Chip giant Intel is teaming up with Tel Aviv-based fintech hub The Floor to create an Israeli financial technology innovation lab.
The new lab will see Intel and The Floor's startups explore hot fintech areas such as distributed ledger technology, the Internet of Things and biometrics.
Sharon Puterman-Zafrir, manager, IoT, Intel Israel, says: "Through this collaboration, Intel will be able to lead, alongside The Floor, the development of this field in Israel and to widen the influence of technology on the financial field, from the user to the cloud."
Launched earlier this year and financially backed by Chinese-Israeli VC fund Pando Group, The Floor is aiming to follow in the footsteps of London's Level 39 and provide a focal point for the burgeoning Israeli fintech ecosystem of some 430 startups.
The hub already has backing from global banks HSBC, Intesa Sanpaolo, RBS and Santander as it seeks to secure Israel as the Middle East's premier financial technology hub. Visa has also opened an innovation lab in the country, while Barclays is taking its accelerator programme to Tel Aviv.