5 fintech startups to get funding from ING-Unicef program

Dutch financial giant ING and the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) have selected five promising local fintech startups that will receive fresh funding and mentorship under their joint program that scouts for ground-breaking and scalable solutions that will benefit the financially excluded and hardest-to-reach communities.

Agriculture marketplace provider Agrabah, remittance platform provider BeamAndGo, education technology firm Educ4All, microinsurance provider Reach52 and microinsurance enabler Saphron qualified for ING Bank and Unicef’s “Fintech for Impact” program.

“In the Philippines, over nine million children live below the poverty line. They not only suffer from poor health and nutrition but also miss out on opportunities later in life such as education, training, work and entrepreneurial opportunities. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these existing challenges for the most vulnerable,” Unicef Philippines representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said in a press statement on Tuesday.

“Financial services have been expanding quickly. Governments are also pushing for greater inclusivity in financial services,” ING Philippines country manager Hans Sicat said.

Fintech refers to any new technology that seeks to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services.

Agrabah is building a digital platform that connects farmers and fisherfolk to buyers and loans, providing them greater autonomy, and their families improved financial resiliency.

BeamAndGo is expanding the features of its remittance-based platform to help overseas Filipino workers better manage their finances and make responsible spending decisions.

Educ4All connects students to educational loans and will be producing a set of financial education and transition-to-adulthood courses that will guide graduates into meaningful employment and financial stability.

Reach52 is expanding its set of apps that provide affordable microinsurance, health care and health products to rural communities as well as livelihood opportunities to local women.

Saphron seeks to empo­wer grassroots microinsurance agents to collect accurate, efficient data with a powerful new AI-enabled platform. All investments are in open source technology and content to allow the tools to be adapted and reused in other contexts.—DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA INQ