What is the name of your organization?
Mdollar Technologies
What is the name of your solution?
Mdollar
Provide a one-line summary or tagline for your solution.
mDollar is a cash-to-digital mobile wallet for the unbanked, enabling payments, transfers, and bill pay without banks.
In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
Bowie, Maryland, USA
In what country is your solution team headquartered?
USA
What type of organization is your solution team?
For-profit, including B-Corp or similar models
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
Despite being a global economic powerhouse, the United States still struggles with financial exclusion. Over 5.6 million U.S. households were unbanked in 2023, with no access to traditional banking services such as checking accounts or credit cards. An additional 15 million are underbanked, relying on high-fee services like payday loans, check cashing, and money orders.
These individuals face systemic barriers—lack of credit history, high banking fees, and mistrust in institutions. Digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay require linked bank accounts or credit cards, further excluding this population from the digital economy.
This financial marginalization disproportionately impacts low-income communities, immigrants, gig workers, and young people. Cash remains dominant in many neighborhoods, but it's insecure, isolated from e-commerce, and lacks convenient infrastructure.
The result: Millions are trapped outside the modern financial system—unable to send or receive money efficiently, store it securely, or access essential digital services.
What is your solution?
mDollar is a mobile-first, bank-free money platform inspired by M-Pesa’s success in Kenya. It brings mobile money to the U.S., enabling users to send, receive, and store funds directly on their phones—no bank account or credit card required.
Users can transfer money, pay bills, or shop using till numbers and QR codes. Retailers, corner stores, and supermarkets act as mDollar agents, providing local liquidity—users can deposit or withdraw cash like visiting an ATM.
mDollar works on smartphones and basic feature phones using SMS or USSD, making it accessible even in tech-limited communities. It is designed for the unbanked, underbanked, and underserved—single mothers, gig workers, immigrants, and teens—empowering them to participate in the digital economy securely and affordably.
Unlike traditional banking or digital wallets, mDollar requires no internet, no credit check, and no monthly fees. With a national agent network and built-in bill pay categories, mDollar reimagines banking as a community-first service.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
mDollar serves the millions of unbanked and underbanked individuals in the United States—primarily low-income families, immigrants, gig workers, youth, and those in cash-first communities. These populations are excluded from traditional financial systems due to lack of documentation, poor credit, high fees, or mistrust in institutions.
Without access to banking, they rely on insecure, expensive alternatives—like payday loans, money orders, and check cashers—to manage their finances. Many cannot pay bills digitally, store money safely, or participate in e-commerce.
mDollar eliminates these barriers by providing a mobile money solution that doesn’t require a bank account, credit card, or even internet access. With just a phone—smart or basic—users can send and receive money, pay bills, and access cash through a nationwide network of mDollar agents like neighborhood stores and supermarkets.
This direct access to safe, affordable, and digital financial tools empowers users to build stability, avoid predatory services, and participate in the digital economy. By decentralizing liquidity and removing banking prerequisites, mDollar gives financial freedom and dignity to those left out of the system.
