Mastercard Selects 11 Startups for Its Start Path program, Also Launches ‘Accelerate’ to Help Fintechs
Startups from around the world are developing niche technologies that are making life simpler and more convenient, but they struggle to find the right partners that can take their solutions farther.
To help them make a bigger impact, Mastercard today welcomed 11 new startups to the eighth wave of the Mastercard Start Path program. Mastercard Start Path is the company’s global initiative to provide startups with the operational support and commercial access needed to scale.
The startups span eight countries and are developing a variety of tools to help businesses manage their daily tasks, sell to customers overseas, and better engage consumers in an increasingly digital world.
“Startups need the right digital tools to thrive, whether they’re just getting started or keeping up with customer demands,” said Amy Neale, vice president, Mastercard Start Path. “Start Path is a proven way to raise their visibility and bring them the experience and knowhow they need to launch pilots and scale.”
The full list of new Start Path companies includes:
DefinedCrowd - improves voice assistants and customer support systems by analyzing how people speak and interact
Hanzo - empowers merchants to interact with consumers through their smartphones
Identitii - enables secure and trusted information exchange between banks and their customers
Iguama - expands U.S. online retailers to the LAC market
James (by CrowdProcess) - allows risk officers to build, test and validate credit scoring models using artificial intelligence
Lidya - streamlines the small business lending process
MarketUP - creates online marketplaces and management tools for small business owners
OpenSparkz - allows consumers to redeem loyalty offers from their existing payment cards
SnapSwap - delivers a fully automated digital customer onboarding solution for financial services
Vouchr - transforms payments into a personal, social and gamified experience
The Wallet App - lets consumers save all loyalty, bank and transit cards in a single digital wallet on their smartphones
Apart from this, the company has also announced the launch of ‘Accelerate’, an initiative aimed at supporting innovation in the FinTech industry via tailored support arrangements that include access to Mastercard insight, tools, technology and investments.
The new initiative will operate alongside its Start Path program, and will broaden and deepen its engagement in the FinTech industry.
“Creating this initiative is the next step in our long-term focus on being partner of choice for FinTech companies around the world,” said Ann Cairns, vice chairman of Mastercard. “Globally, the FinTech community is one of the most vibrant and fast-paced, and Mastercard is committed to help[ing] these fast-growing businesses unleash their full potential. With extensive experience in supporting growth of the financial services industry, Mastercard is uniquely positioned to provide the platform [that] can propel FinTech businesses along increasingly ambitious growth paths.”
Investment firm Holdun has also announced the launch of its Holt Fintech Accelerator last month. The accelerator, which is aimed globally, will support the next generator of entrepreneur talents operating in the fintech industry and encourages all interested candidates to submit their applications through the Holt Accelerator website by July 29th for a chance to participate.
