Des Moines, IA — Feb 2: Curql, a collective of 160+ credit unions jointly investing in fintech, has selected five standout fintech companies for Cohort 4 of Curql Accelerate, its national fintech accelerator designed to align early-stage innovation with real credit union needs.
From hundreds of applicants, this cohort was chosen for their potential to address critical industry gaps: compliance automation, fraud prevention, lending infrastructure, marketing governance, and international payment solutions. Over the coming months, these fintech will work directly with credit unions to pressure-test their products, refine their go-to-market approach, and build solutions that drive meaningful impact.
"These founders are here to solve problems credit unions face right now," said Jim Ryan, VP of Strategy and Growth at Curql Collective, who leads the Accelerator program in partnership with gener8tor, a nationally ranked accelerator. "We've selected companies that understand this core truth: credit unions need tools that work within their mission, not against it. That's what separates the winners from the rest."
They'll visit three leading credit union headquarters:
Through Curql Accelerate, each cohort company will engage with credit union partners in structured on-site sessions. These are designed to get deeper than surface-level feedback loops. Founders sit down with real teams, understand their workflows, pressure-test assumptions, and adapt in real time. This kind of earned insight, repeated across multiple credit unions, helps the fintech to better design their solutions for credit union needs.
"Curql Accelerate works because credit unions are willing to be real partners in the innovation process," said Nick Evens, President and CEO of Curql Collective. "These fintech are walking into that partnership with their eyes open. The ones who succeed will be the ones who listen and evolve their technology more than they pitch."
Curql is a collective of 160+ credit unions jointly investing in fintech, bringing timely solutions to the credit union industry. With a portfolio of 50+ fintech partners, Curql ensures that technology is designed specifically for credit unions, allowing them to better serve their members and remain competitive. Learn more at curql.com/credit-unions/
gener8tor fosters innovation ecosystems through its accelerator programs, venture capital funds, and skills-based workforce initiatives. With a strong track record of supporting high-growth companies, gener8tor has expanded across the U.S. and internationally, building partnerships with governments, corporations, universities and economic development organizations to drive entrepreneurship and economic impact. gener8tor operates accelerators across 45 cities, 25 states and 3 countries, working with more than 300 startups per year. To date, gener8tor has worked with more than 1,500 startups that have cumulatively gone on to raise more than $2B in financing and employ more than 11,000 people. Visit gener8tor.com to learn more.