Enel X and Mastercard will build a new laboratory in Israel that will deal with innovation, with a particular focus on financial technology and cybersecurity in payments and energy.
According to the provisions of the agreement, the laboratory will establish a series of collaborations with local start-ups in order to test and implement products and solutions capable of improving digital security and technology platforms for financial services, digital authentication and financial inclusion.
"The structure - explain the two companies in a joint note - will be built in partnership with the Government of Israel, following a tender called by the Israeli Authority for Innovation (IIA)".
The headquarters of the laboratory will be in Be'er Sheva, a city located in the southern part of the country and defined by the Israeli government as "the cybernetic and financial technology capital of the world". The facility will have a three-year license and receive approximately $3,7 million in public funding to cover its implementation, operating costs and the development of collaborations with local start-ups.
“This new collaboration will allow us to tap into numerous partners and resources, including Israel's renowned start-up economy to help bring innovations to market even faster and reduce the growing threat and cost of cyberattacks,” he said. Ajay Bhalla, president Cyber & Intelligence Solutions of Mastercard.
“The new lab offers us the unique opportunity to work with Israeli start-ups to bring innovative financial technologies to our millions of customers around the world,” he said. Francesco Venturini, CEO of Enel X. “By joining forces with an important partner like Mastercard, we will help these start-ups to develop and bring to market the best solutions in the fields of financial technology and cybersecurity”.
We recall that Enel already has an Innovation Hub in Tel Aviv, opened in 2016, and has established partnerships with 35 local start-ups on the Internet of Things, cybersecurity, electric mobility, energy storage and many others.
