Catalyst Fund

Sand to Green provides a long-term solution to the problems of desertification, land degradation, food security, and pressure on primary forests.

By bundling traditional insurance coverage and personalized, proactive care, Koltin is able to grant access to health insurance to people over 60 - the fastest growing age segment in the country - for the first time. Koltin has quickly established itself as the best - and at times only - alternative for older Mexicans looking for world-class care. After partnering with one of the largest insurance carriers in the country, members of Koltin have access to major medical health insurance coverage, dedicated team-based care, and tech-enabled personalized health aging plans.

Hourwork develops a recruitment and retention platform that connects employers with hourly workers. The company is driven by a mission to build an hourly workspace that works for everyone. Its platform is used by more than 5,000 quick-service restaurant franchises across the United States. Founded in 2018, the company is formerly known as Syrg.

Caantin is on a mission to increase restaurant contribution to Global GDP. They have built a platform that enables restaurants in Africa to purchase food supplies, access short-term credit, and manage their business.

Tulix was built to empower Africans everywhere by enabling them to share money and collaborate on payments for specific needs. Our app allows users to build healthier money relationships with their people. People share money every day for different reasons: from supporting their families at home to purchasing food and household goods to medical and education expenses. Our innovative solution allows them to manage all these different spending needs together. With Tulix, they can share money and make payments to local businesses instantly from anywhere in the world using mobile money. While several operators offer fast and affordable payments, none provide transparency or the ability to collaborate with beneficiaries on the usage of the money. Tulix provides this value by allowing users to see, co-determine with their people, or determine directly how funds will be spent, thereby increasing accountability and transparency to unlock the full potential of local and international remittances. Tulix offers value to both senders and receivers on a single platform. We allow users to create “jars” for collaborative budgeting, increased visibility, and better management of funds. These jars can also be used for goal-based savings, which help to improve the financial health of households that use our solution.

AquaRech includes Farm management that enhances fish production, enables access to the market & promotes equal trade.

Cold Hubs is a solar-powered walk-in cold room. They offer storage for fresh fruits, vegetables, and other agricultural perishables. Farmers have access to a flexible pay-as-you-store subscription model through Coldhubs. Farmers transfer their perishable foods into reusable crates, which fit neatly onto the shelves, in order to prepare them for storage.

Caantin is on a mission to increase restaurant contribution to Global GDP. They have built a platform that enables restaurants in Africa to purchase food supplies, access short-term credit, and manage their business.

Mujer Financiera is a startup on a mission to close the gender gap in financial inclusion for women through financial education, expense control and investment products. They educate women on personal finance to help them make better life decisions, start saving; start investing, and manage their personal finances correctly.

Swoove is a logistics service aggregator platform for offering high-quality delivery experiences for customers. Businesses can simply monitor, get updates on, and track their deliveries in real-time thanks to Swoove. Swoove's shipping options start at just ¢15, so businesses may expand their company without worrying about prices.

Oze brings African small businesses into the digital era. It is an app that makes it easy for businesses to track sales, expenses, and customer information. The data is analyzed to provide tailored recommendations, reports, and business education. If the entrepreneur needs a little extra support, an Oze Coach is just a click away. As they are using Oze to manage their business and learn how to run it better, we are learning about them. Using this data and machine learning, we can predict their credit risk and provide them with affordable capital from our banking partners. With over 150,000 registered users, Oze is the largest online community of SMEs in West Africa. The most exciting thing is that Oze works; 97% of businesses that have used Oze for at least 9 months are growing or profitable or both!

Tendo is an online platform that connects independent resellers to businesses.It enables anyone to start their online business without investing any capital.

Shopa is a digital platform that engages the gap between informal retailers and manufacturers for ordering and delivery services.

TOP is a women-owned period care company that aims to empower women with better product choices, protecting their bodies and the environment. It offers offers organic tampons and pads that are accessible to everyone. Wherever there is toilet paper, there MUST be period products.

Farmers, especially smallholder farmers, have always had trouble accessing financing as banks are wary of fund mismanagement. Crop2Cash makes formal financing a 100% transparent process for banks while providing much-needed capital to responsible farmers.

