Visa Announces Partnership with Nest to Run its First FinTech Innovation Bootcamp in Africa

Visa has partnered with Nest, the early-stage venture capital firm and global innovation accelerator to launch its inaugural Visa Bootcamp. The, intensive 4-day FinTech-focused programme will take place in Nairobi and is designed to accelerate innovation and shape the future of finance for consumers and businesses across the African continent. The Visa Bootcamp will accelerate collaboration opportunities between early stage technology companies, Visa and financial institutions from across Africa for potential integration.

Nest’s team of strategic advisors will join mentors from Visa’s international team, from markets including Kenya, South Africa the UAE, to coach and share insights with the selected participants. They will have the opportunity to work alongside leaders in the financial services industry, integrate with Visa APIs, access the tools and resources to needed to scale their startup through Africa and beyond. Visa Bootcamp’s intensive content is designed to fuel early-stage FinTech companies with a vision to revolutionise financial services for Africans – financial inclusion, peer-to-peer lending and merchant payments are particular focus areas for the programme.

Aaron Fu, Managing Partner of Nest Africa said, “We are very excited to be working with Visa to deliver this bootcamp in Nairobi. Our partnership with Visa signals Nest’s continued commitment to African startups looking for access to funding, mentorship and a global network. Through this partnership with Visa we will be better equipped to offer stronger tangible tools to entrepreneurs, both from Africa and around the world, who want to make a difference to banking and payments for individuals and businesses across the continent. We will also be leveraging Nest’s global capabilities to elevate the profile of the participating
startups by giving them further opportunities to grow and scale.

While commenting on the partnership with Nest, Jabu Basopo, Visa’s General Manager for Southern and East Africa, said, “At its core, Visa is a technology company and we are constantly evolving to provide immersive, collaborative and localized experiences for our clients and partners in this region. We think the partnership with NEST is an ideal one that brings our collaborative approach to life through the FinTech bootcamp.”

Applications open on 5 December 2016 and close at midnight on 10th February 2017. The 4-day programme commences on 24 March 2017 in Nairobi at Mettā, and concludes with a Demo Day, scheduled for 27 March 2017.