Data Access Residency

Fintech Sandbox's Data Access Residency provides early-stage startups from around the world with premium data feeds and APIs from its industry-leading data partners, saving entrepreneurs tens of thousands of dollars. Startups accepted into the Data Access Residency receive up to 6 months of free data access from each of its 40+ data partners, such as FactSet, Plaid, S&P Global, Equifax, MSCI, Nasdaq, Associated Press, and many more. Startups use this data to build, develop, and test their products as they work to go to market or launch a new feature. Fintech Sandbox is a 501(c)(3) non-profit; it is not an accelerator or incubator, has no set curriculum, and does not invest in startups.

Key Benefits

• Up to 6 months of free data access from each of 40+ data and infrastructure partners (FactSet, Plaid, S&P Global, Equifax, MSCI, Nasdaq, Associated Press, Morningstar, AWS and more)
• $150K+ in estimated data costs savings per startup
• Pre-negotiated free data license agreements, signed directly with each data partner you choose
• Cloud hosting and other platform services from infrastructure partners
• Access to each provider's knowledge hub once accepted
• Alumni stay part of the community: network access, exposure and amplification, events and speaking opportunities

Eligibility

• Early-stage fintech startups from anywhere in the world (insurtech, regtech, financial services, and other technologies relevant to the financial space)
• Founders working full time on the company; a business email address is required to apply
• Under $1 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR)
• Typically bootstrapped to Series A in fundraising
• Startups already in an incubator or accelerator can apply
• Data is for development and testing only; it may not be used in production or for commercial use

Program Structure

• Apply online at any time; there are no cohorts and startups are admitted on a rolling basis
• Two virtual interview rounds: a meeting with the Fintech Sandbox team, then a product demo to the team and several Advocates
• Decisions are usually made one to two weeks after the second-round interview; the whole interview process typically takes 3-7 weeks
• Startups are onboarded biweekly; the residency begins at Orientation
• Each data partner has its own 6-month access period, starting when you sign that partner's data contract; startups typically work with 1-5 data partners and are active for 8-12 months
• The program is fully virtual; in-person events are held in the US during the year

Cost

No fees. Fintech Sandbox does not take any equity or any fees from its startups.