TarsaaThe Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator, launched in June 2023, aligns with Visa’s pledge to invest $1 billion in Africa by 2027, aiming to revolutionize Africa’s rate ecosystem and uplift the digital economy. It’s a ways a 12-week hybrid initiative that helps fintech startups in Africa to scale their solutions and gain admission to Visa’s community, skills, and capabilities. The program runs twice a year, accepting up to 20 startups per cohort. The 2nd cohort of this diagram authorized purposes till February 29, 2024.
“This program is meticulously designed to empower startups by connecting them with seasoned mentors, dispute-of-the-art know-how, and distinctive investment opportunities, providing them with the sources they need to grow and carry out a essential impact on the African digital economy, serving as a pivotal platform that bridges Africa’s most promising innovators with the skills required to succeed in the aggressive fintech sector. “
According to Leila Serhan, Senior Vice-president and Neighborhood Nation Supervisor for North Africa, Levant, and Pakistan(NALP) at Visa.
– Advert –
Startups participating in this diagram can query customized mentoring from industry specialists within Visa and Run and Play’s community, gain admission to to a colossal undertaking capital community, and opportunities to engage with a various array of speakers and curated command material. Additionally, they enjoy the succor of Visa’s training modules, onboarding tools, and the prospect to exact funding through investment opinions and a Demo Day presentation to world undertaking capitalists.
The program facilitates fintech startups in scaling their solutions and tapping into Visa’s expansive community and sources by offering customized mentorship, tailored training purposes, and networking opportunities with partners, investors, and industry leaders. This total improve machine is designed to enable startups to refine their offerings, navigate fintech complexities, and foster strategic partnerships for grunt.
– Advert-
The main cohort of the Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator program has seen outstanding success and achievements, with startups operating in over 18 African international locations and chosen from a pool of additional than 1,000 applicants, showcased its capacity to entice and nurture top skills in the fintech dwelling.
Particularly, 41% of the participating startups had a lady founder or a lady in their leadership crew, highlighting dedication to diversity and inclusion.
– Advert –
Amongst the success stories, Timbo Drayson, CEO and co-founder of OkHi, an AI-powered orderly addressing machine first launched in Kenya, stands out as a notable success story from the principal cohort of this diagram. Drayson emphasised this diagram’s essential impact on OkHi, stating that it helped upskill their total crew across varied domains, including finance, engineering, HR, and carry out.
Consequently, the firm skilled an increase in business bound. Additionally, Drayson highlighted this diagram’s role in facilitating contemporary customer and partner acquisitions in previously untapped markets, thanks to collaboration with assorted startups in the cohort.
As this diagram moves forward with its 2nd cohort, it continues to provide entrepreneurs mentorship, networking opportunities, and gain admission to to a broader community of partners and investors.
Seed to Sequence A startups operating in Africa are invited to note for this diagram and targets fintech startups falling below particular classes, including unlocking money motion, embedded finance, empowering merchants and SMEs, rate infrastructure enablers, the future of finance, and sustainable and inclusive finance.
Within these classes, startups focusing on digitizing varied rate kinds, enhancing rate and finance experiences, accelerating the grunt of merchants and SMEs, building rate infrastructure, embracing emerging technologies in finance, and contributing to sustainable and inclusive finance are inspired to note.
These classes signify a various array of opportunities within the fintech ecosystem, reflecting this diagram’s dedication to supporting innovation and fostering grunt in Africa’s digital economy.
Run and Play plays a essential role as a key program partner for the Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator. Thru this partnership, startups no longer simplest gain gain admission to to customized one-on-one mentoring from investment specialists within Run and Play’s in depth undertaking capital community across Africa nonetheless even enjoy the succor of a various range of speakers and curated command material supplied over 12 if fact be told expert focus weeks.
Furthermore, startups can leverage Run and Play’s product perks platform, in conjunction with Visa’s total training modules and onboarding tools, to toughen their grunt and building within this diagram.
Additionally, the collaboration between Visa and Run and Play presents startups the chance for investment overview by every entities, providing avenues for seemingly funding and furthering their success in the fintech industry.
The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator Program’s application phase for its 2nd cohort ran through January 8th to February twenty ninth, 2024.
Chosen startups will bear two rounds of screening, with shortlisted candidates participating in virtual interviews prior to the final replace. During the 12-week program, startups will obtain customized one-on-one mentoring from investment specialists within Run and Play’s in depth undertaking capital community across Africa.
The program duration spans three months with regards to, concluding with an in-particular person pitch day/demo day the keep aside participants enjoy the chance to pitch their tips to top world undertaking capitalists.
The criteria draw to be when selecting startups for the Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator Program embody a entire lot of key factors. At the beginning, startups must operate within the fintech sector and be on the Seed to Sequence A stage.
Additionally, they wants to be actively generating earnings on the African continent. Furthermore, startups are evaluated in response to their alignment with particular classes, including unlocking money motion, embedded finance, empowering merchants and SMEs, rate infrastructure enablers, the future of finance, and sustainable and inclusive finance. The program seeks to improve innovative solutions that address challenges and opportunities within the fintech ecosystem in Africa.
Furthermore, diversity and inclusion are prioritized, as evidenced by the participation of startups from various backgrounds and the presence of girls founders or leaders in the principal cohort. Overall, the replace course of objectives to determine disruptive startups with the chance of grunt and impact in Africa’s digital economy.
The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator Program demonstrates a solid dedication to diversity and inclusion within the startup ecosystem, with a particular emphasis on female representation. In the principal cohort, 41% of startups had no longer lower than one girl on their founding crew, highlighting efforts to promote gender diversity.
