ScratchWorks announces the semi-finalists in its second annual
FinTech accelerator competition
BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–ScratchWorks, the first FinTech accelerator of its kind in the wealth
management industry, today announced the semi-finalists in its annual
competition. ScratchWorks connects innovative tech startups with wealth
management leaders to advance the digital transformation of the
financial services industry. The finalists will pitch their companies to
a panel of six industry luminaries whose firms represent over $60
billion in assets under management, with the goal of securing an
investment. ScratchWorks “Season 2” received 50 percent more
applications than last year, signifying an increase in emerging FinTech
players.
“The convergence of 21st century financial advice and financial
technology is upon us. Advisors who seek to optimize their service to
clients must not only embrace financial technology but also be part of
championing and supporting its development,” said Michael Nathanson,
Chairman and CEO of The Colony Group and one of the six judges on this
year’s panel. “ScratchWorks is leading the way in bringing financial
advisors and entrepreneurs together in the ultimate collaboration for
the future of the industry.”
And the 2019 ScratchWorks Semi-Finalists Are:
-
280 Capital Markets’ BondNav® delivers a
cloud-based fixed-income marketplace for investment advisors with
price clarity and context for each trade, supporting best execution. -
AdvicePay is an efficient, compliant,
data secure billing and payment processing solution created by and for
financial planners who are providing fee-for-service financial
planning. -
REallocate is building a turnkey platform
for advisors to access personalized, risk-based investment allocations
to professionally managed direct real estate investments via its
proprietary Allocation Intelligence (AI) engine. -
SolidusLink is a multi-dealer precious
metals trading platform capable of integrating with any bank or
custodian, so that both institutional and individual investors, as
well as their advisors, can access and hold real gold as easily as
stocks. -
Winston Matthews LLC is a virtual reality
development company providing financial institutions with a more
efficient and immersive experience to interact, educate and attract
more clients to their businesses.
The Investors
Finalists will be judged by members of ScratchWorks, a study group that
was founded by leaders from top wealth management and investment firms
across the country. The group started meeting regularly more than 10
years ago to discuss and debate industry trends. As a result of their
ongoing collaboration, they formed ScratchWorks to help discover and
grow ideas in the fintech space.
ScratchWorks welcomes a new investor this year, Shannon Eusey, CEO of
Beacon Pointe Advisors. Shannon joins Marty Bicknell, CEO and President
of Mariner Wealth Advisors; Richard M. Burridge, Jr., Founding Partner,
CEO, and Chief Investment Officer of RMB Capital; John D. Eadie, Founder
and Managing Director of Covenant; Jon Jones, CEO of Brighton Jones; and
Michael J. Nathanson, Chairman and CEO of The Colony Group on the 2019
investor panel.
“FinTech is critical to the evolving financial services sector.
Diversity of perspectives and ideas has historically led to the best and
most creative outcomes. FinTech is no different,” said Eusey. “The vast
diversity of emerging FinTech solutions is bringing unimaginable
solutions to bear for the great benefit of both advisors and investors.”
ScratchWorks is sponsored by Fidelity
Clearing & Custody Solutions and the University
of Colorado (CU) Leeds School of Business.
“ScratchWorks is an example of our profession at its best, bringing
together the experience and industry know-how of the investors and the
disruptive, creative thinking of FinTech startups,” said David Canter,
head of the registered investment advisor segment for Fidelity Clearing
& Custody Solutions. “This is a great opportunity for these FinTech
firms to get broader recognition in the industry.”
Last year’s panel made investments in two of the finalists,
InvestmentPOD and Snappy Kraken, a marketing platform that helps
advisors automate and streamline their prospecting and client service
activities. Less than one year later, Snappy Kraken has quadrupled its
customer lifetime value, increased its user acquisition rate by over 600
percent, and is on pace to double year-over-year revenue.
“Participating in ScratchWorks is about much more than securing an
investment — it’s about getting access to industry visionaries and their
depth of knowledge around what FinTech should accomplish,” noted Robert
Sofia, CEO of Snappy Kraken. “ScratchWorks does a fantastic job of
helping startups like ours get access to mentors who are both willing
and able to help us reach higher levels of success.”
Competition for this year’s funding will take place at the Barron’s Top
Independent Advisor Summit in March. For more information about
ScratchWorks, visit www.scratch.works.
Beacon Pointe Advisors, Mariner Wealth Advisors, RMB Capital, Covenant,
Brighton Jones, and The Colony Group are each an investment adviser
registered with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). Registration
with the SEC does not imply any level of skill or training. For
additional information about any of these registered investment
advisers, including fees and services, you can visit the websites linked
above or refer to the Investment Adviser Public Disclosure website (www.adviserinfo.sec.gov).
Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions® (“Fidelity”) is an
independent company, unaffiliated with ScratchWorks. The information and
opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and in no way
represent the advice, opinions, or recommendations of Fidelity. There is
no form of legal partnership, agency affiliation, or similar
relationship between Fidelity and the above financial advisors
referenced in this announcement, nor is such a relationship created or
implied by the information found herein. Fidelity Clearing & Custody
Solutions and Fidelity Investments are registered service marks of FMR
LLC. Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions® provides
clearing, custody, or other brokerage services through National
Financial Services LLC or Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Members NYSE,
SIPC. 837193.2.0
Contacts
Cait Burke
(401) 292-7540
Cait.Burke@fmr.com