To enhance the growth of micro, small, and medium-sized businesses (MSMEs) in Egypt and other high-growth regions including Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa, Mastercard has partnered with B2B commerce platform Boost Technology.

The partnership, which was announced by Mastercard on December 19, will support the growth of small businesses involved in last-mile fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) distribution networks—the last phase of supply chains when goods are delivered to end users.

The collaboration will provide comprehensive supply chain financing solutions, embedded credit, and digital payment solutions to MSMEs.

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Mastercard’s goal to integrate 50 million MSMEs, one billion people into digital economy by 2025

The multi-country partnership supports Mastercard’s objective of integrating 50 million MSMEs and one billion people into the digital economy by 2025, with a focus on high-growth markets.

“Small businesses are the backbone of thriving economies, yet they often face significant barriers to growth. Through our partnership with Boost, we are strengthening the support ecosystem for MSMEs in emerging markets by providing essential digital tools and financing solutions to help them succeed in today’s digital economy,” said Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President, Market Development, EEMEA, Mastercard.

This strategic alliance will help FMCG distributors and retailers who digitise payments using Boost’s digital commerce platform, which links them to Mastercard’s acceptance solutions and necessary working capital.

“We are thrilled to enter this commercial partnership with Mastercard in the pursuit of our mission to enable small businesses in last-mile global distribution networks to thrive in the digital economy. We have already proven that our highly scalable platform, coupled with our WhatsApp ordering solution, can power cost-effective growth across multiple channels in urban, peri-urban and rural settings by providing end-to-end visibility, increased coverage and direct-to-retailer digital promotions. Mastercard will help us take our model to the next level to create transformative value for our customers and partners while fueling our global ambitions,” said Mike Quinn, co-founder and CEO, Boost.

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Mastercard-Boost partnership to bridge financing shortage of $5.7 million 

Boost’s cutting-edge platform digitises end-to-end distribution in primarily offline channels and propels growth by offering a platform for direct-to-retailer digital engagement and embedded financing to distributors and retailers.

Boost provides manufacturers and their last-mile distribution networks with radically simple technology, data, and growth services.

MSMEs account for nearly 90 percent of all businesses, 60–70 percent of all jobs, and 50 percent of global GDP, according to data from the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

However, the SME Finance Forum estimates that they are currently facing a financing shortage of almost $5.7 trillion, or 1.4 times the current global MSME lending level.