Paisa

Paisa is a Mexican fintech company founded in June 2021 by Ryan Newton that provides financial services leveraging remittance data to promote financial inclusion in Latin America. The company operates a dual business model serving both remittance payout agents and remittance recipients. For remittance payout agencies, Paisa offers credit lines to ensure they maintain sufficient liquidity to process cash remittance transactions, reducing trips to banks and enabling them to handle larger payment volumes. For remittance recipients, Paisa provides remittance-backed loans where individuals with thin credit files can qualify for credit based on their remittance history rather than traditional credit scores. The platform delivers these financial services through a tech-touch model combining WhatsApp-based digital interfaces with physical remittance agent locations, recognizing that over 85 percent of remittances in Latin America are collected in cash and in person. This hybrid approach targets the 70 percent of recipients who are women, addressing both the gender gap and digital trust barriers in financial services. Paisa raised a $600,000 pre-seed round in June 2022 from investors including Precursor Ventures, Magma Partners, and IDEO Last Mile Money. The company is structured as a SAPI in Mexico and is backed by venture capital firms specializing in Latin American fintech. Paisa initially focuses on Mexico, which receives approximately 40 percent of Latin American remittances and over $60 billion annually from the United States. The company aims to transform remittances from simple transfers into gateways for broader financial security, with plans to expand additional services such as savings and insurance products. Regulatory status under Mexico's Fintech Law is not publicly specified.