Boost Technology provides financial B2B commerce platforms. The company provide services that create a tipping point and services that listen, learn, build, and iterate on a shared platform. Boost assists distributors in the trillion-dollar informal economy. Boost is a single, adaptable platform that allows clients to be served in numerous languages and currencies, with multiple catalogues and prices available across channels.

KudiGo offers a mobile based integrated retail, accounting, payments and analytics engine for informal consumer retailers in Africa. Our solution enables users to leverage on innovative technology in gaining oversight of their business, adopt efficient book-keeping practices and become financial inclusive. We also leverages on big data and blockchain to enable transparency and allow for real-time oversight my manufacturers and distributors within our niche market.

Kandua is an online marketplace for home services. Kandua eliminates all types of risk associated with hiring small, independent contractors to do home renovations, maintenance, and repairs in South Africa. All communication, invoicing, and payments happen through the platform.

Jetstream is a supply chain platform that powers freight forwarding and global exports for African suppliers. With tracking and consolidated (LCL) shipping Jetstream levels the playing field for access to international trade for African SMEs with the click of a button.

Koa is a savings and financial services platform that provides tech solutions and financial services apps via its API. The company was co-founded by Alexis Roman and Delila Kidanu.

Lami is an end-to-end digital insurance platform and API that enables companies across sectors to offer insurance products. Its API allows underwriters to connect with consumer-facing companies that can provide embedded insurance as a value add for existing customers, many of whom are uninsured.

Indicina is a digital lending platform that provides analytics-driven credit decisions for lenders. The company offers technology solutions to help businesses in offering credit to customers faster, more securely, and at scale. It was founded in 2018 and is based in Lagos, Nigeria.

The Power Agency provides marketing and advertising services. Their services include CG, creative, branding, digital, website development, design, 3d interactive, media planning, media buying, photography, video production, set design, SEO, animations, insights and strategy, 360 photography, advertising, trade shows, marketing, hiring, account management, and web development

Graviti offers the products needed the most, financed for months. No credit or debit card, no initial payment, no arrears, and with credit approved immediately. It wants to make sure every family in LATAM is able to buy basic appliances for the home by offering fair and accessible financing to acquire them. The company was founded in 2019 and is based in Mexico.

Employee benefits platform offering users early access to earned wages at affordable rates while focusing on financial wellness and safe and responsible financial inclusion through gamification

Due to poor financial management, 9 out of 10 businesses in Africa will die before their 5th birthday. The problem persists as there is no Spend management platform to help these businesses manage their finances. Leaving them at the mercy of outdated processes Businesses in Africa have high digital literacy and are willing to adopt digital tools to help them manage their finances. Flex is a spend management platform that helps businesses in Africa manage their spending via mobile, web and corporate cards.

KarmaLifeAI is an AI-powered digital solution for the financial well being of blue-collar gig workers and micro-business. The company allows the user to pay directly for key expenditures and smoothen their consumption patterns. It offers real-time access to credit for gig workers, based on their payroll account, through partnerships with the digital platforms they work for. It operates an interest-free subscription model in which the platform or the gig worker can pay a flat fee and access credit equalling up to one-third of their monthly income. The company analyzes alternative data points and payment behavior over time to unlock higher credit lines for the workers.

MangoLife is a provider of life, retirement, education, and health insurance to protect an individual and his family against the fundamental risks of life. The company uses technology to streamline every interaction clients have with their insurance and the contracting process, avoiding unnecessary paperwork and confusing coverage that other insurers offer. MangoLife was established in 2017 and is headquartered in Leon, Guanajuato.

Wellahealth is a startup that has developed a digital triage bot that provides guidance based on Nigeria Centre for Disease Control guidelines and logs responses for follow up by public health as needed.

