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$20B+ in Capital Moves Through the Region Every Year. It Doesn’t Reach Businesses That Need It.
Apply to this trackPayments between islands are expensive and inconsistent. Remittance flows are taxed by intermediaries. And MSMEs—the backbone of the economy—are locked out of credit.
Even strong businesses:
This is not a capital problem. It is a coordination and infrastructure problem.
Payments, credit, and capital markets are siloed across jurisdictions. Data does not move. Capital does not reach execution.
This track focuses on building systems that:
If these systems work here, they scale globally.
This is the most important problem in the region.
In developed markets, businesses are financed based on cash flow.
In the Caribbean: lending is collateral-based, credit access is restricted, and growth is constrained.
→ Entire categories of viable businesses never get funded.
Build systems that enable cash-flow-based lending:
This is the missing financial infrastructure layer.
Systems that disrupt, replace, or enable the financial infrastructure layer of the Caribbean:
Stablecoin or blockchain rails reducing fees from ~8% → <1%. Cross-border payment routing optimization. Merchant payment systems across islands.
Neobanks for underserved populations. Instant onboarding, no branches. Financial access across smaller islands.
Alternative data credit scoring. Cash-flow-based lending models. Sector-specific underwriting (retail, medical, services).
Invoice financing. Supplier credit systems. Regional trade enablement tools.
Automated AML/KYC across jurisdictions. Cross-border compliance systems. Risk and transaction monitoring.
Redirect remittances into investment. Match diaspora capital with businesses. Build investment rails, not just transfers.
Solutions are evaluated on real-world impact:
Teams should develop systems that address these components:
Payments, invoices, bank activity, POS data, and accounting tools—unified into a coherent business profile.
Cash flow-based underwriting and sector-specific risk modeling for medical, retail, services, and more.
Creditworthiness scoring for lenders and risk-adjusted loan structuring that replaces collateral-based models.
Invoice financing, working capital optimization, and supplier credit systems for regional operators.
Banks and non-bank financial institutions via APIs or decision-support dashboards.
Solutions must work within real-world Caribbean conditions—not ideal ones.
MSMEs are the backbone of the Caribbean economy—and they are underfinanced.
Fixing financial coordination unlocks:
This is not incremental. This is foundational infrastructure.
It is short on systems that move capital efficiently.
Build the systems that move capital.
Teams will work with real-world, publicly available datasets. The challenge is not access—it is coordination.
Relevant data includes:
Data may be sourced from multilateral institutions, central banks, and global financial datasets.
AI is not replacing the financial system. It is coordinating it.
Teams may build systems that:
The goal is simple: make existing financial systems work as one.
Build financial infrastructure.
Build apps.
The bar is simple: Does your system change outcomes?
We are looking for systems that move capital.
Does your system change outcomes?
MSMEs are the backbone of the Caribbean economy—and they are underfinanced.
Fixing financial coordination unlocks: