e-States Gears Up for Competitions

Launched in 2023, fin-tech startup e-States is looking forward to a successful second quarter.

The Milwaukee-based company that developed a blockchain-based method to allow investors to invest in commercial real estate projects at entry points as low as $1,000, is competing in a number of pitch competitions in the coming months.

The company has been named as one of the semi-finalists in the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Competition.

But, before that, e-States will compete on a global scale.

Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) has chosen 74 startups from over 600 contestants for its eighth global Elevator Pitch Competition 2024 (EPiC 2024) Grand Finale, taking place in Hong Kong on 26 April 2024.

Milwaukee’s e-States is among the semi-finalists selected from the four-city series of pitch contests held in Hong Kong, Silicon Valley, Stuttgart and Singapore.

Before cofounder Matthew Schneider heads to Hong Kong to compete for millions in funding, he spoke with MKEStartup.News about why the company chose to enter the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest.

“It’s very important for us to represent Wisconsin and align our interests with that of the city and with the state as a whole,” Schneider said.

“We’re in the business of crafting the tangible built world around us and influencing how these businesses are run, how the community interacts with them, how people could build wealth and what their finances look like. So, we have a big responsibility in that way, “he continued.

“We want to demonstrate that we’re doing this from the heart of Wisconsin, and if we can work our way up in the Governor’s Business Plan Competition and do business developments within the state or have some sort of input to the Wisconsin Technology Council, whenever that might be, whatever opportunities are in front of us, it’s a necessity,” he said.

In addition to competing in EPiC 2024 and the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest, the company has also applied to participate in the Summerfest Tech Pitch Competition and The Self Storage Hawai’i Unconference Pitch Competition to compete in the Real Estate category.

Schneider is looking forward to the unique opportunities that are part of the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Competition.

“Right now, the alignments and the business developments are a more important than the cash because we can go out and raise a round. Of course, our average deal size is pretty tremendous, all things considered, it is much larger than the cash prizes here. What matters to us is the relationships… we’re not in it for the money,” he said.

“I’m excited to see the people who I will come across, given that this is statewide event… a lot of what we stand for and what we’re working on is very aligned with the current administration. We’re talking about sustainability, affordability and what we can do for the betterment of society,” he concluded.

To learn more about e-States, connect with the company here.