Association for Financial Technology (AFT), a national association focused on helping Fintech firms in expanding their business through the responsible and effective use of technology, revealed on December 9 that it has provided non-equity grants to four different firms. The AFT’s members largely include software providers but also includes the Independent Community Bankers of America.
These companies reportedly include: Adlumin, Botdoc, MK Decision and Teslar Software. According to a release, these firms took part in the Independent Community Bankers of America’s ThinkTECH Accelerator program, held in Little Rock, Arkansas, at The Venture Center.
The grants will be covering the costs of AFT membership and they’ll also cover expenses involving participation in the spring and fall summits, which are scheduled for next year.
Brian Otte, director of sales of ProfitStars (a Jack Henry Company) Solutions and AFT president, stated that the AFT Fintech Grant Program, which is offered in association with partner ICBA, allows members to access “the talent and creativity coming from the early-stage Fintech segment of our industry.”
Kevin Tweddle, COO at ICBA Services Network pointed out that understanding the current technology landscape for American financial institutions is vital to the success of many new Fintech companies.
He explained that the grants will help these four firms to take part in and engage with the major financial technology services providers. This should help them “gain an understanding of business relationships, integrations and how they can advance their businesses,” Tweddle noted.
Teslar Software is an established provider of automated workflow and portfolio management software that is used by major financial institutions. The platform aims to boost operational efficiencies, allow for greater transparency and accountability “across the commercial lending process,” the release stated.
Adlumin is a compliance and cybersecurity automation platform designed specifically to handle finance-related tasks. It’s the Independent Community Bankers of America Preferred Solution Provider for the Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) platform. It uses advanced analytics and machine learning, and can reportedly be installed in about 20 minutes.
MK Decision is a Fintech firm that aims to simplify the lending process. The company assists community financial companies in “gaining a competitive advantage through simple … customer experiences and streamlined lender workflows,” the release noted.
Botdoc is a convenient, remote, real-time, digital, secure file transfer program that can be used via text messaging and email with end-to-end encryption.