South African biometric identity and digital payments fintech firm Paycode has been selected as one of the top four finalists in the Women’s World Banking Fintech Innovation Challenge in India, and will go through to the final round of the accelerator.
The four finalists will compete for the prize in a live pitch event on 25 May in Mumbai, as part of the 2023 Making Finance Work for Women Summit.
Established by non-profit Women's World Banking, the challenge is dedicated to economic empowerment through financial inclusion for the one billion women in the world without access to formal financial products and services.
Now in its fourth year, the challenge identifies and elevates four later-stage fintech firms that pioneer innovative financial solutions that address the persistent challenges in serving the low-income women’s market.
It provides a global stage for these companies to present innovative solutions and business models that help build economic security and prosperity for unbanked, underserved women.
According to a statement, Johannesburg-based Paycode was selected from a pool of 98 applicants across 34 countries. Participants were judged by an advisory committee that evaluated several factors, including product innovation, gender inclusivity, financial viability, scale potential, team experience and diversity.
Paycode provides people in remote areas with secure end-to-end payment technology that makes sending and receiving money easy through their mobile devices. Its EDAPT payments solution enables security, biometric identification, authentication and fraud prevention.
Marina Dimova, global head of financial industry and network advocacy for Women's World Banking, says: "Fintech founders develop new solutions when they see an unmet need or an underserved community, and low-income women are absolutely an underserved community.
“All four finalists were chosen for their work developing innovative, ground-breaking solutions to accelerate effective usage of relevant digital financial services for low-income women. Each finalist offers a suite of impressive and diverse products.”
The other finalists are:
- GajiGesa: The largest employee benefits and productivity platform in Southeast Asia.
- IndiaP2P: Mumbai-based micro-finance platform disrupting the credit market in India.
- MeraBills: A free-to-use intelligence app designed to provide software-as-a-service solutions for women micro-entrepreneurs.
The four finalists will be awarded mentorships, personalised UX design and investor consultations, membership to exclusive networks, and priority access to fintech events attended by investors and partners around the world.
Paycode CEO Gabe Ruhan comments: “Paycode is delighted to be a finalist in the Women’s World Banking Fintech Innovation Challenge and we look forward to presenting our solution to the judges at the Making Finance Work for Women Summit in Mumbai later this year.
“We are proud to be recognised as a leading fintech in Africa, and we look forward to building on our success to drive financial inclusion for millions through our digital identity and payments solution.”
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