Visa Everywhere Initiative announced the third regional edition of Latin America and the Caribbean. This program seeks to connect with startups focused on solving the problems of electronic commerce with innovation.
By 2019, Visa will focus the program with a more practical approach, inviting startups to solve three business challenges in accepting payments, affluent segment, and digital commerce. The proof of concept (PoC) will be one of the new elements present in the program, to present better payment solutions in the market.
Arnoldo J. Reyes, Vice President of Digital Alliances, Fintech, and Entrepreneurship for Visa Latin America and the Caribbean, commented on the program:
“As the number of startups in the Fintech sector in Latin America continues to increase and attract regional and venture capital funds international, we believe that we are reaching a turning point in which some of these startups will significantly transform the ecosystem of payments and trade in the region. ”
The major financial services companies have had problems adapting rapidly new technologies, which have been known to take advantage of fintech in the region to offer competitive financial services, as did Nubank in Brazil. With this program, Visa intends to promote these innovations.
“We continue to see the benefits that startups can gain by deepening their level of collaboration with companies such as Visa. Together, we can accelerate the adoption of digital payments, drive greater digital inclusion, and foster a new era of commerce, at scale. ”
Visa also benefits from the program because startups have the flexibility to try new ideas, which is not always found in large corporations.
“The program has allowed us to work closely with pioneer startups, and we are very excited to receive many creative solutions this year to continue transforming the world of payments.”
Arnoldo J. Reyes, Vice President of Digital Alliances, Fintech, and Entrepreneurship for Visa Latin America and the Caribbean.
The eligible startups will search for the Visa program will seek to solve the following challenges:
- Expand Access and Acceptance of Digital Payments. How can startups help physical and online merchants accept digital payments? The emphasis on this challenge is made in small and medium companies.
- Increase the volume of Visa (volume of payments and cardholders) in the Affluent Segment. How can startups offer Visa cardholders, or their product line, unique benefits, capabilities, and solutions that arouse interest in these customers?
- Promote Secure Digital Trade. How can startups provide a higher level of security in online payments and reduce cyber fraud?
Visa will choose 12 finalist startups, which will participate in a five-week immersion program that includes a pilot demonstration of their solutions at FINNOSUMMIT 2019, to be held in Miami, Florida on November 8.
The winner of the program will receive $ 50K and the opportunity to collaborate with Visa in Latin America, receive expert advice and gain visibility from venture capital investors and the Visa partner ecosystem.
To answer questions from startups that want to apply, Visa established Office Hours in different cities in Latin America where applicants can answer their questions. The dates are the following:
- Office Hours in Bogotá, May 28-29
- Office Hours in Lima, May 31
- Office Hours in Sao Paulo, June 3
- Office Hours in Buenos Aires, June 5
- Office Hours in Santiago, Chile, June 6
Applications for Visa Everywhere Initiative 2019 can be submitted by June 30, 2019, on the Visa Everywhere Initiative website.