Fintech / marketplace venture studio

Building Neo
1

What if Neo launched a fintech / marketplace venture studio?

Like any company, Neo has a strategy, a roadmap and a focus. It is likely not going to build everything for everyone.

The current landscape has many parts from chartered banks, payment processors, KYC/AML providers, payment rails, ATM networks, physical payment terminals, event planners, realtors, mortgage brokers and partners like the ones Neo has in the rewards network that sell goods and services that all Canadians use.

Instead of trying to build every adjacent product and service internally or not build it at all, Neo could help founders launch companies that would have some kind of a symbiotic relationships and potentially leverage Neo’s rewards network, customers and products in a way that benefits both.

It doesn’t even have to be under the Neo brand but someone could issue a call for startups like YC and have people apply and raise capital to build stuff that would benefit everyone that no one has built yet.

The idea is not to copy RBC ventures.

More like Harvest builders 2.0 + what Rappi did informally to supercharge their network.

So we can have a factory that produces companies like Purelend Technologies Inc., Tech Thursday at scale.

What do you guys think?

2

The “PayPal Mafia” remains deeply influential in the US startup ecosystem, twenty years later. The wealth creation and jobs created from it isn’t anything to shake a stick at.

So, why not?

Shopify has made pretty serious money by investing in partner companies that later went public of were in an M&A.

I guess the only question is capital.

3

I’d suggest going even further and try what PLATA is now doing in Mexico but here in Canada. This is absolutely incomparable level of service and quality of software and UX. This kind of thing would not only beat WealthSimple and all other neobanks but will become a real challenge to the big 5 mastodons.

4

Wow ! Now that is forward thinking. Much like a banking “Kick Starter” app to allow for innovation. Not sure the banking / credit card laws though. Canada is very tightly regulated both a curse and benefit) depending on your point of view.