isa has announced that the CEMEA Regional Finals of its Visa Everywhere Initiative (VEI) will be held on July 23 at 1:30 p.m. Gulf Standard Time, with a livestream available on TechCrunch.
From over 1,400 applicants, five fintech finalists have been chosen for their innovative payment solutions in areas such as fraud and risk, identity and biometrics, digital wallets, open banking, and embedded finance.
The startups, representing Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, South Africa, and Nigeria, will compete for a chance to advance to the Global Finals at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco on October 28, with a grand prize of $100,000.
Launched in 2015, the Visa Everywhere Initiative enables entrepreneurs to unlock opportunities and build credibility by putting them on the global stage and providing access to Visa’s vast network of experts and extensive solutions suite. Since its inception, more than 15,000 startups from over 100 countries have applied, collectively raising over $48 billion in funding.
Leading up to this year’s regional finale, Visa held several subregional events across CEMEA, including the first-ever local Levant edition spanning Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Iraq. This year’s CEMEA winners will share a total prize pool of $350,000 to support their work.
Andrew Uaboi, Vice President and Head of Visa West Africa, said: “The Visa Everywhere Initiative reflects Visa’s commitment to supporting start-up innovation, recognizing fintech as a driver of economic growth and financial inclusion. Our program helps early-stage companies scale groundbreaking solutions by putting them on a global stage, connecting them to Visa’s extensive network, and driving them to take a step forward in their growth journeys. This year’s finalists truly exemplify the remarkable entrepreneurial talent in this region.”
The fintech journey with Visa extends beyond the competition through key deals and connections. A notable example is Visa’s recent partnership with Nigerian fintech ThriveAgric, a former regional and global VEI winner in 2022, supporting their expansion into Kenya, where they will help 10,000 farmers participate in the digital economy. Visa previously collaborated with ThriveAgric to provide smallholder farmers with cards, bank accounts, and access to more seamless disbursements.
Also noteworthy is last year’s regional and global winner, Chibuzo Opara of Drugstoc, an innovative Nigerian startup that leverages technology to enhance access to healthcare.
2024 CEMEA Finalists
Meet this year’s Visa Everywhere Initiative 2024 finalists, who will compete for a high-value monetary prize to fund business growth:
- GamerG (Jordan): A digital-first online gaming tournament platform that organizes daily tournaments for monetary rewards. It employs skill-based matchmaking technology to connect gamers and level the playing field, offering convenient digital payment gateways across wallets, cards, and bank transfers.
- CnpSecure (Bahrain): A turnkey digital provider that combats Card-Not-Present fraud and chargeback risks. The startup generates dynamic CVV and virtual cards on demand, reducing the risk of CNP fraud by more than 90%.
- Tess Payments (Qatar): A smart payments solution offering a wide range of accepted payment methods and secure, convenient payment solutions for merchants, enabling them to increase sales and cater to changing customer preferences.
- Nomanini (South Africa): A developer of a payment platform designed to connect Africa’s informal and offline retail trade ecosystem to digital financial services. The platform connects merchants and distributors, providing services spanning payment orchestration and acceptance, working capital provision, and merchant analytics.
- Advantage Health Africa (Nigeria): Aims to leverage technology to enhance access, affordability, and quality across healthcare in Africa through integrated pharma solutions. Their approach addresses critical issues in the drug distribution system, such as drug counterfeiting and inconsistent pricing.
Watch the Visa Everywhere Initiative finals live on July 23, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. GST/9:30 a.m. GMT here.