Chipper Cash is a financial services company that features a software application platform that enables free instant cross-border mobile money transfers in Africa as easy as sending a text message. The company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Wasoko transforms access to essential goods and services by connecting small shops to the digital economy. It increases sales and market coverage for companies in emerging markets. It also enables informal retailers to order products at any time via SMS or mobile app, and receive free same-day delivery to their store. This makes it easier for shopkeepers to source goods and helps manufacturers ensure that their products are consistently available to consumers.

Gro is an app that provides financial services, digital accounts, and savings. Offer customers products with reasonable prices, diversified business models, and benefits that are very beneficial to investors. is a private asset manager that specializes in investing in funds.

Meerkat is a financial wellness business committed to making a real difference in the financial lives of its customers. The company's credit life business offers comprehensive cover at lower premiums all with a tap on the mobile phone. Meerkat was established in 2015 and is headquartered in Cape Town, South Africa.

CowryWise is a FinTech company democratizing access to premium financial services by making these services available to the general public at low rates. The firm leverages technology and investment management to re-imagine how personal finance services are delivered to people. The firm also helps customers in completing their savings and investment goals in a simple, secure, and rewarding manner.

FarMart is an agritech company that empowers farmers and optimizes the agricultural supply chain. The company leverages technology to address the challenges faced by farmers and improve the efficiency of the agricultural supply chain. FarMart's mission is to revolutionize the agricultural ecosystem by granting farmers access to crucial resources, technology, and markets. The company's vision is to develop a sustainable and efficient agricultural supply chain that benefits both farmers and consumers.

Spoon Money is a online stokvel management system which improves transparency, security, and accountability within the traditional practice of stokvels. Built with the community for the community, meaning we actively build products based around the solutions our customers require.

Kwara is transforming credit unions into modern digital financial institutions, powered by an industry-leading core banking system and a modern mobile banking experience for credit union members. Backed by investors across Africa, Asia, Europe and the USA, Kwara currently serves 200+ SACCOs in Kenya, South Africa and the Philippines

PesaKit is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered virtual assistant for mobile money agents. It is a provider of a software application designed to digitize distribution and access channels for mobile money and digital finance. Its software offers an artificial intelligence-based API driven interface which performs as a virtual assistant for mobile money agents that enables users to manage liquidity and conversion process easily. PesaKit was established in 2018 and is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya.

Chipper Cash is a financial services company that features a software application platform that enables free instant cross-border mobile money transfers in Africa as easy as sending a text message. The company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Turaco develops simplified insurance and credit solutions through mobile technology to solve the healthcare financing needs. Turaco has simplified insurance products and also provides on-demand health loans, allowing customers to get healthcare at affordable monthly premiums.

The global mobile money industry moves over $1.3 billion per day. Our Android API enables developers to integrate any mobile money service worldwide in an afternoon.

Banco Maré is a social startup that allows users to pay their bills, transfer amounts between users through an application. Through the app, users can transact their bills, buy in the local market using the digital currency that by choice of the inhabitants of the Tide, is called "stilt". The company aims to serve regions and communities that do not have a financial system. The company is based in Rio de Janeiro.

Wasoko transforms access to essential goods and services by connecting small shops to the digital economy. It increases sales and market coverage for companies in emerging markets. It also enables informal retailers to order products at any time via SMS or mobile app, and receive free same-day delivery to their store. This makes it easier for shopkeepers to source goods and helps manufacturers ensure that their products are consistently available to consumers.

payAgri is a farmer centric, tech driven ' Seed to fork' Agri & Food business co., creating a sustainable inclusive model in the Agri value chain. payAgri is incubated at and supported by IIMA-CIIE ( Financial Inclusion Lab-Bharat Inclusion Initiative ), NABARD MABIF, Royal Agricultural University, UK and Tamilnadu Agricultural University, India. Accelerated and advised by Catalyst Fund. ( www.catalyst-fund.org - Project of BFA-USA, supported by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors ). This venture is an outcome of 6 years of rigorous on-field research in Farming & Rural sector. PayAgri was established in 2017 and is headquartered in Theni, Tamil Nadu.

