Ben News

Ben Franklin Technology Partners Hits Biggest Year Yet for Investments Amid Regional Growth

March 21, 2017

Lightning struck for Ben Franklin this year. The nonprofit seed fund and economic development organization Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania posted its highest numbers yet when it released its 2016 investment figures this week. In total, it’s approved $10.6 million in seed funding for 52 companies over the course of the last calendar […]

Celebrating International Women’s Day at the PACT Foundation Breakfast

March 8, 2017

Friends, today was the PACT Foundation Breakfast. The annual event celebrates and supports women-led enterprises and diversity in Philadelphia’s innovation community. Appropriately enough, the event fell on International Women’s Day, an annual global initiative that celebrates the achievements of women. It was less than two years ago, in June 2015, that PACT announced its three year grant commitment […]

Why It’s the Right Time for Fintech in Philly

March 6, 2017

With more than than 15 hospitals and research universities like Drexel, Penn and Temple, Philadelphia has been dubbed an “eds and meds” city for many years now. Recently, however, we’ve seen the rise of a new major player – fintech. There’s certainly a rich history of financial services in Greater Philadelphia. Local big shots like Vanguard, Susquehanna Bank and SEI Investments […]

AlphaPoint Announces Completion of Blockchain Trial with Scotiabank

March 2, 2017

AlphaPoint, a fintech company specializing in blockchain technology, has completed a successful proof of technology with Scotiabank, an international bank headquartered in Toronto, Canada. As a result, Scotiabank was able to explore and evaluate how AlphaPoint’s Distributed Ledger Platform can be leveraged internally across a range of use cases. Companies trade trillions of dollars annually […]

How Sustrana is Helping 1,000 Companies Build Sustainability Programs By 2020

February 28, 2017

Throughout February, Generocity highlighted a series of CSR-focused stories in the region, including a new addition to our portfolio, Sustrana. The women-owned, B Corp-certified company has a mission of helping companies build and manage strategic sustainability programs through its online software tool and platform. It also has a very ambitious, concrete goal. Its goal […]

Commonwealth Computer Recycling, LLC, Rebrands as CyberCrunch

February 26, 2017

Commonwealth Computer Recycling, LLC (CCR), a company offering a broad range of data destruction and e-waste disposal solutions, has announced that it has officially rebranded as CyberCrunch. In coordination with its new name, the company has also unveiled its new logo. The Greensburg, PA-based company specializes in e-waste disposal and data destruction. CyberCrunch has a […]

Keriton Raised $1M to Make Sure Babies Keep Breastfeeding

February 25, 2017

Keriton, a member of the 2016 Dreamit Health Cohort, has raised $1 million to produce its Pumped Breast Milk Management system for Neonatal ICUs. The product is designed to improve nurse productivity and increase expression of breast milk in lactating mothers. The funding round will allow the startup to deploy five pilots in 2017. […]

Guiding Technologies Launches GAINS to Revamp Autism Therapy with Bancroft

February 17, 2017

Guiding Technologies officially launched its GAINS software system at an ABA conference in California this past weekend. Presently, both executives and educators have been able to test the software. They say it could have a tangible impact on how children on the autism spectrum learn and develop. The Philadelphia edtech startup was born out of the research […]

Success in Progress Stories: February 2017 Edition

February 16, 2017

With nearly 200 active portfolio companies, Ben Franklin has an abundance of entrepreneurial stories to tell. There’s surely no shortage of exciting exits and successful funding rounds. However, those major milestones are just one part of the startup story. So, each month, we’re telling company stories that may not have been shared enough yet. The new series is […]

Why Mentors Matter in Entrepreneurship… And How to Find Them

February 12, 2017

Thomas Jefferson and George Wythe. Warren Buffett and Benjamin Graham. Marc Benioff and Steve Jobs. Alone, these individuals are staples in American innovation and ingenuity. Together, however, they are the dynamic duos that embody the impact that mentors have on entrepreneurs. According to a 2014 survey by The UPS Store, 70 percent of small businesses […]