ING spins out analytics platform Katana into its own startup

Dutch banking and financial services company ING has not only spun out Katana, but also contributed to the venture’s new £3m funding round.

Katana is ING’s advanced analytics platform. It will now exist as its own entity, based in London.

As part of the spinning-out process, ING will put £1.5m into the new startup alongside other investors that will bring the total funding into this round up to £3m.

“A growing number of clients are discovering the advantages of using advanced analytics in decision-making,” said Santiago Braje, CEO of Katana and former head of credit trading at ING. “It enables them to work faster and more efficiently.”

“Supported by ING, we developed, tested and validated the technology. Now it’s time to move to the next phase as an independent FinTech. We are very excited about the opportunities we see in developing our platform further and expanding our client base.”

Annerie Vreugdenhil, head of Innovation at ING Wholesale Banking, added, “At ING, when it comes to innovation, we step out of our comfort zone. We think big, start small and scale fast. In the past few years, Katana has managed to grow from an internal innovation project to a serious value proposition for bond investors. We attracted major clients who see the added value of this super smart AI-tool. I’m proud that with our support Katana grew out to a fully-grown fintech that is ready for an independent future.”

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