The Road to the FinTech Innovation Lab 2022: Our Global Search for the Best in Tech

Before each new class of the FinTech Innovation Lab, we survey the technology priorities of senior financial services executives from over 40 leading firms. Based on their 2022 technology “wish list,” we put out a global search for next-generation solutions around blockchain, cyber-tech and resiliency, the future of work, financial inclusion, sustainability, and more.

In response, we received hundreds of applications from companies innovating across banking, wealth management and insurance. From these, ten will be selected for the next batch of companies in the New York FinTech Innovation Lab. While the FinTech Lab remains a highly competitive program, it also offers emerging tech companies a valuable opportunity — to get their technology in front of their target customers just by applying.

Senior technology executives from our 40+ partner financial institutions are actively involved in selecting each cohort. They both evaluate the initial written applications and, for the finalists, listen to the oral pitches and product demos. This participation means that applicants are given valuable feedback even during the selection process. “There’s no better way to test your product than to show it to the banks, insurance companies, venture capital firms, and private equity companies that are your future stakeholders,” said Andy Brown, CTO in Residence at the FinTech Innovation Lab.

Here’s an inside look at the finalists, those companies our financial institution partners are excited about this year:

2022 Finalists

AiCurio Technology Solutions (Philadelphia, PA)

Technology Area: Data (analytics for residential loans)

A deep learning artificial neural net cash flow underwriting engine for US residential mortgages — predicting monthly cashflows at the loan level.

Asa Financial (Provo, UT)

Technology Area: Vendor Management (fintech connectivity)

A trusted network that interconnects all fintechs with all banks — solves the regulatory and compliance risks allowing unlimited scale.

Coverforce (New York, NY)

Technology Area: Connectivity (platform-as-a-Service for agents/brokers)

An API-first technology developer, working with P&C carriers to standardize their distribution APIs and build a Platform-as-a-Service for agent/brokers.

Covie (Austin, TX)

Technology Area: Dev Ops

Provides carrier-neutral APIs and pre-built software components to developers allowing them to integrate insurance data, products, and servicing touchpoints into their applications.

Draivn (Den Haag, Netherlands)

Technology Area: Data (analytics for fleet insurance)

A holistic platform capable of consuming data from multiple telematics platforms modern fleets are equipped with, harmonizing data, and converting into insights and analytics for fleet insurers and brokers.

Evercity (Berlin, Germany)

Technology Area: ESG Asset Class (portfolio man, DA issuance)

A blockchain-based sustainability measurement and investment platform — automating issuance, management, and monitoring of sustainable finance.

FenrisD (Glen Allen, VA)

Technology Area: Data (conversion & cross-sell insights)

An API delivering insight and enrichment data that improves conversion and drives cross-sell/up-sale through lead scoring, enrichment and form pre-fill, and a first-of-its kind, automated Life Event Monitoring and Alerts (LEMA) platform.

Fonbnk, Inc. (Washington, DC)

Technology Area: Crypto (airline credit to crypto)

A DeFi onramp that enables users to convert their prepaid airtime credit into cryptocurrency.

Indie Tech (Toronto, Canada)

Technology Area: Vendor Management

An enterprise supplier market that harnesses the power of risk models found in capital markets and puts them into the hands of procurement, risk, and the C-suite to measure, monitor, and mitigate risk tied to suppliers in real-time.

Instnt (New York, NY)

Technology Area: Digital customer management (customer acceptance)

A fully managed customer acceptance platform that work like Google Analytics. Deployed on a business’s customer sign-up pages to verify and accept more than 95% of good customers in a compliant manner with zero fraud loss guarantee.

Ion Channel (Alexandria, VA)

Technology Area: Vendor Management .

A platform for managing third-party risk from software suppliers (vendors, outsourced app-dev contractors, and open source) — purpose built for risk owners.

LeapXpert (Hong Kong, China)

Technology Area: Digital customer communication

A Federated Messaging Orchestration Platform (FMOP) empowering employees to compliantly communicate through approved work collaboration tools — with internal and external parties who are using their preferred consumer messaging apps (WhatsApp, Signal, etc.).

Mark Labs (Washington, DC)

Technology Area: ESG Asset Class (portfolio management)

An AI/ML Outcomes as a Service platform — supporting asset managers to link their capital allocations to the pursuit of a defined, real world environmental and social impact outcomes alongside their targeted financial returns.

Messari (New York, NY)

Technology Area: Crypto (intelligence platform)

A market intelligence platform, combining curated news and analysis, in-depth market research, and a full site of diligence tools for crypto investors.

Noonum Fintech (Seattle, WA)

Technology Area: ESG Asset Class (portfolio creation/man)

An AI driven cloud service that empowers asset and wealth managers to create, monitor, and manage custom thematic portfolios (climate change, EVs, UN SDGs, and other ESG-related themes).

Opsmatix Systems Ltd. (London, UK)

Technology Area: Work-flow Automation

A SaaS product using AI-enabled case management and workflow to automate processes to free up staff for value-added tasks, reduce operational costs, improve customer service, help meet SLAs, and provide MI to allow management to maintain control, and reduce risk.

OTONOMI.ai (New York, NY)

Technology Area: New Insurance Products (cargo insurance)

A platform that provides digitized subscriptions via APIs, encrypted and independent event triggers, autonomous policies activation, and full integration of digital wallets and payments in the lifecycles of cargo insurance policies.

Phyllo (San Francisco, CA)

Technology Area: Future of Work (creative workforce platform)

A data aggregator enabling users to connect their workforce platform with any app for income and work verification. Users can control data shared through a consent layer, inspired by India’s account aggregator framework.

Praxis Labs (New York, NY)

Technology Area: Future of Work (VR training for D&I)

Offers immersive learning experiences in VR on diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice that harness the power of perspective-taking.

Railz (Toronto, Canada)

Technology Area: Data (API connectivity to SMBs)

An API solution that connects financial institutions and fintechs to different data sources (accounting, banking, tax, and payroll) SMBs utilize to make better decisions based on their financial data.

SoLo Funds (Los Angeles, CA)

Technology Area: DeFi (community driven neo-bank)

An on-demand marketplace where members can request and fund loans for emergency needs. To date, SoLo has processed millions of transactions — providing an equitable, community-driven lending alternative.

Straylight Systems (New York, NY)

Technology Area: Dev Ops

Artificial Intelligence for code development to help software developers and engineers instantly get documented, tests, secure, and configurable without proprietary technology via API.

Good luck to these finalists, and we look forward to announcing the winners this spring! Subscribe to receive updates about what’s next at the New York FinTech Innovation Lab.