We are advising Barclays Group Operations Lithuania on the transfer of Rise Vilnius startup hub to Swedbank. At the moment startup hub has 64 members and covers 34 companies.

Rise Vilnius hub and its community

After opening in summer 2016, startups based at Rise Vilnius hub were consulted by global mentors. In addition, hackathons were organised, along with creativity workshops and other events. Community members were able to participate in international network programmes, present their ideas to other communities or investors in different Rise locations, also to access knowledge from the global mentors’ network. Membership enables physical use of hubs in any other city where the community operates.

Careful selection and continuation of activities

Mariano Andrade Gonzalez, country manager at Barclays Group Operations Lithuania, says candidates who have shown interest in buying Rise Vilnius have been carefully selected to ensure continuation of hub activities and as a trusted partner for current and future startups. According to Gonzalez, Swedbank best met all the criteria because it aims to strengthen its contribution to the FinTech sector and is one of the largest banks in the Baltic region.

Our partnership and project team

From the hub’s earliest days, Sorainen was already a hub partner and helped Rise Vilnius startups on the road to success by providing legal advice, sharing legal updates in community events.

We are advising Barclays on all matters related to the transfer of business in Lithuania. The Sorainen team consists of partner Laimonas Skibarka, senior associates Vytautas Sabalys, Jonas Kiauleikis and Gerda Skirbutienė.