Being part of a Desjardins Startup in Residence is like surrounding yourself with a big team of consultants who support you and open doors for you when you didn’t have the keys to get in!
Desjardins gave us the tools, the environment and the training necessary to go from an incubating startup to a rapidly growing startup. The Startup in Residence program gave us credibility with our potential clients and significantly enhanced our network of contacts, a key component of our future growth.
The team of experts placed at our disposal both within Desjardins Group and externally enabled us to broaden our networks and receive advice from experts in every field. We developed quality relationships that have lasted beyond the end of the program.
In our quest to help Canadians reduce their debt and save money in the process, Startup in Residence allowed us to revisit our market positioning.
The Desjardins Startup in Residence program enabled us to gain a thorough primary understanding of needs in the payer market and to refine our value propositions to meet them!
Being chosen for Startup in Residence gave us enormous credibility in an industry that runs on trust. We established strategic ties that still serve us well today.
The Startup in Residence program gives us a privileged access to resources and experts within Desjardins. It allows us to accelerate our development through targeted assistance and the exploration of potential partners.
Desjardins’ Startup in Residence program has allowed us to make our company and our business model evolve rapidly by giving us access to senior experts internal or external to Desjardins. We are quickly learning how to navigate in the environment of large financial institutions and adapt our offer. The acquired knowledge and the developed business relationships are simply incredible. The notoriety provided by our participation to the program opens doors that we initially believed were out of reach.
The Startup in Residence program gives us direct access to the leading minds in FinTech and banking. The collection of experts is incredibly experienced and knowledgeable but most of all sincerely want to help us improve personal financial wellness for Desjardins members, and all other co-op/banking members and customers.
The Startup in Residence program has introduced us to the startup ecosystem, more specifically to that of Fintechs, which was, until recently, unknown territory for us. The program has also helped us to elaborate and fine-tune our strategy (marketing, technology, legal-wise ...) at a pace that is much faster than if we were working alone.
During its early days, a startup needs to maximize its learning curve. A team of founders lacking key learnings can make significant mistakes that are hard to correct thereafter. Over the course of the residency, we have the privilege of meeting and conversing with a wide range of experts that not only become familiar with our company and its challenges, but also provide tailored and personalized advice. This type of mentoring accelerates our learning process, allowing us to gain knowledge and skills much faster than we would have on our own.
During my time in the program, I was able to meet and get support from experts in areas I thought my company needed improvement, like marketing, human resources, user experience and sales. They gave me meaningful, but most importantly useful tips and suggestions that have had instant impact in the growth and development of Helperbird as we reached 500,000 users. Unlike other programs I have heard of, they really focus on your priorities as a business and entrepreneur rather than pushing you in directions your company doesn’t need.
If we could only choose one thing that the Startup in Residence program at Desjardins helped us with, it would be to stay FOCUSED on sales. The program has helped us put a sales strategy in place, taught us how to optimize sales, and encouraged us to just get it done. Apart from that, we also received help with branding, communication, marketing, and had access to amazing experts. Our favorite part of the program is that it was completely tailored to our needs - and of course Eric, Jade, and Sarah are awesome to work with and felt like part of our team!
"Disruption is now common and technology is advancing at an exponential pace. At Desjardins we view disruptors as potential partners, not as competitors. We bring our capital, experience and reach to take the best innovations and mainstream them faster. By doing this, we’re able to onboard innovation in ways that meet the changing needs of customers and our employees."
Guy Cormier, Chairman and CEO of Desjardins GroupThe Globe and Mail, December 21, 2018
Thanks to Desjardins’s expertise, network and values, Startup in Residence provides support for startups that have a positive socio-economic impact within Canada.
Startup in Residence is designed to guide early-stage, growth-driven companies — like yours — to market success.
You are the determined founders of a business.
You have a strong and reliable team. There is chemistry on your team and you have complementary skills.
You have a solution to a genuine problem.
