Bank of Ireland announces opening of startlab NYC – a free workspace for startups in New York City
- Bank of Ireland becomes the first Irish Bank to open an incubation office space in New York City to support the Irish startup community
- Opportunity for seven Irish companies to grow sales, pursue investment and expansion opportunities in America
- Deposify, Pulsate and Axonista first three companies to join startlab NYC
Bank of Ireland is delighted to announce the opening of startlab NYC, an incubation space that will support Bank of Ireland startup customers seeking to scale their business and enter the US market. The collaborative space, located in Manhattan on the 41st floor of 2 Grand Central, is the first offering of its kind from an Irish bank outside of Ireland.
startlab NYC offers seven scalable technology companies the opportunity to have access to a free incubation space in New York City for a 12 month period. The Bank has selected innovative Irish tech startups Deposify, Pulsate and Axonista* to join startlab NYC and an application process for the remaining four places will open in the coming weeks.
In addition to working and meeting space in this central New York location, the selected teams will receive expert mentoring from Bank of Ireland’s dedicated innovation and corporate banking teams in both Ireland and the US to help them develop, grow and scale their business.
Bank of Ireland will work closely with the selected teams to help them get on their feet when they arrive, facilitating introductions to venture capitalists, state agencies and relevant intermediaries based in the city. The seven teams will also receive access to WebPort Global.
Dave Tighe, Head of Innovation, Bank of Ireland said, “At Bank of Ireland we are focused on fostering entrepreneurship, and helping our customers to grow their businesses. Having a free, professional, and highly sought after location to work from, in a city of real growth potential, is an invaluable support for entrepreneurs. Moving into the American market can be a daunting experience for an Irish startup. Our team in New York, along with our Innovation Team and Technology Sector specialists in Dublin, will give the seven companies who join startlab NYC all the support they need to scale their business, seek investment and – ultimately – grow and succeed Stateside.”
Tom Hayes, CEO, Corporate Banking at Bank of Ireland continued, “Today’s announcement further strengthens the Bank’s offering to the Irish technology sector. We are approving credit for technology sector companies on a daily basis. In January 2017 alone our approvals ranged from €300k for a healthcare software company to €3.1 million for an enterprise software company. On the equity side, Bank of Ireland has committed over €150m of own capital to venture capital funds such as Kernel Capital and Delta Partners. These funds have helped companies such as Feed Henry scale their business, and continue to support other upcoming technology companies.”
The decision to open startlab NYC was taken in response to demand from Bank of Ireland business customers and represents the next step in the bank’s aim to foster entrepreneurship. The incubator, specifically for scaling startups, is an extension of existing successful Bank of Ireland facilities already available in several locations in Dublin, and in Cork, Limerick and Galway, such as Workbench and startlab.
To apply for startlab NYC beginning in mid April, please go to https://businessbanking.bankofireland.com/campaigns/startlab/new-york/ and complete an application before March 31st
ENDS
Notes to editor:
*startlab NYC companies:
Pulsate founded by Patrick Leddy
Leading mobile marketers use Pulsate to drive sales from their app, increase user engagement and deliver experiences to build brand loyalty. www.Pulsatehq.com
Deposify founded by Jon Bayle
Deposify is an escrow service for security deposits that lets landlords and tenants manage and control how and when deposits are paid and resolve deposit related disputes quickly and cheaply. www.deposify.com
Axonista founded by Claire McHugh
Axonista is a leading interactive video technology provider that helps companies to address the increasing convergence of television and mobile by enabling the delivery of intuitive, personalised and monetisable content experiences. Founded in 2010, the company offers cloud-based software solutions which work seamlessly with linear, OTT (Over The Top) and VR (Virtual Reality) platforms, supporting devices based on Apple’s iOS and tvOS, Google Android, Roku and Oculus
About WebPort Global
WebPort Global is a specialist platform designed to support firms wishing to develop or expand their export capabilities. The service, which introduces firms to purchasing and selling opportunities abroad, will now be available free to Bank of Ireland customers.