FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: TUESDAY 2 MARCH 2021

The Investment Association (IA) has today revealed the latest cohort of FinTech firms joining the Engine Innovator Programme, the IA’s specialist FinTech accelerator and innovation hub for the investment management industry.

Following a thorough selection process, the following five leading FinTech firms were selected by the Engine Advisory Panel for their innovative solutions, focused on enhancing business efficiency and the customer experience across investment management: 

• Acin – Acin has built a technology platform that digitises operational risk so it can be quantitatively managed, as well as connecting organisations together into a network that ensures risks and controls are complete, effective, calibrated to the market and efficient.
• Auquan – Auquan helps investment teams discover alpha opportunities from 120,000+ online data sources by surfacing only the most relevant information and filtering out noise.
• ESGi – ESGi is an Innovative technology solution, sourcing trusted ESG data for the investment industry.
• Jacobi – Jacobi provides multi asset technology to scale and connect investment and client engagement processes.
• Net Purpose – Net Purpose is the world’s first dedicated data provider for responsible, sustainable and impact investors.

The latest cohort was announced at today’s IA EmTech Futures event, which featured a keynote speech from the Lord Mayor of the City of London, William Russell, and a presentation from Bim Afolami MP. There were also panel discussions with representatives from firms who previously participated in the IA’s FinTech accelerator programme.

Gillian Painter, Head of Membership and the Engine at the Investment Association, said:

“Covid-19 has shown the art of the possible when it comes to tech adoption. The pandemic also serves as a reminder of how investment managers are pursuing technological avenues to help resolve the business challenges not just of the day, but also future-proofing for the changing needs of our clients.

“That’s why I’m delighted to congratulate Acin, Auquan, ESGi, Jacobi and Net Purpose on successfully securing a place in the latest Engine cohort. They will now join Engine’s firmly established community of FinTechs with deep links across the investment management industry, on their mission to drive innovation and ensure our industry remains world-leading.”

During the six-month programme, which is currently scheduled to conclude in September 2021, the FinTech firms will benefit from unparalleled access to the IA and industry expertise, and will gain valuable exposure to industry networks and potential clients. Participants also benefit from mentoring from the industry-expert Engine Advisory Panel, which helps firms unlock their potential and implement solutions throughout the industry.

Since the launch of the IA’s FinTech accelerator and innovation hub in 2018, the Engine has successfully worked with three cohorts of innovators and now has over 140 FinTech firms benefiting from Engine ecosystem.

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Katie Martin, Head of Communications: [email protected]

Helen Ayres, Communications Manager: [email protected]

David Parton, Communications Executive: [email protected]

T +44 (0)20 7831 0898

IA press office: [email protected]

About the Investment Association (IA):

• The IA champions UK investment management, supporting British savers, investors and businesses. Our 250 members manage £8.5 trillion of assets and the investment management industry supports 113,000 jobs across the UK.
• Our mission is to make investment better. Better for clients, so they achieve their financial goals. Better for companies, so they get the capital they need to grow. And better for the economy, so everyone prospers.
• Our purpose is to ensure investment managers are in the best possible position to:
  • Build people’s resilience to financial adversity
  • Help people achieve their financial aspirations
  • Enable people to maintain a decent standard of living as they grow older
  • Contribute to economic growth through the efficient allocation of capital.
• The money our members manage is in a wide variety of investment vehicles including authorised investment funds, pension funds and stocks and shares ISAs.
• The UK is the second largest investment management centre in the world, after the US and manages 35% of all assets managed in Europe.

About the Engine:

• The Engine was launched by the IA under its former name, Velocity, in 2018 as the FinTech hub and accelerator programme for the investment management industry. Engine’s mission is to fuel the adoption of technology within investment management, for the benefit and changing needs of clients.
• The hub and Innovator Programme brings together FinTech firms with ‘market-viable’ technology tailored to the investment management industry, supported by industry practitioners from across the IA membership, and provides them with resources and expertise designed to help support their growth and the uptake of new technologies within the industry.
• The evolution of the IA’s FinTech offering from Velocity to Engine reflects the growth and maturing of the IA’s FinTech ambitions. Since launching, the IA has expanded its FinTech offering to include FinTech membership of the IA, launched a co-working ‘Engine Room’ in Birmingham, and developed global FinTech initiatives and partnerships.