Deutsche Bourse is to open up its offices to financial technology startups in Germany as part of a Government-sponsored initiative to create a fintech cluster in Frankfurt.
The German exchange says it will make fully equipped rooms available to new companies and start-ups in Frankfurt from April onwards, providing firms with on-site support from employees of the Deutsche Börse Venture Network to help founders develop their companies.
The initiative is part of a programme by the German Federal state of Hesse to promote an ecosystem for startups in the country's financial capital. The cluster is intended to provide FinTech start-up jobs, but will also serve as a centre for events, as well as a point of contact for visits from foreign delegations or for investor roadshows.
The objective is to create a central point of coordination for fintech startups, aligned with private sector initiatives from financial market participants.
Deutsche Börse already operates its own 'Open Innovation Forum' to incubate, develop and accelerate new business ideas coming from outside the group. The German exchange has also contributed financial backing to Illuminate Financial, a capital markets startup fund founded by Mark Beeston, the former head of Icap's post-trade and information division.
Hessia Minister of economics,Tarek Al-Wazir, says: “Deutsche Börse's initiative contributes to the emergence of a lively and diverse ecosystem in Frankfurt containing various start-up centres operated by financial market players with different focuses and profiles.”