The fifth installment of the Female Founders in Tech program, Female Founders in FinTech 2019 is now live and accepting applications from women-led startups with technology product offerings that are applicable to the financial services industry. Qualified startups from around the globe are encouraged to apply through November 18.
With the support of returning presenting level sponsor Wells Fargo and contributing sponsors Shearman & Sterling LLP and Valley Bank, the Female Founders in FinTech program will once again work to raise awareness for women startup leaders and award them with cash, mentorship, educational opportunities and more.
“Quesnay’s Female Founders in FinTech provides a visible platform for women-led startups to share and refine their big ideas,”
said Lisa Frazier, head of Wells Fargo’s Innovation Group.
“Through the competition they receive the mentoring, hands-on experience, and the opportunity to help scale their concepts and become the next generation of tech leaders.”
The Female Founders in Tech program has reached more than 40 countries, and Quesnay will work with partners to entice a broad intersection of applicants again in 2019. Once submissions close on November 18, over 100 expert judges from the financial services industry will evaluate applications based on a set of criteria, including impact on the industry and differentiation in the market, to determine five finalists in early 2020. Program sponsors’ executives will mentor the finalists, assisting them with presentation preparation, business model refinement and best practices on how to scale with corporate partners & customers. The grand finale pitch event will take place in New York in early February where the winners will be announced.
Following the final event, Quesnay’s program will continue to support participating fintechs with a more robust mentorship program comprised of 1-on-1 legal coaching from Shearman & Sterling, fundraising do’s and don’ts with leading Silicon Valley venture firm Commerce Ventures and scaleup coaching by executive sponsors.
Additional prizes and mentorship opportunities awarded include:
Winners
Cash prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners
A delegate pass for the SALT Conference Las Vegas for the first place winner
Fast track consideration for the Mastercard Start Path program for the first place winner
100% Scholarship to IE Business School's 2-day Venture Capital Program for the People’s Choice Winner
Top 15 applicants
Introduction to the founder of Innovation Women to help access more speaking and visibility opportunities and complimentary 1-year access to Innovation Women’s speaker placement platform
All applicants
Ellevest virtual financial planning workshop
Invitation to attend a virtual interactive info session from the Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator
See the full list of prizes, competition rules, FAQs, and more on the Female Founders in FinTech page.
The Female Founders in Tech series was launched in 2017 to address the lack of visibility, funding, and mentorship available to female-led startups while also facilitating mutually beneficial partnerships among startups and corporate partners. See an overview of the series here.