Additionally, this diagram objectives to foster an inclusive ambiance by providing equal opportunities for all startups, no subject gender, background, or situation within Africa.
By encouraging purposes from various founders and startups, this diagram seeks to carry out bigger voices from underrepresented groups and create a extra inclusive fintech ecosystem. Thru initiatives similar to customized mentoring, curated command material, and networking opportunities, this diagram also strives to empower girls entrepreneurs and improve their success in the startup panorama.
The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator Program aligns intently with Visa’s dedication to investing in Africa’s digital transformation and fostering inclusive grunt. Launched as phase of Visa’s pledge to invest $1 billion in Africa by 2027, this diagram objectives to revolutionize Africa’s rate ecosystem and uplift the digital economy.
By providing startups with customized mentoring, curated command material, and gain admission to to Visa’s know-how and capabilities, this diagram enables entrepreneurs to innovate and scale their solutions, thereby contributing to the advancement of Africa’s fintech panorama.
Furthermore, this diagram’s focus on fostering diversity and inclusion, as evidenced by initiatives to improve female representation and empower underrepresented groups, shows Visa’s dedication to creating opportunities for all within the startup ecosystem.
Visa is dedicated to additional supporting fintech grunt in Africa past the accelerator program through varied initiatives and plans. These initiatives include continued investment in the realm’s digital transformation, with Visa pledging to invest $1 billion in Africa by 2027. This investment objectives to revolutionize Africa’s rate ecosystem and uplift the digital economy, demonstrating Visa’s long-duration of time dedication to advancing Africa’s economies and driving inclusive grunt.
Certainly one of our flagship initiatives, the Visa In all locations Initiative (VEI), serves as a testament to our dedication. In 2022, we launched the VEI in Egypt, with plans for growth into extra markets across the North Africa and Levant Partnership (NALP) area. This world originate innovation program presents a platform for begin-u.s.a.and fintech firms to showcase their groundbreaking solutions. Furthermore, the CEMEA area witnessed outstanding grunt, with a 33% increase in applicants, indicating the rising prominence of VEI and its associated advantages.
Additionally, we no longer too long ago announced an exciting collaboration with the American University in Cairo’s Mission Lab (AUC V-Lab), marking a essential advancement in Egypt’s fintech dwelling. Thru this partnership, Visa will provide startups enrolled in AUC V-Lab’s Fintech Accelerator program gain admission to to its sizable community of industry specialists, collaboration opportunities, and cutting-edge rate solutions. This improve will equip startups with the tools wished to scale their businesses, carry out bigger their customer unpleasant, and drive innovation in local and international markets.
One other notable endeavor was Morocco’s inaugural Visa Fintech Day, marking our on-going dedication and served as a pivotal platform for our future plans to come fintech in Morocco, facilitate information alternate, and promote Visa’s opportunities, including our Africa Fintech program.
Thru initiatives cherish these, Visa plans to collaborate with ecosystem avid gamers, funding partners, angel investors, undertaking capitalists, and more than a couple of stakeholders to foster innovation and entrepreneurship in the fintech sector.
Interested startups can note for the Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator Program by visiting the Visa online page and submitting their purposes online. The program is originate to Seed to Sequence A startups operating in Africa, and they might be able to note through the Visa online page during the specified application duration.
While there are particular classes below which startups are invited to note, similar to unlocking money motion, embedded finance, empowering merchants and SMEs, rate infrastructure enablers, the future of finance, and sustainable and inclusive finance, the eligibility requirements include being submit-MVP to Sequence A startups currently generating earnings on the African continent.
Adding to the above, on the total there are no longer any obstacles or restrictions to grab half in this diagram if the startup is essentially essentially based in Africa and meets the eligibility requirements talked about above.
Visa objectives to cease a entire lot of success metrics and key milestones through this diagram, aligning with its broader mission to revolutionize Africa’s rate ecosystem and uplift the digital economy. These include providing investment consideration and overview for make a selection out participating startups, offering avenues for seemingly funding to improve their grunt and building.
Additionally, this diagram seeks to flee startups’ commercial initiate by granting gain admission to to Visa’s know-how and customized one-on-one mentoring from investment specialists within Run and Play’s in depth undertaking capital community across Africa; which in flip enables improve startups in scaling their businesses and expanding their market attain.
The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator program presents total improve to startups in phrases of mentorship, curated command material, and investment opportunities.
Thru customized mentorship supplied by extra than 20 industry specialists and know-how partners, startups in Africa obtain tailored steering mandatory for his or her success. This mentorship covers a gigantic selection of topics mandatory for startup grunt, including market trends, regulatory landscapes, and emerging technologies.
By engaging in one-on-one steering and training classes, startups gain invaluable insights and strategic advice to successfully navigate the fintech ecosystem. This customized manner ensures that every startup’s weird wants and aims are addressed, empowering them to originate innovative solutions that drive meaningful impact in the digital payments panorama.
In addition to mentorship, this diagram presents curated command material tailored to the actual wants and aims of participating startups. This curated command material covers varied mandatory topics similar to market trends, regulatory landscapes, and emerging technologies, delivered through workshops, seminars, and networking occasions, providing startups with treasured insights and information mandatory for developing their innovative solutions.
Furthermore, startups gain gain admission to to investment opportunities through seemingly funding and partnership avenues facilitated by Visa. The program connects startups with investors, undertaking capitalists, and strategic partners interested in supporting innovative fintech solutions.
Overall, this diagram’s holistic manner ensures that startups obtain the mandatory improve and sources to thrive in the aggressive fintech panorama.
– Advert –
Tarsaa
