Aditya Birla Group Opens Application For BizLabs Fintech 2019

Aditya Birla Group is inviting applications from Indian fintech startups for the newest edition of Bizlabs Fintech 2019, an accelerator-like platform for Indian startups. BizLabs gives startups access to market and new customers, which they can leverage to rapidly scale up with support from the conglomerate’s global reach and business expertise.

With AuM of more than INR 3K Bn and a consolidated lending book of over INR 630 Bn, Aditya Birla Capital Limited clocks over 30K online transactions daily. It has a presence across general insurance, securities and commodity broking, wealth management and distressed asset investment.

This is the fourth edition of BizLabs, however, it’s the first time the company is focussing solely on B2B fintech. Through earlier editions, the group has collaborated with a total of 20 startups across retail, mobility and financial services. The list includes names such as Tookitaki, Vserv, mSwipe, Tonetag, Coverfox Insurance, Bankbazaar, Faircent among others.

BizLabs Fintech 2019: What’s In It For Fintech Startups?

Startups operating in insurtech, asset management, wealthtech, securities tech, digital lending, analytics and productivity tech can apply for the BizLabs Fintech 2019 programme. Applicants need to have a working solution offering a differentiated proposition, a growing customer base and a passionate team.

The selected startups will make their presentation to CXOs and Aditya Birla Group’s in-house industry experts. A shortlisted few will then get an opportunity to interact with the CXO’s and plan pilots for market access.

The BizLabs Fintech 2019 programme claims this as an opportunity to scale up within 90 days. Post the pilot phase, the startups will give their final presentation to Business Directors for a chance to further collaborate and even gain investment.

The applications will remain open till August 14, 2019.

Digital Insurance And Wealth Management In India: A New Opportunity

According to a new report by EY, the adoption of fintech rose to over 60%, of which the significant chunk was contributed by emerging markets such as India and China.

The Global Fintech Adoption Index 2019 report said that both Asian countries have about 99.5% of consumers aware of money transfer and mobile payment platforms and standards. The adoption rate in both China and India stand at 87%, followed by Russia and South Africa at 82%.

Among the fintech areas, insurance and wealth management have recently emerged as the new growth categories. The entry of players like Flipkart and Paytm in wealth management, while new platforms such as Cube Wealth by successful entrepreneur and investor Satyen Kothari and INDWealth by Ashish Kashyap are acting as catalysts for the ecosystem.

The recent $19 Mn funding of insurance startup RenewBuy is a testament to the investor interest, while Paytm is in talks with Coverfox for an acquisition deal. Additionally, foreign players such as Israel-based digital insurance solutions provider Sapiens International are also eyeing this sector for further expansion. Overall, the insurance market in India is expected to grow to $280 Bn by FY2020 and the use of emerging technologies will drive the next phase of growth for this sector.

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