Opportunities

Mastercard Strive USA 2025 Innovation Fund

Strengthening the financial health of small businesses

The application window has now closed.

The Mastercard Strive USA 2025 Innovation Fund, supported by the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth and implemented by DAI, will award grants to organizations that are testing new products and services that improve the financial health of small businesses with high potential for impact and scale.

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Overview

Innovative solutions that improve small business financial health

When small businesses flourish, they become engines for inclusive economic growth — creating jobs, driving innovation, and strengthening community resilience. Yet today, half of all new small businesses fail within five years, often because they lack access to affordable financial services, tools to build savings, or protection against rising digital threats, among other challenges. 

A financially healthy small business — where daily systems free up capacity to build resilience and pursue new opportunities — is better equipped to navigate these challenges.

To make financial health more achievable for entrepreneurs across the country, the Mastercard Strive USA 2025 Innovation Fund will award $1 million total in grants — up to $250,000 per organization — to support early-stage solutions that help small businesses simplify daily operations, reduce complexity, and enable small businesses to thrive rather than just survive.

This opportunity helps innovative small business support organizations to grow their next big idea. 

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What problems do we want to solve?

Barriers to financial health limit entrepreneurs from realizing the full potential of their businesses. Key challenges we want to address through this fund include:

1. Hard-to-understand finances. Many entrepreneurs have limited visibility into their financial position and often rely on manual processes that are time-consuming, error-prone, and reactive.

2. Vulnerability to shocks. Most small businesses lack early warning systems or planning tools to anticipate economic downturns, supply chain disruptions, natural disasters, and other unexpected expenses.

3. Limited access to growth resources. Even profitable businesses often struggle to access capital, identify their strongest opportunities, or optimize operations for sustainable scaling.

Barriers to financial health are interconnected — weak daily financial management makes businesses more vulnerable to shocks, while both limit growth. We are seeking innovations that break this cycle and create positive feedback loops toward financial health.

Who should apply?

Whether you're a nonprofit building financial management solutions, a mission-driven private company that works closely with small businesses, a fintech creating cash flow tools, or a university piloting new approaches, we want to support your work. 

We're particularly excited about the potential for partnerships between fintechs and mission-driven organizations that combine technical innovation with deep community connections. If your innovation strengthens small business financial health and you're committed to creating broader public benefit beyond your own organization, we encourage you to apply.

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What are examples of solutions we are interested in funding?

We are looking for innovations that help entrepreneurs to better manage, plan, and grow their small businesses. Illustrative examples of the types of solutions we are excited to support fall into three general categories: 

Manage: Innovations that improve daily financial management

Innovations that leverage AI and digital solutions to give small businesses clearer visibility into their finances, streamline operations, and simplify daily decision-making. For example:

  • AI-driven dashboards or digital platforms that give entrepreneurs real-time visibility into their finances and daily business decisions
  • Voice-enabled AI interfaces that let business owners check financial metrics, approve payments, and receive alerts 
  • AI-assisted cash-on-hand calculators that factor in pending bills, uncertain receivables, and required reserves

Plan: Innovations that build financial resilience 

Innovations that use digital solutions to help small businesses anticipate risks, plan for variability, and build stronger buffers against shocks. For example:

  • AI-driven forecasting tools that prepare businesses for seasonal revenue fluctuations
  • Digital early warning systems, enhanced through AI, for potential cash flow problems
  • Platforms that optimize insurance coverage using AI and data analysis for changing business needs
  • Digital tools that build contingency plans for supply chain or market disruptions

Grow: Innovations that enable small businesses to grow sustainably

Innovations that apply technology-driven approaches to help small businesses uncover opportunities, scale effectively, and access resources for sustainable growth. For example:

  • AI- and data-driven platforms that identify the most profitable customer segments and expansion opportunities
  • Digital tools that matching businesses with optimal financing options based on performance data
  • Automated systems that allocate resources efficiently as operations scale
  • AI-enabled models that evaluate ROI of growth investments before capital commitment

The solution should be able to integrate seamlessly into daily operations, deliver measurable financial health improvements, and work across different business sectors.

Most importantly, your innovation must create lasting value beyond your own organization, whether via partnerships with mission-driven organizations, open source development, or accessible licensing that strengthens the entire ecosystem.

How do I apply?

The application window has now closed. The deadline was Friday, November 21, 2025.

For any questions on the application, please email striveusagrants@dai.com.