Indian Startups Dominate the Latest Intake of the Mastercard Start Path Program

Today, Mastercard announced the list of new startups joining the Mastercard Start Path Program, the company’s global effort to support later-stage fintech and tech companies shaping the future of commerce. Of the six startups, three hail from the Asia Pacific region including ftcash (India), ToneTag (India) and CardUp (Singapore).

As India moves ahead in its journey to a less-cash society, both ftcash and ToneTag will offer platforms that enable consumers & merchants to adopt digital payment solutions. With the significant growth in smartphone penetration, the innovation from the two startups fits into the larger ecosystem.  ToneTag, will allow convenient and secure payment solutions using soundwaves (Tone) or NFC (Tag) technology to enable contactless payments through mobile devices. On the other hand, ftcash has focused on building the acceptance infrastructure with its solutions for micro-merchants and entrepreneurs that enable them to accept different modes of digital payments.

Porush Singh, Country Corporate Officer, India and Division President, South Asia, Mastercard said, “The Mastercard Start Path Program helps innovative later-stage startups develop the next generation of commerce solutions. We are happy to announce that two Indian startups ftcash and ToneTag are joining this year’s edition of the program. Mastercard will offer them the technology with reliable and secure financial networks to create an even more rewarding and seamless payments experience for the consumers.” 

Spanning five countries across the globe, the newest class is focused on bridging the gap between physical and digital retail through a variety of solutions. Several of the selected startups are harnessing insights from in-store traffic patterns and spending habits to create personalized experiences for customers. Others are helping merchants accept payments through SMS messaging systems and bill-paying platforms for large expenses that historically could not be paid using a card.

The latest wave of Start Path participants include:

·  CardUp manages monthly credit card payments for big ticket items such as rent or insurance, while also accessing credit and earning additional rewards.

·         ftcash enables micro-merchants and entrepreneurs to take collateral-free business loans and accept mobile app and messaging-based payments from their customers.

·         ToneTag enables contactless payments on any device using soundwaves or NFC.

·         The ModoPayments platform enables new ways to pay, including the use of loyalty points to buy everyday goods in-store.

·         Movvo provides insights on in-store browsing and shopping patterns.

·         RecommenderX develops cutting-edge data analytics to offer personalized recommendations.

The Start Path team will work with the selected startups against a tailored plan that will deliver tangible value and help these companies to scale. The startups will receive access to Mastercard experts, partners and customers representing leading banks and retailers in all regions of the globe to enable their business development.

Applications for the next six-month virtual program will be accepted through 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday, August 1, 2017. The program is open to startups who are rethinking banking, payments and commerce and have raised a significant seed or Series A round of investment. Interested startups can visit https://www.startpath.com/ for additional information and to submit an application.