Fiery competition sees nine start ups selected for DBS HotSpot 2016 Pre-Accelerator programme

Singapore, 21 Jul 2016 - Following an intense three months of training and experimentation, nine start-ups were selected from DBS’s HotSpot Bootcamp to move on to the next stage – the Pre-Accelerator.

Now in its second year, DBS HotSpot 2016 attracted over 250 applications from diverse sectors, including finance and digital technology, food and beverage and travel. In addition to those from the start-up community, the programme welcomed social entrepreneurs and aspiring innovators from within DBS itself – the bank  encourages its own staff with innovative ideas to take part. Out of these, 29 teams were chosen for the DBS HotSpot Bootcamp before nine were eventually picked for the final segment of the programme.

As part of the Pre-Accelerator, the nine teams will receive a SGD 25,000 entrepreneur award, which does not require the teams to give up any equity. This will give them a boost as they continue to focus on product development and sales strategies. They will also receive legal advice and training on skills such as marketing and pitch presentations as they work towards securing funding from the investment community.

“Over the past few months, the mentors in HotSpot had only good things to say about all the start-ups they worked with. But these nine teams really stood out against their peers and had progressed tremendously during Bootcamp. While we would have loved to work with more of the start-ups, competition was tough and we had to be selective of who we could fund for the Pre-Accelerator. It was not an easy decision,” said Neal Cross, DBS’ Chief Innovation Officer. 

The teams were chosen based on the clarity of their ideas and concepts, how innovative their idea was and the viability of their business solution. They were selected by DBS executives and partners.

Said Jeffery Sung, co-founder of HugProperty.com and a Senior Vice President at DBS, “"Hotspot showed me how truly important it is to change, and change fast until the customer falls in love with us. The support I got from both the local start-up community and DBS was immense. It’s truly amazing how the bank is empowering our people and the experience has been invaluable in helping me see how to better serve customers."

Added Yuhwen Foong, Founder & CEO of SushiVid, “HotSpot Bootcamp has given me an excellent overview of all the tasks that I needed to consider to scale my business.  The team at DBS Innovation Group is really amazing and very passionate about start-ups.”

DBS HotSpot 2016 Pre-Accelerator will begin in August and culminate in November on Demo Day where the final nine teams will pitch their businesses to a live audience of corporate executives, angel and venture capital investors and accelerators from the region.

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About DBS
DBS - Living, Breathing Asia
DBS is a leading financial services group in Asia, with over 280 branches across 18 markets. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, DBS has a growing presence in the three key Asian axes of growth: Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The bank's capital position, as well as "AA-" and "Aa1" credit ratings, is among the highest in Asia-Pacific.

DBS is at the forefront of leveraging digital technology to shape the future of banking, and has been named “World’s Best Digital Bank” by Euromoney. The bank has also been recognised for its leadership in the region, having been conferred “Asia’s Best Bank” by The Banker and Euromoney, and “Asian Bank of the Year” by IFR Asia. The bank has also been named “Safest Bank in Asia” by Global Finance for seven consecutive years from 2009 to 2015.

DBS provides a full range of services in consumer, SME and corporate banking. As a bank born and bred in Asia, DBS understands the intricacies of doing business in the region’s most dynamic markets. DBS is committed to building lasting relationships with customers, and positively impacting communities through supporting social enterprises, as it banks the Asian way. It has also established a SGD 50 million foundation to strengthen its corporate social responsibility efforts in Singapore and across Asia.

With its extensive network of operations in Asia and emphasis on engaging and empowering its staff, DBS presents exciting career opportunities. The bank acknowledges the passion, commitment and can-do spirit in all of our 22,000 staff, representing over 40 nationalities. For more information, please visit www.dbs.com.