Global fintech and funding innovation ecosystem
September 9, 2019   NCFA Blog, NCFA Press Releases, Press Releases   No comments

Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry Partner

NCFA Canada | Craig Asano | Sep 9, 2019

holt accelerator 1 - Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry Partner

TORONTO and MONTREAL, September 9, 2019  The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada (NCFA) is pleased to announce that Holt Accelerator has joined NCFA as an industry partner.

NCFA's industry partners are builders, investors and innovators who have provided a significant level of service and/or contribution towards the sustainability and growth of NCFA and related fintech sectors globally.  We encourage the fintech ecosystem to support and collaborate with NCFA's global network of industry partners by engaging directly with their ventures of mutual interest.

The name, Holt, is in honour of Sir Herbert Holt, who immigrated to Canada at the age of 18 in the late 1800's. He went on to become the longest serving president of the Royal Bank of Canada, Chairman of the Light, Heat and Power Company (formerly Hydro Quebec), and had controlling stakes or influence in another 300 companies internationally. His great, great grandson, Brendan Holt Dunn, wanted to give back to the Canadian ecosystem with the creation of the Holt Accelerator. Jan Christopher Arp would join as cofounder, and craft / implement the vision of building a fintech platform that accelerates the adoption of fintech solutions our society desperately needs.

"Our family has a history of investing, growing, supporting, and building financial companies for  the past five generations. With the rising need to support the customer journey through fintech adoption, we have decided to launch Holt Accelerator that focuses on integrating FinTech businesses with Canada’s best innovation partners, while expanding their international network.”  – Brendan Holt Dunn, Managing Partner, Holt Accelerator

"Since launching in 2017 the Holt Accelerator has been relentlessly pursuing the growth and development of leading Fintechs in Canada and around the globe.  This partnership is a testament to the valuable bridges being built coast-to-coast, and our collective commitment to support and strengthen the innovation finance ecosystem in the country and around the globe.” – Craig Asano, Founding CEO, NCFA

 

The best place to connect and get more information is at holtaccelerator.ai.

Holt Accelerator joins NCFA as an industry partner - Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry Partner

NCFA Interview with Jan Christopher Arp, Managing Partner, Holt Accelerator

What type of companies and investors does Holt work with, and how does Holt add value and accelerate its portfolio? 

Holt Accelerator seeks fintech companies that solve our 250+ Advisors biggest problems. Specifically, it's about finding the world's best fintechs at home and abroad and matching them with problem owners of financial institutions, as well as providing resources and connections to make a deal. Resources and connections include funding (or access to investors), product development (i.e. through partners or Advisors), or engagement with other relevant stakeholders. The result, companies in our portfolio have closed six-figure customer deals with financial institutions, raised multi-million seed rounds, or international portfolio companies have established Canadian subsidiary offices.

 

What fintech models do you get most excited about today and where do you see exponential growth happening in 1-3 years out?

Many areas excite us, but to name a few:

  • Improved customer profiling for either augmented due diligence, streamlined on-boarding, AML / KYC requirements, and/or increasing sales, as well as improved protection of the associated profile data,
  • Improving financial inclusion through lending, such as "niche" lending products or alternative credit scoring,
  • Democratizing access to existing and emerging asset classes for the masses,
  • Building infrastructure for blockchain during the "crypto winter", with special consideration for securitize token offerings (STOs).

 

Can you give us a run-down of the current cohort?  What’s on the horizon and how best can investors and interested parties meet these amazing Holt-backed fintech founders?

After processing close to 600 applications from 74 countries, we've chosen the top 1% that are best suited to solve Canada's greatest challenges. If you are interested in becoming an Advisor, then take a look at our current cohort below, and let us know which company speaks to you. We will be in Vancouver, Toronto, Waterloo and Montreal, providing a chance to meet them in person, or reach us and we'll make the connection. Our current cohort includes:

  1. Conatix – a cybersecurity firm preventing fraud and data theft from the inside. Conatix helps banks detect suspicious employee activity, improper behavior, policy violations and other threats on IT networks with thousands of employees, in real time.
  2. ConfirmU - helping individuals with little or no credit history gain access to financial products by combining financial data and psycholinguistics into an alternative credit scoring system.
  3. HodlBot - a Canadian based customizable cryptocurrency trading bot that enables users to index the market, create and automatically rebalance their cryptocurrency portfolios.
  4. LexAlign - LexAlign PBC automates the "missing piece" for fraud and AML risk management: the ongoing monitoring, gap analysis and support of customer processes at scale, including for remote deposit capture (RDC), ACH and wires.
  5. Maat.ai - modernizing finance by creating new and compliant digital document management solutions. Their digital ID and wallet make secure interactions easy. This Mexican Fintech is enabling people and organizations to exchange digital documents safely, easily and efficiently, improving the experience for all parties.
  6. Manzil - many of the world's 1 billion Muslims cannot pay or receive interest on financial transactions, hindering their ability to purchase a home. Manzil offers them a murabaha mortgage, balancing modern business practices and religious obligations.
  7. MarketsFlow - tackling the performance gap in do-it-yourself digital wealth management, MarketsFlow offers a portfolio optimization platform delivering high returns for online investors. This British firm consistently outperforms other robo-advisors available today.
  8. WealthBlock.AI - US based WealthBlock.AI invites investors to view financial documents via a secure link and tracks the interaction between these investors and the entrepreneurs, to gauge interest and streamline follow ups.

What are the biggest opportunities and challenges with Fintech in Canada and how can industry, government and key stakeholders best lead the way for a sustainable and successful future?

Canada's biggest threat (and biggest opportunity) is our current inability to sync our world-class cities and provinces from coast-to-coast. The result, slow to advance on pressing matters, such as implementing our own Open Banking Framework (i.e. we are at minimum 5 years behind leaders, and the gap is growing), or defining a strategic direction for our Nation.

“Holt Accelerator will be hosting Deal Day's in various cities across Canada over the next several weeks, and we hope fintech leaders do their part to attend this nation-wide effort to unite us. If you can't engage now, then we encourage you to engage with other events / players, like our partners at NFCA, who have been doing some great work in the space for some time now.” Jan Christopher Arp, Managing Partner, Holt Accelerator

# # #

About NCFA

The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada.  For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org

About Holt Accelerator

The Holt family legacy is rooted in tradition and entrepreneurship. Our history of investing, growing, supporting, and building financial companies for the past five generations, has led us to create the Fintech accelerator, powered by an AI solutions provider.  For more information, please visit https://www.holtaccelerator.ai/

 

CONTACTS:
Craig Asano
Founder and CEO
NCFA Canada
casano@ncfacanada.org

Jan Christopher Arp
Managing Partner
Holt Accelerator
jan@holtaccelerator.ai

Latest news - Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry PartnerFF Logo 400 v3 - Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry Partnercommunity social impact - Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry Partner

Support NCFA by Following us on Twitter!







NCFA Sign up for our newsletter - Holt Accelerator Joins NCFA as an Industry Partner




 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

five × 1 =