Qatar’s TESS Payments to compete at ‘Visa Everywhere Initiative 2024’ regional finals

  • TESS Payments is one of five finalists from Central Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) to present groundbreaking solutions for the future of digital payments
  • Event to be livestreamed on July 23, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. GST (9.30 a.m. GMT)
  • Winner will progress to Global Finals in San Francisco for a chance at QAR365,00 (USD100,000)

Doha, Qatar, July 17, 2024: Visa (NYSE: V), a global leader in payments, announced that TESS Payments will compete in the CEMEA Regional Finals of its Visa Everywhere Initiative (VEI), taking place on July 23 at 1:30p.m. Gulf Standard Time.

From over 1,400 applicants, five fintech finalists from the region have been selected for their innovative payment solutions across fraud and risk, identity and biometrics, digital wallets, open banking, embedded finance, and other key subsectors. They now stand a chance to progress to the Global Finals in San Francisco on October 28, competing for a grand prize of QAR365,00 (USD100,000).

Shashank Singh, Visa’s Vice President and General Manager for Kuwait and Qatar, said: “The Visa Everywhere Initiative reflects our commitment to supporting start-up innovation, recognizing fintech as a driver of economic growth and financial inclusion. Fifty-eight per cent of fintechs we surveyed recently in the GCC acknowledge payments are the most prominent emerging space. VEI helps early-stage companies scale their groundbreaking solutions by putting them on a global stage, connecting them to Visa’s network, and driving them to take a step forward in their growth journeys. This year’s finalists truly exemplify the remarkable entrepreneurial talent in this region, and we wish TESS Payments the best of luck for the regional finals.”

2024 CEMEA Finalists

Meet this year’s VEI finalists, who will go head-to-head for a high-value monetary prize to fund business growth:

  • Qatar-based fintech start-up TESS Payments is a Qatar-based smart payments solution. The fintech offers a wide range of accepted payment methods and secure and convenient payment solutions for merchants, enabling them to increase sales and cater to changing customer preferences. 
  • Bahrain-headquartered CNPSecure is a turnkey digital provider that fights Card-Not-Present fraud and chargeback risks. The start-up generates dynamic CVV and virtual cards on demand, reducing the risk of CNP fraud by more than 90%. 
  • Jordan-based GamerG is a digital-first online gaming tournament platform that organizes daily tournaments for monetary rewards, employing skill-based matchmaking technology to connect gamers and level the playing field. It offers convenient digital payment gateways across wallets, cards, and bank transfers.
  • South Africa-headquartered Nomanini is a developer of a payment platform designed to connect Africa’s informal and offline retail trade ecosystem to digital financial services. The platform connects merchants and distributors, providing services spanning payment orchestration and acceptance, working capital provision, and merchant analytics.
  • Nigeria-based Advantage Health Africa aims to leverage technology to enhance access, affordability, and quality across healthcare in Africa, through integrated pharma solutions. Their approach addresses critical issues in the drug distribution system, such as drug counterfeiting and inconsistent pricing.

The fintech journey with Visa doesn’t end with the competition, living on through key deals and connections. A prime example is Visa’s recent partnership with Nigerian fintech ThriveAgric, a former regional and global VEI winner, in support of their expansion into Kenya, where they will help 10,000 farmers participate in the digital economy. Visa previously collaborated with the innovative start-up to provide smallholder farmers with cards, bank accounts, and access to more seamless disbursements.

Launched in 2015, VEI enables entrepreneurs to unlock opportunities and build credibility by putting them on the global stage and facilitating access to Visa’s vast network of experts and extensive solutions suite. Since its inception, more than 15,000 start-ups from over 100 countries have applied, going on to raise over QR175B (USD 48 billion) in collective funding. In the lead-up to this year’s CEMEA regional finale, Visa held several local events including in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait. This year’s CEMEA winners across competitions will share a total prize pool of QR1.3M (USD350,000) to support their work.

Watch the VEI finals live on July 23, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. GST/9.30 a.m. GMT here.