Continuing its streak of launching specialist, high-quality accelerators in India, Zone Startups — based out of the iconic BSE building in Mumbai — has launched its fourth accelerator program, christened “Gateway 91”.
Gateway 91 would enable international startups and growth stage companies to easily gain access to the Indian market. It is a soft landing program which focuses on international firms looking for opportunities to expand in the country.
To ensure participation by Canadian innovators, a partnership has been formed between governments of Canada and Ontario. The partnership will further fund five Canadian financial technology startups and has been officially announced by Minister Navdeep Bains.
We’re proud to be a partner with the federal government and Zone Startups to support the Gatway91 program. This initiative will help Canadian fin-tech innovators bring their breakthrough concepts and technologies into the Indian market which will create jobs and economic growth in both regions,
commented Hon. Michael Chan, Ontario’s Minister of International Trade.
This is the fourth program launched by Zone India Startups in 2016 after empoWer, Rise Accelerator(with Barclays) and Thought Factory Accelerator(with Axis Bank). Gateway91 will offer end-to-end services providing networking opportunities, professional and administrative services for business establishment, expert mentorship to technology companies. To a great extent, this initiative also aligns with Govt of India’s Invest in India and Make in India vision as these international tech companies will create knowledge economy job opportunities.
Commenting on the debut of the accelerator program, Matt Saunders, President of Zone Startups, said
Through programs like Gatway91, Zone Startups will continue to assist early stage enterprise software companies as they look to scale in the Indian market. Our extensive connections and programming continue to attract great founders developing innovative solutions. We’re proud to partner with both the Federal and Ontario governments to give Canadian FinTech startups the opportunity to benefit from our leading services to grow and thrive in India.
Ajay Ramasubramaniam, Director at Zone Startups India added,
Setting up Gatway91 was a natural extension to what we have been doing at Zone Startups India. The ecosystem of mentors, potential partners and professional service providers needed by international startups to succeed in India is something that we have already built.
Initial companies for Gatway91 would be selected through a competitive program in Canada which will be announced in early 2017. Apart from them, Indian corporates are also trying to establish a partnership with Zone Startups to make Gateway91 a complete package for establishing a strong presence in the Indian market.
Zone Startups India is a collaboration between BSE Institute, Ryerson University’s Digital Media Zone (incubator), Ryerson Futures Inc and Simon Fraser University, Canada. Located in Mumbai, Zone Startups India program houses 96 startups under them. The program assists early stage technology companies as they grow and scale their businesses through state-of-art infrastructure, mentorship, business development support, industry contacts, funding & investor access, and a gateway to North America.
