BNP Paribas and Plug and Play deepen their strategic partnership to build a bridge between Paris and the Silicon Valley

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Feb 10, 2017, 03:00 ET

PARIS, Feb. 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Last year, BNP Paribas partnered with Plug and Play, the Silicon Valley-based global innovation platform for startups, corporations and investors.

This first step aimed to provide BNP Paribas and its US subsidiary, Bank of the West, with enhanced opportunities related to the Silicon Valley startup ecosystem, such as scouting and engaging with startups, and new technology monitoring. The partnership also opened the doors to Plug and Play's worldwide partners and joint ventures for BNP Paribas' entities, providing them with new insights into digital innovation and the Fintech & Insurtech marketplace.

Today, BNP Paribas and Plug and Play have decided to deepen their partnership by granting access to all Plug and Play worldwide locations to all BNP Paribas entities and launching a Fintech and Insurtech acceleration program in Paris, France.

BNP Paribas - Plug and Play joins a network of additional Plug and Play initiatives across Europe such as mobility with Daimler in Stuttgart, fashion and retail with Galleries Lafayette in Paris and a number of industries with Axel Springer in Berlin.

This complimentary 3 month Fintech and Insurtech acceleration program, held twice a year, will offer to a worldwide selection of 10 startups unique services including:

Business plan coaching
Business development opportunities
Fundraising opportunities
BNP Paribas' business relationship manager support
Plug and Play mentorship
Networking events and numerous speaker series

As from February 1st, 2017, Startups can apply to join the acceleration program on http://parisfintech.plugandplaytechcenter.com.

"At BNP Paribas, we believe in open innovation as a strong driver to transform ourselves towards building the bank of the future and providing our customers with high-value products and services, says Jacques d'Estais, Group Deputy COO, "This goes through developing Fintech incubation and acceleration ecosystems in Europe, the USA and Asia. This new step in our partnership with Plug and Play will complement our current programs, such as the Fintech and Corporate Accelerator by l'Atelier BNP Paribas which allowed strategic investments in 2016. Building on this success we are strengthening our positions in the start-up ecosystem through this new partnership. It will enable us to further benefit from the global expertise of Plug and Play and create unique links between us and the European and Californian start-up."

Saeed Amidi Founder and CEO of Plug and Play, declared: "It is with great pride for Plug and Play to partner with BNP Paribas, one of the strongest banks in the world. We are planning to build together a great innovation platform in Paris to serve innovation inside the bank and its different business lines. We are very excited by this opportunity to work with European entrepreneurs and offer technology transfer from our global network" explained Saeed Amidi, "We are already working with a number of exciting French and European companies like Michelin, Carrefour, RATP Group, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Valeo, Mercedes, and Munich Re and look forward to furthering our work with BNP Paribas in Paris."

About BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 74 countries, with more than 190,000 employees, including more than 146,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets and International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors. The Group helps all its clients (individuals, community associations, entrepreneurs, SMEs, corporates and institutional clients) to realise their projects through solutions spanning financing, investment, savings and protection insurance. In Europe, the Group has four domestic markets (Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg) and BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the leader in consumer lending. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated retail-banking model in Mediterranean countries, in Turkey, in Eastern Europe and a large network in the western part of the United States. In its Corporate & Institutional Banking and International Financial Services activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas as well as a solid and fast-growing business in Asia-Pacific.
Follow us on Twitter: @BNPParibas_pr

Innovation according to BNP Paribas, the bank for a changing world
At BNP Paribas, to be innovative means creating a new type of banking relationship and inventing the Bank of Tomorrow. A bank that is both physical and digital, combining the best of both worlds – new ways of interacting provided by the social networks, new services linked to mobile tools, digitization and process simplification. At BNP Paribas, to be innovative means anticipating the changes that are affecting our customers and turning these changes into opportunities. BNP Paribas is determined to draw on collective intelligence – benefiting from external resources by building products and services in conjunction with our customers and forging partnerships with startups and other innovative companies; as well as calling on our own in-house creativity. Proof of this creativity is to be found in the results of the Innovation Awards, which highlight initiatives devised by Group staff, and also in the work of L'Atelier BNP Paribas. With offices in Paris, San Francisco & Shanghai, its prospective vision and extensive experience in understanding the digital economy, L'Atelier BNP Paribas is strategically placed to help the BNP Paribas Group and its clients enable their digital transformation through consulting activities and acceleration programs.

About Plug and Play Tech Center
Plug and Play Tech Center is a global innovation platform. We connect startups to corporations and invest in over 100 companies every year. Since inception in 2006, our programs have expanded worldwide to include a presence in 10 countries and 20 cities providing necessary resources to succeed in Silicon Valley. With over 6,000 startups and 130 official corporate partners, we have created the ultimate startup ecosystem in many industries. Plug and Play provides active investments with 180 leading Silicon Valley VCs, and more than 365 networking events per year. Companies in our community have raised over $3.5 billion in funding, with successful portfolio exits including Danger, Dropbox, Lending Club, PayPal, SoundHound, and Zoosk. For more information, visit: http://plugandplaytechcenter.com/

Press Contact

BNP Paribas
Paris press office – [email protected]
Tel + 33 (0)1 40 14 40 02

Plug and Play
Allison Romero – [email protected]
Tel +1 408-524-1457

SOURCE Plug and Play