SCF #11
Empowch

Offering a mobile wallet to the unbanked the MENA region by connecting them with family members abroad.

Awarded
Budget request:
$
25,000
*
WebsiteCode

Project Stage

Introduction

Category

Cross-Border Payments

Based in

Washington, DC, USA

Team size

7

Active since

2022
Products & Services

We are offering a Mobile wallet for Lebanese diaspora to send remittance to their family members back home easier, faster and cheaper. Also allowing Freelancer in Lebanon to get paid directly to their mobile app and use the cash in the our ecosystem. We are building on Stellar and offering a self-custody wallet. With the increasing anchor network we can help people in Lebanon to get included in the modern economy.

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Previous Project(s)
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Progress so far
Goals
  1. To launch Empowch 2.0 (Self-custody wallet on Stellar with an Improved user experience of the current version, More option for adding and withdrawing cash including integration with Moneygram, and more geographical coverage).
  2. To gain traction and demonstrate our use case.
  3. Measure and fine tune marketing and advertising in preparation to scale our operations.
To get there, we request a budget of  
$
25,000
*
  to:
  • Anchors: Securing partnerships with Moneygram and other Anchors on the Stellar network and leveraging their Licenses in our target market for fiat onramp and offramp.
  • Launch Empowch self-custody wallet on Stellar by the end of 2022 and start gathering users feedback. We need additional resources to help with the SEP30 Stellar Protocol and some outreach activities including incentives/reward programs and campaigns to acquire new users.
Additional information

Empowch is an empowerment platform that uses mobile technology to empower the unbanked to become financially included, by digitizing the cash economy and providing users with financial services they need. 1.4 Billion adults globally are unbanked and for the global diaspora, sending cash remittance to their home countries is expensive and slow.

Empowch is the forward facing, mobile, consumer platform that will offer various financial solutions from 3rd parties, and using interoperability, make them seamlessly available through Empowch to our users (in addition to our own solutions).

Our first solution we are taking to market is a cash remittance solution using Wyre and MoneyGram. Our users will activate their wallets, add value through Wyre, they will conduct peer-to-peer transfers (remittance) and the end user (also an Empowcher) will be able to cash out cash in their home country, supported by MoneyGram.

This is remittance but is also a great solution for anyone working in the GIG economy, like freelancers or any other unbanked peoples. We will offer free remittance up to U$D 300 and 1% thereafter and we charge 1% on top of costs to pay out via cash/card/ach etc. Empowch will also offer pre-paid cards soon through NymCard and we will offer a growing array of products as we develop.

Pitch deck
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Deliverables
First Deliverable
Empowch

Empowch is previously Bankey (LLC) and we are in the process of rebranding. We are offering mobile money platform to empower the unbanked and include them in the modern economy. We are targeting the Diaspora Network starting in the US and connect them with family members back home and make better use of cash remittance and paving the way towards financial inclusion.

Team

Empowch #5612 - CEO & Chief Strategic Officer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/frederickgoss/

Empowch#6282 - Founder & Chief Technical Officer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/moatazelobeid/

Empowch#2253 - Founder & Chief Compliance Officer https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethany-condo-11682259/