Cobalt FAQs

Cobalt is a catalyst, which is how we think of our Start-up In Residence programme – as a catalyst for change. It’s also aligned with the Schroders brand colours!

This is a global programme – we will consider applications from start-ups  located in one of the 36 countries that we operate in. You must be able to access one of our office locations in order to participate in the programme. This is important as it allows you to benefit from access to our teams.

We are open to conversations on fundraising and have made investments in start-ups previously, but there is no guarantee that we will take equity in the company as part of the programme.

We work with each start-up to develop the terms of engagement on a case by case basis, so there are no standard T&Cs. All companies will be required to comply with key Schroders Group policies.

Yes, the selection criteria are intended to be indicative of what we are looking for, but we will consider applications that do not meet all of the requirements. If you consider your company to be a fit for the programme, please do submit an application.

We don’t have a set quota but aim to have no more than three companies on the programme globally at any one time.

We prefer to work with companies that are at a sufficiently early-stage that we can add tangible value to the proposition development, but have a product ready to test with us. In most cases this means companies will be between the pre-seed and Series A stages.

Start-ups don’t need to be focused entirely on financial services, but must be relevant to our business. We are happy to consider cross-industry solutions such as cybersecurity companies.