The Detroit Fintech Bay named Flagstar Bank the founding partner of the North American Fintech hub. Detroit FinTech Bay brings together governmental bodies, financial institutions, corporations, venture capital, FinTech startups and other organizations.
"Partnering with Detroit FinTech Bay is a strategic partnership for Flagstar Bank," said Jennifer Charters, chief information officer at Flagstar. "We're excited to work alongside innovative startups, corporations and investors as we explore opportunities to collaborate on our expanding lineup of technology-enabled solutions—all while partnering to support this fintech ecosystem in our backyard." The FinTech Consortium accelerates the development of financial technology.
As the nation's fifth largest bank mortgage originator, Flagstar has a historical legacy in the fintech mortgage industry. Flagstar expanding its presence, both geographically and technologically. It’s in the process of acquiring 52 Wells Fargo bank branches, slated to close at the beginning of December.
A key mission of Detroit FinTech Bay will be to drive collaboration between the great minds creating innovative FinTech solutions, and the institutions who need those solutions. Within the space, the community of residents, investors, and institutions will thrive through leadership courses and activities, monthly classes, hackathons, demo days, pitch practice, mentorship relationships, and more. Talent development, education and access to investment capital are additional hallmarks of the FinTech hub model.
"Flagstar's commitment to fintech, and especially their commitment to Detroit and Michigan, make them a great fit for Detroit FinTech Bay,” said Maissan Almaskati, managing partner of the FinTech Consortium. “Their investment in Detroit's fintech ecosystem comes at an important time in their history, as great strides are being made in Flagstar's fintech offerings."
The model of bringing together banks, corporations and startups has a proven track record of accelerating creativity and growth for everyone involved, based on findings from the original Fintech Bays in Singapore and Bahrain, where over 600 startups completed the program.
