MIT Technology Review honors Airfox CEO Victor Santos with ‘Innovators Under 35’ award
Airfox is honored to announce Victor Santos, CEO and co-founder, has been selected by MIT Technology Review as a 2018 Innovator Under 35 in Latin America.
This prestigious award recognizes individuals whose technical work promises to shape the coming decades. Selected by a jury of tech experts, winners are honored for creatively applying technology to solve the world’s biggest problem. Starting in 2012, the MIT Technology Review expanded its program to include young innovators and entrepreneurs transforming Latin America.
Accelerating financial inclusion through blockchain
Victor was selected by MIT Technology Review for his dedication to accelerating financial inclusion through technology. Growing up in Brazil — where more than half of the nation’s young people do not have bank accounts due to exorbitant fees, interest rates, and archaic bureaucratic systems — he experienced first-hand the struggles people face when it comes to gaining access to capital.
In February 2018, Airfox successfully brought thousands of unbanked and underbanked Brazilians unprecedented access to much-needed mobile financing solutions. Airfox has already allowed nearly 15,000 users to engage freely in the financial economy. Users can deposit cash at over 250,000 locations, including ATMs and post offices. Our engineering team is also preparing to extend the Airfox digital wallet to nearly 1,000 physical stores that serve 68% of Brazil’s population. We plan to replicate this vision to surrounding markets across Latin America.
About the Innovators Under 35 award
The Innovators Under 35 award is curated by the MIT Technology Review to honor young minds for making exciting strides that shape their fields and solve problems in remarkably different ways. Previous winners include Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.
On November 15, Victor will present his vision at an award ceremony in Guadalajara, Mexico. We are excited to share the Airfox mission of bringing financial inclusion to underserved populations around the world with this community of innovators.
To see the complete list of MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35, read the article here.
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