Toronto-based Bank of Montreal (BMO) is extending its partnership with the DMZ business incubator at Ryerson University in Toronto to launch the DMZ-BMO Fintech Accelerator program for financial technology startups.
The goal of the partnership is to foster innovation and growth for financial services technology startups and identify the ideas BMO can integrate and take to scale quickly.
The program, which will take place at Ryerson’s DMZ, will include: a four-month incubation period in Toronto for the top six selected entrepreneurs; mentorship from BMO leaders throughout the process; and a culminating event in which each finalist will pitch its technology to a panel of BMO and industry-expert judges for a chance to execute a pilot with the bank and additional cash prizes.
The new program follows The Next Big Idea in Fintech program that the two organizations partnered on last year, in which FormHero and its platform of reimagining forms to simplify BMO customers’ experience has since undergone a proof of concept with the bank.
“Innovation, and continuously evolving with our customers’ needs, is a constant driver for all that we do at BMO, which is why this expanded partnership with the DMZ is a natural fit,” says Andrew Irvine, head, Canadian business banking and BMO partners, with the bank in a statement.
“Partnerships in fintech are a key element to building innovations that offer opportunities to benefit Canadian consumers and businesses alike,” adds Abdullah Snobar, executive director of the DMZ at Ryerson University, in a statment. “The DMZ-BMO Fintech Accelerator not only signals a desire to facilitate a dynamic financial services sector, but will also provide the country’s best tech startups with the opportunity to receive critical resources to help grow their business.”
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