TO LAUNCH A TWO-YEAR PILOT OF FINCA FORWARD, A FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND PLATFORM WHERE EARLY-STAGE FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY (FINTECH)SMALL AND GROWING BUSINESSES (SGBS) HAVE ACCESS TO FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS THAT CAN BE CUSTOMERS OF THEIR NEW PRODUCTS AND SERVICES. FINCA FORWARD PROVIDES SGBS WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO RUN PROOF-OF-CONCEPTS (POCS) WITH FINCA IMPACT FINANCE (FIF), ONE OF THE LARGEST FINANCIAL SERVICES NETWORKS OF ITS KIND. BY BEING ABLE TO RAPIDLY TEST AND REFINE THEIR PRODUCTS WITH MFI CUSTOMERS, SGBS CAN VALIDATE THEIR PRODUCT AND DEMONSTRATE THE MFI CUSTOMER TRACTION CRITICAL TO ENGAGING INVESTORS.