Whereas most residence programs place emphasis on the initial idea, we think differently, helping evolve your product through the program and even afterwards.
You have time.
Building a startup requires sustained effort. You have to invest time and resources in the process. We will do the same!
Participating businesses will receive top notch mentorship from over 50 entrepreneurs and experts, office space for 8 months and a host of other benefits. In addition, they could receive up to $250,000 investment.
This non-dilutive grant makes it possible to finance all types of external services useful for the feasibility of your projects: legal, accounting, design, etc.
What startups need today is genuine support to guide them in their growth—particularly their human growth!
We connect startups with each other and bring them into our community in order to give them the network they need to translate their ambitions into reality.
Startup in Residence will launch throughout 2021 three calls for applications to meet challenges in financial, real estate and healthcare technologies.
We offer a collaborative work environment with invaluable opportunities for mentorship and networking within the leading cooperative financial group in Canada.
Your work involves financing, online payment, savings management, loans and bank account aggregators.
Your goal is to offer clients better service at a lower cost.
Your work involves compliance, identity management and control, risk management, regulatory reporting and transaction monitoring.
Your goal is to help businesses adapt their tools for the legal rules and the areas where they do business.
You develop security technologies for applications, operations, information and networks.
Your goal is to better equip financial institutions and their clients to defend against cyber-attacks.
You have developed a predictive analysis solution that detects fraud or recovers claims, or a new type of chatbot.
Your goal is to improve the customer experience.
You offer digital insurance solutions for individuals or professionals.
Your goal is to improve and streamline the services for insurance policyholders.
You develop new medical equipment or technology-based medical software or services.
Your goal is to find the best way to prepare us for a radically different future, in which technology plays a key role in the medical community and in patients’ lives.
You’re working to improve and transform the real estate industry by applying technologies.
Your goal is to create innovative products that will speed up the digital shift at Desjardins and introduce new technologies or models to the real estate market.
For 2021, We've updated the program to include calls for applications in order to respond to specific challenges.
CLOSED
The goal of this challenge is to spur the emergence and growth of startups that will help financial institutions and their clients overcome the challenges of climate change both at home and abroad.
In 2021, we renewed our climate strategy, aiming to achieve carbon neutrality (net zero emissions) by 2040 in our operations, procurement and lending, as well as our own investments in 3 key carbon-intensive sectors of the economy: energy, transportation and real estate.
We'll achieve this ambitious goal through the support and engagement of all our employees, managers and directors, and through the joint efforts and progress of our partners in the financial sector and Canadian society.
How can canadian fintech startups help society address the challenges of climate change and support a just transition to a low-carbon, more sustainable, resilient and inclusive model?
The goal of this challenge is to spur the emergence and growth of startups that will help financial institutions and their clients overcome the challenges of climate change both at home and abroad.
OVERVIEW
Desjardins and climate change Climate change is taking a heavy toll on the environment, society and the economy, and this can affect people's physical, mental and financial health.
Since 1990, we've been taking action to protect the environment and mitigate climate change. We recognize the urgent need to act—and act fast—in response to the challenges that climate change poses.
In late 2017, we made a number of commitments toward achieving the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global temperature rise to below 2 degrees. These commitments included achieving operational carbon neutrality, focusing our infrastructure investments on renewable energy projects, and reducing the carbon footprint of our own investments.
We stepped up these commitments in 2019 with a new target to reduce GHG emissions under our operational control to 20% below 2018 levels by 2024. In 2020, we became the first financial institution in North America to join the Powering Past Coal Alliance and issued what NGO Reclaim Finance called one of the world's most robust coal exit policies.
Learn more about our commitment to the climate and the environment.
In 2021, we renewed our climate strategy, aiming to achieve carbon neutrality (net zero emissions) by 2040 in our operations, procurement and lending, as well as our own investments in 3 key carbon-intensive sectors of the economy: energy, transportation and real estate.
We'll achieve this ambitious goal through the support and engagement of all our employees, managers and directors, and through the joint efforts and progress of our partners in the financial sector and Canadian society.
