Helping startups drive big impact for small businesses
July 30, 2024Mastercard is uncovering opportunities to support small businesses on their digitization journey through the Start Path startup engagement program
In support of Mastercard’s commitment to enabling the growth and resilience of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the Start Path Small Business program is welcoming eight startups from around the world to collaborate and shape the future of small business operations.
According to a Mastercard report, two-thirds of SMEs say that a seamless and frictionless digital experience is critical to their business. The latest Start Path cohort features startups that are digitizing key functions for SMEs such as supply chains, spend management platforms, onboarding, risk monitoring, embedded financial solutions and loan approvals.
The following companies have been selected for their dedication to democratizing financial tools and providing cutting-edge services for SMEs:
Ballerine [Israel]: Allows for rapid onboarding, underwriting and monitoring through a Gen AI-powered risk management platform to accelerate global expansion and reduce manual tasks
“We saw the challenges financial institutions face in managing risk of small businesses coupled with the inefficiencies caused by fragmented solutions and knew there had to be a better way,” says Noam Izhaki, CEO of Ballerine. “Our vision is to simplify risk management with a customizable, global platform that integrates all necessary tools and uses AI to automatically analyze data and streamline automation. This helps financial institutions work smarter and supports small businesses to thrive in a supportive and innovative environment.”
Boost [UK]: Powers growth for manufacturers and their distribution networks with radically easy technology
"My co-founders and I came together in 2020 with a bold vision to build a global platform that powers growth in emerging market supply chains,” says Mike Quinn, co-founder and CEO of Boost. “We passionately believe that by enabling SMEs to gain access to better pricing, working capital credit, and digital tools, Boost can become an engine for growth and job creation at a global scale."
CredibleX [UAE]: Empowers platforms and companies to provide embedded financing solutions to their SME ecosystem, bolstering the growth of the small business economy
“SME financing is a critical driver of economic growth, empowering entrepreneurs to innovate, create jobs and contribute to the prosperity of their communities,” says Anand Nagaraj (CEO) & Ahmad Malik (CRO) of CredibleX. “At CredibleX, we're committed to supporting these businesses on their journey to success.”
Digi [Argentina]: Enables digital onboarding for small and medium-sized enterprises
“Having experienced the digital transformation in retail, we wanted to shape the digital transformation in financial services,” says Hernan Lopez Conde, Founder and CEO of Digi. “Small businesses are the engine of the global economy, and ensuring their financial inclusion is the key to sustained economic growth.”
Merge [US]: Provides an application programming interface (API) capable of adding hundreds of integrations to a single product
"We're excited about the opportunity to help fintech companies transform their product offerings by enabling them to add reliable and robust integrations at scale," says Shensi Ding, CEO and co-founder of Merge
Parlay [US]: Enables community banks and credit unions to increase small business loan volume, efficiency and profitability through an AI-powered loan intelligence system
“After a decade of work in economic development, our team realized that 77% of small businesses still struggle to access affordable capital and lack the insights needed to navigate the lending process,” says Alex McLeod, founder of Parlay. “We envision a future where community lenders, powered by Parlay's AI-driven loan intelligence system, can get millions more small businesses approved for loans using unique, personalized insights that help both lenders and borrowers.”
Prime Dash [Romania]: Future-proofs B2B platforms with innovative lending infrastructure solutions, empowering fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) to enhance SME access to credit for sustainable and inclusive growth
“Picture a dynamic ecosystem where advanced algorithms and smart analytics empower small businesses to flourish, while financial institutions leverage these same tools to offer more tailored services and support,” says Madou Sylla, co-founder and CEO of Prime Dash. “We seek to harness the power of data science and fully integrated financial solutions to create a future where small businesses are not just surviving but thriving, driven by precise, data-informed decisions and beneficial financial partnerships."
RedOwl [Australia]: Optimizes cashflow through an AI platform and helps organizations automate, predict and control all business spending
"My co-founder and I, as experienced fintech entrepreneurs, are thrilled to bring the power of AI to reimagine business spending within SMEs,” says Jitto Arulampalam, co-founder and CEO of RedOwl. “The RedOwl AI assistant not only significantly improves the financial controls of an SME by removing the mundane and administrative human tasks but also generates predictive intelligence for the finance teams to optimize its cash flows."
During the four-month program, startups will have the opportunity to leverage Mastercard’s network and subject matter expertise to uncover powerful product partnerships that help small businesses on their digitization journey beyond payments.
The Start Path portfolio includes more than 430 companies from 57 countries, many of which are entering public markets, reaching unicorn status and exploring extended commercial engagements with Mastercard and its customers. Interested startups can apply for the Mastercard Start Path Small Business program here.
When small businesses win, everyone wins
As SMEs embrace e-commerce and seek digital services to manage their day-to-day operations, new players are finding ways to address their most pressing demands: access to capital, automation of payments and receivables, paying international suppliers, cybersecurity and growing ESG expectations.
Mastercard is addressing the transforming needs of modern SMEs by delivering seamless, digital experiences that help businesses grow and thrive. Mastercard has pledged to bring one billion individuals and 50 million micro and small businesses into the digital economy by 2025. This year, the company announced the development of an inclusive AI tool to provide personalized, real-time assistance to the small business community. For more information about the Mastercard Small Business Community, please visit here.
Media contact: Julia Ross, Mastercard Global Communications, (732) 713-8526, julia.ross@mastercard.com
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