Nearly 2 billion people around the world are unbanked and lack access to formal financial services. For refugees, migrants, and cross border traders, this is particularly challenging because they have no safe or reliable way to bring their money across borders or an affordable way to send and receive money, leaving them vulnerable to exploitative exchange rates and theft. With Leaf, users can travel without cash and rest assured that their money will be safe and accessible no matter where they go. Friends and family around the world can also deposit into a refugee’s account, regardless of location. Backed by blockchain technology of Stellar, Leaf ultimately creates an economic identity that customers can use to establish themselves in a new country.

Zippi provides financial services for microentrepreneurs in Latin America.

intelligent communications for financial institutions

Chipper Cash is a financial services company that features a software application platform that enables free instant cross-border mobile money transfers in Africa as easy as sending a text message. The company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Wasoko transforms access to essential goods and services by connecting small shops to the digital economy. It increases sales and market coverage for companies in emerging markets. It also enables informal retailers to order products at any time via SMS or mobile app, and receive free same-day delivery to their store. This makes it easier for shopkeepers to source goods and helps manufacturers ensure that their products are consistently available to consumers.

Rukula offers small loans for household consumer durables and electronic items. The company aims to assist the financially-excluded members of society to be able to afford the basics in life in a simple, understandable, and transparent process.

Grão is born to change the relationship of Brazilians with their money.

Asaak provides asset financing to mobility workers across emerging markets, currently in East Africa and Mexico.

Abalobi is a co-designed and fisher-driven mobile app suite to transform small-scale fisheries governance from hook to cook. It is aimed at social justice and poverty alleviation in the small-scale fisheries chain, transformation in the way knowledge is produced, stewardship of its marine resources, and resilience-building in the face of climate change. Promoting traceable, storied seafood by empowered small-scale fishers from hook to cook, in a manner that is not only ecologically responsible but also socially fair.

MobiLife is an insurance provider aiming to transform micro-insurance in South Africa. It was established in 2015 and is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa.

ROSS Intelligence builds artificially intelligent tools to enhance lawyer’s abilities – allowing them to do more than ever before humanly possible. Their vision is to create the world’s smartest lawyer. Their first product, ROSS, is an artificially intelligent lawyer. ROSS Intelligence's customers include many of the top law firms and corporate legal departments, both in the United States and abroad. ROSS Intelligence transforms lawyers' workflow with artificial intelligence. ROSS Intelligence operates out of Toronto, San Francisco, and New York.

ESCALA Educación is a social enterprise that promotes access to higher education and financial inclusion by offering enhanced saving plans with educational benefits. ESCALA partners with companies and becomes their main educational benefits provider, through which employees save through their paychecks for education either for themselves or their children. These savings are coupled with company matching funds, tuition discounts, career counseling and other education benefits that make higher education accessible for all.

ESCALA Educación is a social enterprise that promotes access to higher education and financial inclusion by offering enhanced saving plans with educational benefits. ESCALA partners with companies and becomes their main educational benefits provider, through which employees save through their paychecks for education either for themselves or their children. These savings are coupled with company matching funds, tuition discounts, career counseling and other education benefits that make higher education accessible for all.

At Smile ID they believe anyone should be able to prove their identity easily, anywhere in the world. Their team is made up of American and African engineers and financial services professionals with experience across global markets in highly regulated environments. They have built encryption, authentication and security solutions. They have developed image processing technology from the chip level up. They have been part of security investigations and have pursued fraudsters. Having worked with, or for, telecoms, lenders, banks and startups, they know the challenges of building world class technology and they understand the needs of the African consumer and enterprise customer. They are backed by leading Silicon Valley & African investors and they have pan-African reach, with representation in the United States, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and Rwanda.

At Smile ID they believe anyone should be able to prove their identity easily, anywhere in the world. Their team is made up of American and African engineers and financial services professionals with experience across global markets in highly regulated environments. They have built encryption, authentication and security solutions. They have developed image processing technology from the chip level up. They have been part of security investigations and have pursued fraudsters. Having worked with, or for, telecoms, lenders, banks and startups, they know the challenges of building world class technology and they understand the needs of the African consumer and enterprise customer. They are backed by leading Silicon Valley & African investors and they have pan-African reach, with representation in the United States, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and Rwanda.