Learn more about our 2040 climate strategy.
How can fintech companies help?
Given the magnitude of these issues, it will take a great deal of innovation to transform the way we think and act to support the financial sector and its clients, whether by raising awareness, measuring impacts, analyzing climate risk or developing financing solutions for green projects.
These are just some of the ways fintech companies can support a just transition to a low-carbon, resilient economy.
REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPANTS
CHALLENGE PROGRAM
The Fintech Climate Challenge is an 8-month program featuring mentoring sessions, workshops and pitches to support participants in growing their businesses.
AWARDS FOR WINNING TEAMS
1st prize: $25,000 cash grant,
Plus:
• A spot in Startup in Residence, Desjardins's 8-month program;
• A possible investment of up to $250,000.
2nd prize: $15,000 cash grant,
Plus:
• A spot in Startup in Residence, Desjardins's 8-month program;
• A possible investment of up to $250,000.
3rd prize: $5,000 cash grant,
Plus:
• access to Fintech Cadence's Sandbox program.
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
CHALLENGE PROPOSED BY
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
POWERED BY
CLOSED
Today, a large number of Canadians are worried about the impact of the current COVID-19 on their personal finances. In a situation of uncertainty, financial emergencies can be stressful and cause considerable human and financial hardships. It is crucial that everyone obtains the help and quality advice needed in order to better manage their budget, savings and debt in order to be protected against the unexpected, especially during a pandemic. Progressing towards financial empowerment means learning to better manage personal budgets and making sound financial decisions, while protecting your personal data.
Faced with these challenges, fintechs can bring solutions to help Canadians.
How can we help Canadians reach financial empowerment?
The challenge aims to support entrepreneurs in order to propel them further in their product development and give them the maximum chance for a successful collaboration with Desjardins. “Desjardins continually seeks feedback from members and clients. As soon as the pandemic struck, we took action to provide assistance and reassure members and clients that we’re committed to doing everything we can to help them get through these challenging times and manage their finances. Desjardins intends to continue playing an active role in the socio-economic recovery of our communities,” said Guy Cormier, President and CEO of Desjardins Group.
Financial empowerment is the ability to manage daily life in a sustainable way and achieve set goals. It includes:
To participate in the Fintech Challenge, the startups must be working on at least one of the above scenarios by providing financial technological solutions that improve personal finance management, planning financial goals, automating savings, learning about online brokerage and investing, and financial education as a whole.
Additionally, the Fintech Challenge is looking for startups that work on the uptake of responsible investment. This can include educating consumers on responsible investing, categorizing and measuring impact of investments and providing opportunities to invest responsibly.
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
CHALLENGE PROPOSED BY
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
POWERED BY
WITH THE SUPPORT OF
CLOSED
The goal of this challenge is for startups to grow and make a name for themselves by helping financial institutions and their clients deal more effectively with the challenges of cybersecurity threats, both at home and abroad.
How can fintech startups help Canadians and Canadian businesses address cybersecurity challenges and become more resilient to cyberthreats?
DESJARDINS AND CYBERSECURITY
Desjardins has made great strides in information security over the past 18 months and will continue to apply international best practices. To prevent and detect data breaches, organizations need a wide range of personnel, technical and procedural security measures in place. The security program as a whole—including people, processes and technology—is what helps protect organizations from fraud and information security threats.
HOW CAN FINTECH BUSINESSES HELP?
Canadian individuals and businesses are more dependent than ever on the internet to carry out their day-to-day activities. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, this trend has gained speed so that Canadians can work, shop and socialize safely, in accordance with the physical distancing policies issued by public health authorities. However, as devices, information and activities move online, their vulnerability to cyberthreats increases.
According to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security the number of cyberthreat actors is rising and their actions are becoming more sophisticated. Given the scope of these challenges, a whole range of innovations will have to be deployed to transform our ways of thinking and acting to help Canadian individuals and businesses prevent, detect and respond to cyberthreats.
