Jordanian startup wins 1st place in Visa Everywhere Initiative 2024

Visa and the Central Bank of Jordan have announced the winners of the first edition of Visa Everywhere Initiative for the Levant - a global open innovation program and competition where fintech startups compete to find effective solutions to payments and commerce challenges. The Levant edition of Visa Everywhere Initiative included fintechs from Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, and Palestine. The final competition saw five finalists - out of more than 100 companies from the four countries - compete to win valuable prizes, including funding opportunities, mentorship, and coaching, as well as access to Visa's extensive network of partners in the banking, commercial, and government sectors. The Levant region's version of Visa Everywhere included The People's Choice Award was won by GamerG, a Jordanian e-sports tournament platform, which also received a cash prize of $10,000. Mario Makary, Vice President and Levant Region Director at Visa, said that the participating companies will play an important role through their innovative solutions in advancing the region's payment landscape. He added that fintechs in the Levant have great potential to boost digital payments and improve the economic landscape of the region, but they face many challenges that hinder their progress, and this is where key industry players such as Visa come in. For his part, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Jordan, Ziad Ghanma, said that this initiative provided an exceptional opportunity for fintechs in the region to showcase their innovative solutions to many of the challenges faced by the financial sector. "This initiative embodies Visa's commitment to supporting FinTech innovation and is fully aligned with our FinTech vision to develop a dynamic and inclusive financial ecosystem," he added. GamgerG will participate in the upcoming CEMEA regional finals on July 23, 2024. eDamana from Jordan was also honored with the second place award in the Visa Everywhere Initiative finals for the Levant region, receiving a cash prize of $15,000, while S imma from Iraq won third place, receiving a prize of $10,000. Source: Jordan News Agency