StepLadder
The idea for this fintech company originated in the Lauder Institute thesis of co-founder Matthew Addison G06 WG06. Started in 2016, StepLadder is championing collaborative finance with its Savings Circles. Here’s how the product works: Users with the same personal goals — such as saving for a home deposit — pay an identical amount into a shared Circle. Once a month, one person in the group receives the total amount that was put in until everyone has received their payout goal. The company — a tech-enabled take on a savings method that has typically been used by people excluded from traditional banking — currently partners with financial institutions in Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East to offer its services under their branding.