Harvesting provides online software as a service (SAAS) which allows stakeholders in agriculture value chain to view, analyze and manage their agri-climatic business risk via data collection, data analysis, and data reporting. Harvesting provides an agriculture intelligence engine that will help bring speed, accuracy, and transparency.

Harvesting provides online software as a service (SAAS) which allows stakeholders in agriculture value chain to view, analyze and manage their agri-climatic business risk via data collection, data analysis, and data reporting. Harvesting provides an agriculture intelligence engine that will help bring speed, accuracy, and transparency.

PayLatr is a recurring micro-credit mobile platform offering interest-free monthly credits to low-income households in India to easily pay for retail transactions without cash, credit cards or other pre-paid means. On average, a middle-income household in India spends about 7,000 – 9,000 rupees at any neighborhood store. More than 95 percent of transactions are in cash because most stores do not accept cards and/or users do not have credit cards. Often, households experience cash crunch issues by using up most of their cash for grocery shopping. PayLatr offers monthly credit to improve their household cash flow by providing recurring monthly credit lines at various merchants, via mobile money.

PayLatr is a recurring micro-credit mobile platform offering interest-free monthly credits to low-income households in India to easily pay for retail transactions without cash, credit cards or other pre-paid means. On average, a middle-income household in India spends about 7,000 – 9,000 rupees at any neighborhood store. More than 95 percent of transactions are in cash because most stores do not accept cards and/or users do not have credit cards. Often, households experience cash crunch issues by using up most of their cash for grocery shopping. PayLatr offers monthly credit to improve their household cash flow by providing recurring monthly credit lines at various merchants, via mobile money.

Comunidad 4Uno (C4Uno) is an online platform that distributes tailored and market-based financial products to low income and financially excluded domestic workers. The company aims to be the largest and most reliable financial product distribution channel for the low income population in Mexico by 2020.

Grafica is a modular software-as-a-service solution for solar distributors. Grafica offers an affordable and scalable cloud-based platform that integrates with the best service providers in the market (Internet of Things, CRM, Inventory Management, Data Analytics, Credit Scoring) to meet the needs of companies as they grow.

Comunidad 4Uno (C4Uno) is an online platform that distributes tailored and market-based financial products to low income and financially excluded domestic workers. The company aims to be the largest and most reliable financial product distribution channel for the low income population in Mexico by 2020.

WorldCover protects farmers around the world from droughts, by offering satellite-enabled insurance delivered with mobile money. Founded by MIT computer science and finance professionals, WorldCover is building an insurance platform to address the $100 billion in climate risks facing the world today. WorldCover's platform improves food and income security for smallholder farmers in developing countries. More than 70% of the 2.5 billion people living at the “base of the pyramid” throughout the world rely on agriculture for income and sustenance.

Atikus seeks to improve financial inclusion for micro, small and medium enterprises (“MSMEs”) by deploying institutionally-targeted solutions rooted in technology, data and risk transference. Atikus believes that aligning a market’s financial inclusion efforts amplifies the quantity, quality and availability of the products and services required to further the MSME segment’s future growth and development.

WorldCover protects farmers around the world from droughts, by offering satellite-enabled insurance delivered with mobile money. Founded by MIT computer science and finance professionals, WorldCover is building an insurance platform to address the $100 billion in climate risks facing the world today. WorldCover's platform improves food and income security for smallholder farmers in developing countries. More than 70% of the 2.5 billion people living at the “base of the pyramid” throughout the world rely on agriculture for income and sustenance.

Globally, three billion people cook with biomass. The use of open fires and inefficient cookstoves with fuels such as wood, charcoal, and kerosene causes serious environmental and health impacts that disproportionately affect underserved communities. PayGo Energy is a revolutionary cookstove solution and distribution system that enables consumers to access clean and efficient fuel at a price point that is within their daily energy budget.

Destacame is the first behavior-based credit score in Latin America.

Destacame is the first behavior-based credit score in Latin America.