Key Takeaways
- • Qubic Labs, a Quincy, Massachusetts fintech startup accelerator, is shutting down immediately after its board voted for dissolution on a Friday, per cofounders Ian Cain and John O'Keeffe.
- • The closure followed the loss of a state grant from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, a previous sponsor that had provided $1.9 million in 2022, which had funded founder grants and salaries for the cofounders and two other staffers.
- • Over seven years, Qubic helped more than 70 startups collectively raise $40 million and create 200-plus jobs.
- • Cain said benefactors pledged support, but none offered the game-changing funding needed to keep the nonprofit operating rather than existing as a dormant shell.
- • The closure also ends Boston Blockchain Week, an annual crypto event Qubic took over from Pillar VC in 2022 that was not profitable for the accelerator.
Summary
Qubic Labs, a nonprofit fintech startup accelerator based in Quincy, Massachusetts, is shutting down, according to a Boston Globe report by columnist Jon Chesto. On a Friday, cofounders Ian Cain and John O'Keeffe announced the immediate closure of the nonprofit. The Globe noted that the funding problem had been widely known since August, even though the closing announcement did not mention it.
The central cause was the failure of a state grant that the cofounders had been counting on from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, a previous Qubic sponsor that had provided a $1.9 million grant in 2022. Qubic had used state money to fund grants to startup founders and to pay the salaries of the cofounders and two other staffers. After learning the grant would not come through, the cofounders sought other sources of funding. Several benefactors offered help, but Cain said there is a difference between interest and investment, and no sufficient financial support materialized. The board voted for dissolution.
Qubic's track record includes helping more than 70 startups collectively raise $40 million and create more than 200 jobs over seven years. The accelerator also ran a well-attended crypto conference that drew Fidelity Investments CEO Abby Johnson as a speaker last year. That annual event, Boston Blockchain Week, was taken over from venture capital firm Pillar VC in 2022 and drew crowds to Quincy Center each September, but it was not a revenue generator for Qubic. Its closure also ends that event.
Cain said the organization had pursued diversified revenue, including sponsorships for regular and bespoke accelerator cohorts, but "without a recurring revenue source outside of the grant funding, it just wasn't going to work." The cofounders thanked FoxRock Properties for providing free space and the city of Quincy for its support.
The central cause was the failure of a state grant that the cofounders had been counting on from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, a previous Qubic sponsor that had provided a $1.9 million grant in 2022. Qubic had used state money to fund grants to startup founders and to pay the salaries of the cofounders and two other staffers. After learning the grant would not come through, the cofounders sought other sources of funding. Several benefactors offered help, but Cain said there is a difference between interest and investment, and no sufficient financial support materialized. The board voted for dissolution.
Qubic's track record includes helping more than 70 startups collectively raise $40 million and create more than 200 jobs over seven years. The accelerator also ran a well-attended crypto conference that drew Fidelity Investments CEO Abby Johnson as a speaker last year. That annual event, Boston Blockchain Week, was taken over from venture capital firm Pillar VC in 2022 and drew crowds to Quincy Center each September, but it was not a revenue generator for Qubic. Its closure also ends that event.
Cain said the organization had pursued diversified revenue, including sponsorships for regular and bespoke accelerator cohorts, but "without a recurring revenue source outside of the grant funding, it just wasn't going to work." The cofounders thanked FoxRock Properties for providing free space and the city of Quincy for its support.
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