MassChallenge and SMU Cox are Bringing the Next Generation of FinTech Closer to Dallas

New SMU Cox FinTech Coalition, launched with MassChallenge, will build an always-on platform around North Texas' financial services strength while attracting fintech companies and talent from around the world.

DALLAS, Sept. 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- SMU Cox School of Business has announced the launch of the SMU Cox FinTech Coalition in partnership with MassChallenge, an ambitious new platform designed to put SMU at the center of the connections between North Texas' financial services industry and the founders, technologies and ideas shaping what comes next.

The Coalition builds on one of the region's greatest assets: the extraordinary depth of financial services already concentrated across North Texas. It will create an always-on platform for financial institutions, technology companies, investors, founders, alumni, faculty and students to connect around fintech innovation, while attracting new companies and talent into the region.

At the center of that effort is the SMU Cox FinTech Accelerator, powered by MassChallenge. The highly selective four-month program will recruit early-stage fintech startups from around the world for a hybrid experience combining virtual work with three in-person program moments in Dallas. The Accelerator gives SMU a way to bring new companies and talent directly into North Texas. The broader Coalition creates the community around them, giving the people and institutions already here more ways to participate, build relationships and put new ideas to work.

"The financial services industry already has tremendous strength in North Texas. The opportunity now is to connect that strength more intentionally with the people building what comes next," said Joshua Taylor, Executive Director at SMU Cox School of Business. "The Accelerator gives us a way to bring exceptional fintech companies and talent into the region. The Coalition is how we build a community around them, giving founders, industry leaders, investors and the broader SMU community more ways to connect, participate and create value together."

For founders, that means building closer to the industry they ultimately need to navigate and sell into. Participating companies will work with fintech experts, financial institutions and investors to test use cases, navigate the realities of selling into a highly regulated industry, explore pilot opportunities and build relationships with potential customers and partners.

For North Texas' financial services community, the Coalition creates the other side of that equation: ongoing opportunities to engage with emerging companies and technologies, connect with founders and other industry leaders, and participate in conversations and collaborations around fintech innovation. The Accelerator is the first major initiative, but the ambition extends beyond any single cohort or program.

"What's compelling about SMU's vision is that it goes well beyond an accelerator," said Cait Brumme, CEO of MassChallenge. "The Coalition builds on the extraordinary financial services strength already concentrated across North Texas and creates more ways for founders, industry and the broader community to connect around it. The Accelerator becomes a powerful part of that, bringing exceptional fintech founders from around the world into an ecosystem that already has so much to offer them."

MassChallenge brings more than a decade of fintech experience to the partnership. More than 11,000 fintech companies have applied to MassChallenge programs, more than 220 have been accelerated, and more than 500 financial services experts have worked with participating founders. MassChallenge's fintech alumni include five companies that have gone on to achieve unicorn status: Flywire, Bitso, Novo, Farther Finance and AlphaSense.

Together, the Coalition and Accelerator are designed to create a reinforcing cycle: attracting new fintech companies and talent to North Texas, connecting them with the financial services strength already here, and creating more opportunities for the region's institutions, investors, entrepreneurs and SMU community to participate in and shape what comes next. Over time, SMU Cox intends to expand those opportunities through additional convenings and ecosystem activity, building a durable platform for fintech innovation with SMU at its center.

Applications for the inaugural SMU FinTech Accelerator, powered by MassChallenge, open October 6, 2026. Founders can learn about the Accelerator and register for an upcoming information session at https://masschallenge.org/smu-cox-fintech-accelerator/.

About SMU Cox School of Business

The Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University (SMU Cox) is committed to influencing the way the world conducts business via prolific research that provokes innovation, change and global thought leadership. SMU Cox offers a full range of business education programs, including B.B.A., Full-Time MBA, Working Professional MBA (part-time, in-person and online) and Master of Science degree programs, as well as graduate certificate programs and Executive Education tailored for C-suite leaders and management professionals. The Cox School maintains an active global alumni network, is accredited by the AACSB and is consistently ranked among the world's leading business schools.

About MassChallenge

MassChallenge is a global institution that backs startups building solutions to complex, systems-critical challenges. Founded in Boston, Massachusetts, with offices in Texas, Israel, Switzerland and the UK, MassChallenge connects startups with the partners, programs and capital needed to accelerate commercialization and real-world impact. Since 2009, MassChallenge has supported more than 5,000 startups that have raised more than $27 billion in funding and is ranked No. 2 in the United States on TIME's list of America's Best Incubators & Accelerators 2026.

SOURCE MassChallenge