After announcing the suspension of operations in December of last year, the United Kingdom bank Barclays announces that it is selling the financial technology center Rise Vilnius, which connects international start-up communities. The Vilnius space, which currently brings together 34 companies, is acquired by "Swedbank". Barclays and Swedbank plan to complete this transaction by 2019. July 1
Aims to ensure business continuity
According to Mariano Andrade Gonzalez, head of the Barclays operations center in Lithuania (BGOL), the search for the new owner of Rise Vilnius and the smooth transfer of the FinTech space began after the decision to stop the operations center in Lithuania.
"I have no doubt that the establishment of Rise Vilnius strongly contributed to the improvement and development of the field of financial technologies in Lithuania. As Lithuania establishes itself as one of the leading FinTech centers in the world, we want the work we started together with Rise Vilnius to continue," says MA Gonzalez.
He emphasizes that the candidates who showed interest in acquiring Rise Vilnius were carefully selected in order for the new owner to continue to maintain the continuity of operations and be a good partner for existing and future startups. According to MA Gonzalez, Swedbank best met all the criteria as it seeks to strengthen its contribution to the FinTech sector and is one of the largest banks in the Baltic region.
Create new opportunities for startups
According to the chairman of the board of Swedbank in Lithuania, Dovilė Grigienė, this transaction shows that Lithuania will maintain the leadership position of the high-tech incubator in the field of innovation and financial technology.
"We are ready to ensure the continuity of the successful activities of Rise Vilnius and its further development. Swedbank's aspirations in Lithuania are long-term, we want to promote the creation of digital innovations that open up new opportunities for residents, businesses and the state. We will strive for Rise Vilnius to be a home for digital innovations and a growing financial technology community," says D. Grigienė.
Swedbank expects close cooperation with startups and their community, will be open to new partnerships and will use its existing network to offer startups new development opportunities.
Rise Vilnius, opened by Barclays Bank in July 2016, was one of several FinTech centers located in major cities around the world, including Mumbai, Tel Aviv, London and New York. This space is not only a physical workplace, but also a place for quality events and mentoring sessions. Currently, the center has 64 members and unites 34 companies. Rise Vilnius cooperates with projects such as Women Go Tech, Future Entrepreneurs, Diversity Charter, Facebook Developer Circles and DEX Mettup.
