Fintech Innovation “Open Banking Hackathon” accepts applications from CEE & SEE projects
Open Banking continues to make progress despite the pandemic and last year’s hackathon has proven that fintechs are more and more adaptable to transforming the financial services industry.
“Innovation has become a shared goal, with the benefits of closer partnerships filtering down to the consumer. Better products and services are being created every day, with the added benefits of a more interconnected and open financial ecosystem.” states Cosmin Cosma, Co-Founder and CEO of Finqware.
At its 3rd CEE edition, Open Banking Hackathon will take place between 29 September – 3 October 2021. Registrations are open until September 19th, 2021.
Teams from 10 European countries are invited to take part in the challenge:
- Austria
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Greece
- Hungary
- Poland
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
During the 5 days of the hackathon, the teams will cover 3 main challenges:
- Open Banking for Individuals – personal finance management applications; robo-advisory for increasing financial health; increase financial inclusiveness; next level payment solutions.
- Open Banking for Business – optimising treasury management for corporates; smart financial management for SMEs; cross border FX hedging for corporates; bulk payments scenarios over payment initiation.
- Open Banking for IoT – using wearables to manage financial life; automotive software applications; smart cities.
Last year, more than 40 teams joined the competition, with winners gaining cash awards of up to €5,000, PoC partnerships, and numerous other partner benefits.
“I am incredibly excited by the projects Open Banking Hackathon has uncovered and I believe this year can bring even more interesting projects in the spotlight. The event is a launching pad for early-stage projects and a first step in the collaboration with financial institutions and relevant fintech players,” states Cosmin Cosma, the initiator of the event.
Supported throughout the years by important financial institutions such as National Bank of Romania, Alpha Bank, Banca Comerciala Romana, Raiffeisen Bank, Banca Transilvania, OTP Bank, Varengold Bank, BRD SocGen and Unicredit Bulbank the event has managed to grow year by year into a relevant resource hub and a launching platform for starting fintechs.
Other supporting partners who have continuously contributed to the success of the event are companies such as the international law firm CMS, DHL Express Romania, fintech associations, innovation communities and startup accelerators from Hungary (OTP Lab), Austria (Elevator Lab, Pioneers), Romania (Mindspace, Techcelerator, InnovX, Rofin.Tech, Startup Grind Bucharest), Bulgaria (Bulgaria Fintech, Eleven Accelerator), Slovakia (Slovak Fintech) with many more discussing to join the event.
