Sep 6, 2023

Founders Arena WealthTech Accelerator Announces First Cohort, Including Frisco Tax Startup In partnership with First Rate Inc., SEI, and the city of Arlington, the WealthTech Accelerator is launching in Arlington with a global group that includes Frisco-based Tax Status and five other companies from as far away as Australia and Belgium. The Founders Arena program will consist of a combination of remote and in-person programming, to be headquartered out of the new First Rate, Inc. campus on Ascension Boulevard in North Arlington. [Photo: Founders Arena] The Founders Arena WealthTech Accelerator, in partnership with First Rate Inc., SEI, and the city of Arlington, announced its first cohort—a global group that includes one North Texas startup—to participate in its inaugural accelerator program in Arlington. Frisco-based Tax Status is one of the six companies in the cohort, which also includes Charityvest, InvestSuite, Lumiant.io, Manifest, and Sora Finance. The other companies in the cohort come from as far away as Australia and Belgium. “We’re on the cusp of the largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in history, and the wealth management industry needs to evolve to cater to the expectations of these tech-savvy clients,” Founders Arena President Pamela Cytron said in a statement. “The companies who have made it into our first cohort are purpose-built to address this shift and will bring much needed technological innovation to the industry.” The accelerator said that as part of the selection, it’s calling on wealth management firms, banks, and other financial institutions to sign up for a series of “VIP Days” in which executives will be able to connect directly with innovative global WealthTech founders. “Banks and large enterprises in the wealth management sector are eager to leverage the innovative products being built by WealthTech entrepreneurs,” Paul Hatch, founding partner and CEO of Vestria Capital, said in a statement. “We’ve heard time and again that participating in accelerator programs like this offers opportunities to do a year’s worth of research and development in a single day.” Seeking digital-first solutions Members of the inaugural cohort of the The Founders Arena WealthTech Accelerator in Arlington. [Photo: Founders Arena] The international group of entrepreneurs chosen offer unique solutions across cultures and generations, addressing the needs of industries that are rapidly working to update their systems to provide solutions to a new generation of individuals, Founders Arena said. It said that many of these companies may expect a new type of digital-first experience that was not previously provided. Unlike most traditional accelerator programs, the companies in this cohort have all been previously funded, and generating revenue, with an average raise of $6 million in funding to date, and annual recurring revenue of $1 million. The 10-week intensive program will focus on helping early- to growth-stage WealthTech founders scale their revenues and build impactful products that banks and wealth management companies can use to better serve their clients. Founders Arena said that research shows that the baby boomer generation is set to transfer roughly $84 trillion in assets through 2045, much of it going to their Gen X and millennial heirs, who are rooted in digital-first solutions. That makes the coming years one of the greatest wealth transfers in history, Founders Arena said. Companies in the inaugural accelerator Per Founders Arena, here’s more about the companies selected for the first cohort: Tax Status is a Frisco-based fully digital IRS account monitoring solution that provides continuous access to income and all official IRS financial data on any business or individual. With analytics and ongoing monitoring capabilities, Tax Status delivers critical notifications and insights that wealth advisors, lenders, businesses, and individuals can use to make more informed decisions. Tax Status is based in Frisco. Charityvest is an Atlanta, Georgia-based sponsor of modern donor-advised funds (DAFs) leveraging technology to create a premier charitable giving experience for free or low fee. Charityvest’s intuitive design makes a traditionally complex financial product both simpler and more powerful, enabling tax-smart, purposeful philanthropy to be more attractive, efficient, and accessible to donors large and small. To date, Charityvest has facilitated nearly $100 million in total giving across thousands of donors. InvestSuite—based in Leuven, Belgium—enables financial institutions to launch award-winning investment platforms in months rather than years. Their suite of white-label InvestTech solutions are used by global companies to extend their product range in an agile, fast, and cost-effective way so they can stay ahead of the curve and thrive in an increasingly digital world. Lumiant.io—based in Sydney, Australia—offers a cloud-based client experience and engagement platform where clients and their advisors connect around their lives, values and finances, helping them make better choices and live their best lives confidently. Its suite of tools allow advisors to identify, track, and measure goals, strategies and tasks to shape and sustain extraordinary lives for their clients. Manifest is based in Chicago and aims to offer the easiest way to consolidate old retirement accounts. Employers can start distributing the responsive web app to their participants with less than an hour of effort. In the last six months, the team has transferred $350M+ in plan assets, and they are now building the pipes between the 401(k) providers. Sora Finance is based in San Francisco and provides credit management and liability optimization as a service, enabling advisors to grow clients’ net worth by managing across the full balance sheet. Sora’s software offers a live look into existing debt, advanced analytics, and insights on the lender ecosystem, proactively alerting advisors to ways clients can save money on their consumer liabilities. Founded in November 2021, Sora now partners with 160+ RIAs recently striking a partnership with Focus Financial Partners, actively managing $600M+ in client liabilities and has raised $3.925M to date. “The Founders Arena WealthTech Accelerator is an important catalyst for emerging financial services technology,” Russ Kliman, global head of SEI Ventures, said in a statement. “We’re excited to partner with Founders Arena to explore how SEI’s breadth of capabilities, our unique industry position, and the WealthTech accelerator programs can help power innovation, unlock growth, and build brave futures℠ for entrepreneurs, our clients, and the industry.” Based in Arlington, Founders Arena Inc. is an innovative WealthTech accelerator dedicated to supporting early-stage WealthTech companies globally by providing resources, mentorship, and collaboration opportunities. The company says that it goes beyond traditional accelerators by actively engaging the local community and partners including the city of Arlington, First Rate Inc. and SEI. Get on the list. Dallas Innovates, every day. Sign up to keep your eye on what’s new and next in Dallas-Fort Worth, every day. One quick signup, and you’re done. The Founders Arena WealthTech Accelerator—a 10-week program aimed at early- to growth-stage startups—will be offered beginning September 4. It aims to connect participants with potential customers and investors while supporting "the creation of innovative products that banks and wealth management companies can use to better serve their clients." Broderick Green, executive director of the Arlington EDC, calls the accelerator "a first of its kind not only for Arlington but globally." MassChallenge, a nonprofit connector of startups, founders, entrepreneurs, corporations, and communities, kicked off a partnership with Lyda Hill Philanthropies at the MC | Innovate 2023 Conference July 11-13 at Pegasus Park in Dallas. The MassChallenge event launched a strong North Texas presence with Pegasus Park serving as home for the Health Tech Track within the nonprofit's U.S. Early Stage Accelerator Program. "Lyda Hill Philanthropies is pleased to participate in the MC | Innovate experience as entrepreneurial leaders from various locations and industries convene to help solve some of our world's most critical challenges." Tom Luce, CEO of Biotech Initiatives for… The Dallas-based serial entrepreneur and business exec will share his take on the impact of mentorship at the awards event in September. His storied career, which includes a successful turnaround of Kinkos and its sale to FedEx, spans retail and gaming to cosmetics and private equity. Nominations for mentors opened on August 20. MassChallenge brought together more than 200 startups, investors, and corporates from the U.S. and beyond for a three-day gathering at Dallas' Pegasus Park. The Boston-based nonprofit accelerator, which expanded to North Texas last year, showcased its new hub as a center of innovation and entrepreneurship. TAGS: