Visa is making its network available to drive inclusive economic growth with the goal of giving everyone, everywhere access to the global economy. This year, Visa has opened the door to LGBTQ+-founded startups that are promoting greater accessibility in the way we pay, save, and invest. Finalists showcased their solutions worldwide on TechCrunch.
Finalists presented their innovative solutions in front of a panel of industry judges who selected Rachel Knepp of Mozaic as an overall winner and Fabien Lamaison of Bunny Money as the audience favorite.
Image Credits: Visa Everywhere Initiative (opens in a new window)
Finalists
Daniel Beck, CEO, 401GO – a fully automated, low-cost retirement benefit for small businesses.
Natalia Mikova, Co-founder and CMO, REINNO – bringing liquidity to commercial real estate
Rachel Knepp, Co-founder and SVP Growth, Mozaic – modern global payments for the Creator Economy and beyond
Evelyne Kanakis, Founder and CEO, Moxi – financial empowerment for the new generation of creators and freelancers
Fabien Lamaison, Founder and CEO, bunny.money – a banking app for personal & workplace giving
Monetary prizes
Overall winner: $10,000 USD
Audience favorite: $10,000 USD
Judges
Rob Curtis, CEO and Co-founder, Daylight
Tiffany Johnson, Head of Product, Railsbank North America
Pocket Sun, Co-founder and Managing Partner, SoGal Ventures
Edward Galvin, VP and Head of B2B Commercial Sales, Visa Business Solutions, North America
Brittany Decker, Senior Account Executive and Head of BIN Sponsorship for Digital Partnerships, Visa
Alex Talati, Senior Manager, Visa’s Venture
Image Credits: Visa Everywhere Initiaitve
While judges were deliberating, Visa hosted a very special guest: Delaware Senator Sarah McBride. Senator McBride was raised in Wilmington and has represented the First State Senate District since 2020. She is the first openly transgender state senator in the country, making her the highest-ranking transgender elected official in United States history.
Prizes were awarded by Erin Pursell Vice President, New Business Development, Fintech and Inclusive Client Partnership at Visa North America.
The Visa Everywhere Initiative LGBTQ+ special edition is a part of a larger series of competitions in the U.S. focused on inclusivity. During Black History Month, four finalists competed in the finals for the Black Community special edition, which recognized SoLo Funds as the overall winner for redefining capital and banking for the everyday American, and Zimbali Networks won the audience favorite category for a Web3 fintech that offers Digital-Currency-as-a-Service. Then, in March, five finalists went head-to-head in the Women’s special edition competition, crowning SpenDebt as the overall winner and Physis Investment as the audience favorite.
Since its launch in 2015, over 8,500 startups have applied to compete. The Visa Everywhere Initiative has helped startups in more than 100 countries collectively raise more than $16 billion in funding, addressing one of the biggest challenges that entrepreneurs face in their startup years. Every year, Visa has expanded the Visa Everywhere Initiative to include unique startups solving unique problems in the world of payments. This year, they intentionally focused on reaching a more diverse group of innovators. In the U.S., the Visa Everywhere Initiative 2022 special editions will spotlight Black, Women and LGBTQ+-founded startups during Black History Month (February 2022), International Women’s Month (March 2022), and Pride Month (June 2022), respectively.