners, and the results were great “We do this every year, but this time the quality of startups greatly improved, which was really inspiring. The whole startup scene is maturing and this is a compliment for companies that work hard everyday”, said Joep Arends from TFI.
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After 4 weeks scouting and connecting to entrepreneurs from around the world, we found our finalists; innovators with potential to make an impact. Our job is to connect these innovators to opportunities that enable them to scale, which is exactly what the TFI event, organised by our events team, was all about.
At the end of the day, there were 8 startups that matched TFI’s purpose and were in the right stage of development: Minna Technologies, Moneyhub Enterprise, Zuper Superannuation, 2houses, Peerby, Spenderlog, BillButler and Ernit.
Selected Startups
Startups were very happy and excited to participate in the program. “I love the Think Forward Initiative. Empowering people who wouldn’t naturally find a way understand their money better is a passion I have”, said Samantha Seaton, CEO of Moneyhub Enterprise. Their platform puts clients’ money in one place and analyses how to make their money go further.
Zuper Superannuation is a super fund app that allows users to align their money with their values and invest in what really matters to them. 2houses helps separate families and parents communicate and become more organized money wise for the well-being of their children. Peerby is a platform that lets users rent or sell stuff they don’t use, or use rarely, stimulating a more sustainable way of living.
Minna Technologies is an app that helps retail banks improve the digital banking experience. Spenderlog is a personal digital assistant that gives users an overview of their money usage and helps them control where their money is going. BillButler is designed to give very busy people some ease. They take care of finances, making sure there is always money available and paying all your bills. Finally, Ernit wants to empower children and their families with lifelong skills, it’s the first child-friendly app connected to real bank accounts.
The Program
The Program will focus on making some real impact on people’s lives as well as helping the startups scale. “The ideal outcome of the program is that we are able to help these companies scale and at the same time impact the lives of 100 million people. We want to see people become more at ease with their finance, empowered and financially resilient”, said Joep.
Are you looking for an opportunity to scale? Check out our opportunities page.
Tags: fintech