These ideas—and many others— are some of the potential approaches for making Canadian individuals and businesses more resilient.
PRIORITIES
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
CHALLENGE PROGRAM
The Cyber Challenge features mentoring sessions, workshops and pitches to help participants grow their businesses.
PRIZES FOR WINNING TEAMS
The team that wins the Cybersecurity Startups Call for Application will receive a $25,000 non-dilutive grant.
The second place team will receive a $15,000 grant.
Both winners will earn a spot in Startup in Residence, Desjardins's 8-month startup accelerator, and will be eligible for a potential investment of up to $250,000.
Third place will get a $5,000 grant and coaching under the Fintech Cadence Sandbox program.
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
CREATED BY
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
AND POWERED BY
WITH SUPPORT FROM
The Startup in Residence program also means rewarding meetings with dedicated experts.
With years of experience to their credit, they are useful resources for supporting your business as it grows.
Have you ever had a game-changing idea, only to have your momentum fizzle out when you realize you don’t know how to take it to the next level?
Don’t let your next big flash of genius go to waste! Apply to join the Cooperathon, our award-winning open innovation competition. Over several sprints and dozens of training hours, you’ll work on developing a prototype, becoming enterprise-ready and perfecting your market pitch.
Learn more about Cooperathon
State-of-the-art workspaces designed for startups. Get unparalleled access to our program that includes training, workshops and events, plus an exclusive opportunity to connect to the wider Desjardins network.
Submit your application
Tap into Desjardins’s global network of experts. We’re committed to helping program residents grow and succeed. We’ll provide the training and support you need to build a solid foundation for your startup.
Learn more about Desjardins
The program is aimed first and foremost at startups that are likely to have a positive socio-economic impact within Canada. The goal is to guide them as they grow through investment, education, mentoring and networking.
We launched the Startup en Résidence program in June 2017. The program:
8 months.
Keep checking our home page for information on when to register for the various challenges.
No, there is no cost to participate in the Startup in Résidence program. However, if you are based outside Quebec, you will be responsible for your meals and accommodation.
Our program is highly specialized and tailored to meet the strategic objectives of Desjardins and each Startup in order to guarantee that our partnership generates genuine value for all parties involved. In addition, we work alongside other incubators and accelerators to create a path to support you in your growth.
The startup participating in the program could receive an investment of up to $250,000 in the form of a subordinated debt at a discount and convertible into a preferred share or into a loan.
Outside of the challenge period, we like to meet financial, real estate and healthcare technology companies with a business solution focused on solving a real problem.
No. The company must be headquartered in Canada.
Although we hope this happens, it isn't the main objective of the program. Desjardins set up Startup in Residence to support startups as they grow and help them validate and increase their value proposition.
If you meet the criteria for one of the challenges scheduled for 2021, please fill out the appropriate form.
If your application is accepted, a member of the Startup in Residence team will contact you to discuss the next steps.
Our validation process includes an initial selection by committee. If your Startup is selected, a meeting will be planned with you and your team to discuss the terms and conditions and the next steps.
We do not provide allowances for travel, accommodation or relocation.
Desjardins could invest up to $ 250,000 in Startup companies participating in Startup in Residence, in addition to a grant of $ 25,000 that will be awarded to them at the beginning the program.
To assess your application, the selection committee will focus primarily on the concept's validity, the product development stage, the competitive landscape and the team's makeup and experience. In addition, your solution should have a positive socio-economic impact within Canada.
The time frame between submitting your application and receiving a decision is 30 business days.
You must then authorize us to carry out a credit check and criminal record check of you and your team. Where applicable, we may also conduct an invasion-of-privacy test and a security audit (code audit, risk analysis, etc.). We will then arrange a meeting to discuss the terms and conditions of the residence, identify your needs, inform you of our needs and jointly determine key performance indicators.
The general conditions of participation in the Startup in residence program will be presented to you if you are selected.
