ING invests $5m in natural language processing start-up Eigen
ING’s venture arm has invested $5 million in Eigen Technologies, a London-based natural language processing (NLP) start-up.
Eigen is also backed by fellow strategic partner Goldman Sachs
The new round brings Eigen’s total Series B to $42 million, and will see Eigen and ING work closely in a strategic partnership to build use cases for NLP technology in areas lke trade finance and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) banking.
ING’s chief innovation officer (CIO) and CEO of ING Ventures Benoît Legrand says the bank will work more closely with the start-up to implement “use cases through data and process analysis, so as to accelerate Eigen’s advantage in NLP as well as ING’s digital transformation”.
Eigen’s technology is already used by ING for Libor replacement and loan operations, so the new capital and consequent partnership will now allow the start-up to more fully benefit from the bank’s experience in applying machine learning for financial institutions.
Founded in 2014 and since backed by fellow strategic partner Goldman Sachs, Eigen’s growing team of 100 helps companies in scrutinised industries locate their data more easily.
“In the years we have worked with ING we have found them to have some of the most advanced thinking in the market on the application of machine learning in financial services, something that comes from their fantastic innovation culture,” says Eigen’s co-founder and CEO Lewis Liu.
Eigen claims its NLP technology is already used by more than 25% of global systemically important banks (G-SIBs), as well as major asset managers, hedge funds, law firms, and insurers.
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