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Founder of Alerte Universal Limited, Dr James Useghan, has described his participation in the Mastercard Fintech on the Road event with FinTech Wales as an eye-opening experience, saying the gathering provided valuable opportunities for networking, learning and exploring potential partnerships.
The event brought together founders, entrepreneurs and business leaders from the fintech and technology ecosystem to exchange ideas, share experiences and examine opportunities for business growth.
According to Useghan, the event was particularly valuable to Alerte Universal, a technology company developing a smart emergency response platform designed to help people quickly raise alerts and connect with appropriate responders when they need assistance.
The session was opened by Sarah Jones, Chief Executive Officer of FinTech Wales, who introduced Sam McGurk, Business Director at Mastercard. McGurk shared insights into how Mastercard works with start-ups and scale-ups, highlighting opportunities available to emerging businesses seeking to expand their operations and develop strategic relationships.
Participants also heard from Semina Merkou on business onboarding, while Rob Darby of IDT Finance and Vice President, BIN at Mastercard, discussed sponsorship and partnership opportunities.
A major highlight of the event was a panel session led by Jones, featuring three founders who shared their entrepreneurial journeys, including their achievements, challenges and lessons learned along the way.
For Useghan, one of the key takeaways from the discussion was a remark about choosing investors and business partners carefully.
“One quote stuck with me: ‘A pound from the wrong place is worse than a pound from no place at all,’” he said.
He noted that Warren Russell’s discussion on being intentional about the people brought into a company as investors or partners particularly resonated with him.
Useghan said his conversation with Russell after the session further broadened his understanding of what a potential partnership with Mastercard could mean for Alerte Universal.
The networking session that followed also provided an opportunity for the Alerte Universal founder to discuss the company, its technology and possible future collaborations with other participants.
Useghan explained that Alerte Universal is focused on building a smart emergency response platform that enables users to raise an alert quickly and connect with the right responders when it matters most.
He said the event reinforced his belief that entrepreneurship extends beyond developing a product, stressing the importance of relationships, continuous learning, listening and finding the right people with whom to build.
Expressing appreciation to FinTech Wales and Mastercard for the opportunity, Useghan also acknowledged the conversations he had with Greg Harmer, Jalil Keast, Rory Tyler and Chris Butterworth.
“The work starts now,” he said.
