Banco Santander and Oxentia Foundation are launching the Santander X Global Challenge | Helping Businesses Prosper, a competition for entrepreneurs with innovative, scalable solutions to help SMEs — the main driver of economic growth, job creation and social unity — become more digital and be more efficient.

From today, the Challenge welcomes applications from startups and scaleups based in Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Spain, Mexico, Portugal, Poland, the UK, Uruguay, and the US that are legally incorporated and already market a product or service.

Participants will have to demonstrate that their solutions help SMEs to:

• Digitalize their business through online channels and tools that can increase the supply of their products or services, and help them find new opportunities, customers, and markets.
• Be more efficient, understand their finances better, find more opportunities, reduce risk, and automate operations to enhance their long-term strategy.

António Simões, CEO of Santander España and Regional Head for Europe, said: “Helping SMEs Prosper is Santander’s chief purpose, and it means helping society prosper. In Europe, SMEs account for more than half the economy and 65% of all jobs. That’s why, in such challenging times for SMEs, it pleases me to announce that Santander X is calling on entrepreneurs from all over the world”.

In launching the challenge, Oxentia Foundation CEO Steve Cleverley, said: “At Oxentia, we fully understand the challenges that companies face when growing and scaling. Oxentia supports SMEs around the world to bring new ideas to life, and we help entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses through innovation. The Oxentia Foundation is therefore delighted to launch the challenge to find innovations that help businesses prosper through digitising their business and/or through becoming more efficient”.

A panel of international experts will evaluate submissions to choose 20 finalists to present their projects to SME leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors on 6 July. On 9 July, four winners will be announced at an event streamed live on www.santander.com. Two scaleups will receive EUR 50,000, and two startups EUR 10,000.

The four winners will benefit from specialist mentoring from the Oxentia Foundation, feature on Banco Santander’s official channels, will and have the chance to present their projects to Fintech Station, Grupo Santander’s innovation team.

Startups and scaleups wishing to take part have until 24 June to sign up at www.santanderx.com.

Banco Santander and its support for higher education
Banco Santander, a leader in responsible banking, is firmly committed to progress and inclusive sustainable growth. Through Santander Universities, it has been a pioneering stalwart of higher education for 25 years, standing out among the world’s financial institutions. Banco Santander has committed more than EUR 2 billion and awarded over 630,000 scholarships and grants since the Universities programme began.

Oxentia Foundation and its commitment to innovation and global entrepreneurship
The Oxentia Foundation was created to support Oxentia’s goal to address global inequalities through innovation and entrepreneurship activities. Globally, Oxentia designs, develops, and runs awards, competitions and programmes supporting early-stage innovators and entrepreneurs to promote commercialisation of science- and technology-based innovation projects impacting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Oxentia developed out of the University of Oxford’s technology transfer company, Oxford University Innovation, with the aim to deliver specialist innovation management services to clients in the public and private sector all over the world.  Its approach is grounded in a strong Oxford heritage based on over 30 years’ experience in supporting academic innovation and entrepreneurship in Oxford, and globally in over 70 countries.