Alliance

Check the travel commitment first

• Onboarding is two weeks in person in New York City, and Demo Day is in New York in the final week. Both are required.
• There is no India-specific programme, and no country restriction is stated. Founders apply from anywhere in the world.
• If you need a visa, Alliance works with experienced immigration attorneys and advisors, and can connect you to trusted legal resources.

How applications work

• The application is an online form that takes about 20 minutes. It starts with the first founder's email.
• Each cohort has two deadlines: Early Admission and Regular Admission. For the ALL19 intake, Early Admission closed on 23 September and Regular Admission closes on 18 November.
• Mentors review applications within about a week, and interview invites go out within a week of application.
• Alliance runs three cohorts a year, so a missed deadline is not a missed year.

How selection works

• The interview is a 10-minute fast-paced conversation with Alliance mentors. Guidelines are shared before it.
• Decisions are emailed within 24 to 48 hours of the interview.
• Once you are admitted, funds are wired after paperwork is signed, KYC is completed and payment details are verified — typically within one to two weeks, and before the programme starts.

What reviewers look for

• A team that can ship. Alliance's only stated bar is that you want to build something big and your team can ship.
• Stage is not a filter. Pre-product, pre-revenue and mid-pivot teams are welcome, as are teams that have already raised funding.
• A long-term build. Alliance names four kinds of applicant it is not built for: those seeking a quick flip, lifestyle businesses, founders seeking funding alone, and founders who crack under pressure.
• A realistic view of tokens. Most Alliance startups never launch a token, so a token launch should not be the reason you apply.

Alliance is a crypto and fintech accelerator based in New York City, operated by DeFi Alliance LLC. It runs small, cohort-based programmes for founders building crypto, fintech, stablecoin, AI and related products, and it accepts teams from anywhere in the world. Alliance invests in every admitted startup, and graduates join its founder community.

How the accelerator works

Alliance runs three cohorts a year. Each one is deliberately small, at 15 to 30 teams, so that mentors stay hands-on. The current intake is ALL19, which starts on 11 January 2027.

The programme combines weekly lectures, one-to-one mentorship and weekly check-ins, and founders are expected to commit full time. Its pages give the length differently. One describes two weeks of in-person onboarding in New York City followed by eight weeks fully remote, while a timeline on the same page runs weeks one and two in New York, weeks three to nine remote, and week ten back in New York for Demo Day. Another answer describes it as three months of full commitment. The remote stretch is open to participants anywhere in the world; the in-person parts are not optional.

Demo Day falls in the final week, at the Alliance headquarters in New York and online, where startups meet angels and venture investors and graduate. Each startup in the latest cohort received an average of over 50 intro requests afterwards, from investors including Paradigm, Multicoin and Dragonfly.

The programme is free to join. Alliance invests in every admitted startup, on a post-money SAFE with a side letter covering tokens. It also says it is not a fit for founders who want funding alone, and describes its value as mentorship and community. Most Alliance startups never launch a token. Once paperwork is signed, KYC is completed and payment details are verified, the funds are wired, typically within one to two weeks and before the programme starts.

Afterwards, graduates join a community of more than 700 crypto and fintech founders, get access to more than 90 perk deals, and are welcome back to the office at any time.

Who can apply

Alliance states no formal eligibility criteria. Its one stated bar is that you want to build something big and your team can ship. Pre-product, pre-revenue and mid-pivot teams are all welcome, as are teams that have already raised funding, and non-crypto-native startups that Alliance calls Web2.5. No country restriction is stated. What is required is the two-week onboarding in New York City in person. Alliance works with experienced immigration attorneys and advisors, and can connect founders to trusted legal resources, for visa questions.

Alliance names four kinds of founder it is not built for: those seeking a quick flip, lifestyle businesses, founders seeking funding alone, and founders who crack under pressure.

How to apply

Applications go through the online form on the apply page of the Alliance site, and take about 20 minutes; the form starts with the first founder's email. Each cohort has an Early Admission deadline and a Regular Admission one. For ALL19, Early Admission closed on 23 September and Regular Admission closes on 18 November, with the programme starting on 11 January 2027. Mentors review applications within about a week, and interview invites go out within a week of application. The most promising teams are invited to a 10-minute fast-paced conversation with Alliance mentors, with guidelines shared beforehand, and decisions are emailed within 24 to 48 hours.

Scale

Alliance does not publish a total count of the startups it has backed. What it publishes is the size of its founder community after graduation, more than 700 crypto and fintech founders, and a companies area listing its portfolio. Its pages give no date for those figures.

Where it is

Alliance gives no street address. Its office is in SoHo in New York City. Founders get access to it, most teams work from it daily during the programme, and alumni are welcome back at any time. For an Indian founder the practical constraint is travel: onboarding and Demo Day are in person in New York, and there is no India-specific track.

Who runs it

Alliance is operated by DeFi Alliance LLC, which its terms of use give as registration number 4458036; the terms took effect on 20 June 2023. The terms do not state the jurisdiction of registration. Alliance says it has been in the space since 2020, which is not the same as a stated founding year.