Visa has announced partnerships with Hand In Hand International and IFundWomen to provide educational resources and funding for women entrepreneurs.
This comes as International Women’s Day is fast approaching on March 8 and this year celebrates #EachForEqual. Visa’s new alliance aims to help women around the globe build and grow their business.
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Al Kelly, CEO at Visa, said: “Women power economies around the world and increasingly are a driving force in the creation of new businesses. Visa is committed to using the full power of our network, brand and financial resources to put a spotlight on this growing economic force and help female entrepreneurs achieve their dreams.”
The partnerships
IFundWomen is a funding and education platform that provides access to capital through grants and crowdfunding, and business coaching.
Through Visa’s partnership with IFundWomen, entrepreneurs can secure funding through a series of grant contests.
In addition, Visa has launched a $2.4m, three-year partnership with Hand in Hand International, an organisation focused on helping developing economies.
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By GlobalDataThrough this alliance, Visa will focus on providing business education and financial services access to 10,000 micro businesses in Kenya. According to Visa, 75% of these businesses are owned by women.
Previous programmes
In the past, Visa has undergone a number of initiatives designed to improve gender equality.
In 2017, Visa granted $20m to Women’s World Banking to help women-led small business owners increase access to capital and grow their businesses.
Furthermore, Visa launched its women-owned small business initiative, She’s Next, Empowered by Visa. As part of the initiative, Visa held workshops in New York, Atlanta, Toronto and Cape Town.
The aim was to empower women entrepreneurs with tools to build their businesses and create a ripple effect throughout their communities.
The payments giant also has experience investing in female athletes. For the Tokyo Olympics 2020, Visa is supporting over 50 female Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls from around the world.
