Split, a mobile payments financial technology startup that lets restaurant patrons view and pay their bill directly from their smartphones won the TAG FinTech Innovation Award.
The startup FinTech company, which is incubating at the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), also received a $50,000 cash prize.
The TAG FinTech Innovation Award promotes innovation in the Georgia FinTech ecosystem by recognizing startup companies that are designing innovative technology-based solutions that have a positive impact on the FinTech market and providing them with support to thrive.
Participating companies receive education and mentoring from industry veterans, as well as access to a network of industry leaders.
Split was among the three finalist teams that a panel of industry experts and investors selected to compete for the grand prize, which was awarded Feb. 4. The audience chose Split as the winning team after a final round of pitches.
All three finalists are startups in the ATDC FinTech program, which was launched in 2015 and funded by a $1 million gift Worldpay US made to the Institute to create it.
In addition to Split, the other finalists included:
- FreeingReturns: Winner of the 2015 ATDC FinTech Hackathon, the company aims to make returns simple and hassle-free for the customer. The company launched in November of 2015 and has made significant traction in a very short time after successfully completing ATDC’s Customer Discovery classes and receiving continuous mentoring from Michelangelo Ho, ATDC’s FinTech Catalyst.
- aFundia: An alternative risk scoring consortium, the company invented a new way to integrate applied mathematics with a data consortium to enable anyone to assess risk of a business loan application and extend the right terms to the right business loan applicant. The company, which Ho also is mentoring, has completed ATDC’s Customer Discovery class and has found early adopters in its market that have expressed interest in the product.
“Since launching in early 2015, dozens of FinTech startups were considered and to date, we have admitted 13 into the ATDC FinTech Program powered by Worldpay US,” Ho said.
“We anticipate that it will continue to grow in 2016 because the ATDC FinTech Program is set to attract and accelerate startups across the state. With the help of Worldpay US and the resources of Georgia Tech, ATDC has made FinTech-focused resources available to Georgia’s most promising startups.”