Solana Pay is an open-source protocol that sets the standard for payments on the Solana blockchain. It was launched in February 2022 and has seen 100+ ecosystem projects being built on it. Payments is a multi-trillion dollar industry and a long-term focus of the Solana ecosystem.

The goal of this mission is to explore opportunities for Solana Pay in markets outside of the US and EU. Based on countries with the highest crypto adoption and best developer communities, find the top payments gateway companies, FinTech companies, crypto/web3 companies, and ecosystem projects. Explore how Solana's ecosystem should engage with these different parties. Using empirical and secondary research, compile market overviews on how local payment networks function.

This mission is integral to how the Solana Pay team will approach new market expansion. The team has engaged with local projects in India, Vietnam, and West Africa, but we don’t have enough capacity to explore all new markets comprehensively. The ideal submission will help us discover new opportunities in previously overlooked markets where this is a strong consumer and merchant value proposition using Solana Pay.

Note that the successful submission need not cover all geographies. Aim for depth over breath.

To apply for this Mission, you’ll first need to put together a lightweight plan. This plan should answer the following strategic questions:

Discuss these questions with your team and put the answers into a Google doc to include in your application. Please make sure your visibility settings are set to “Anyone with the link” or your application will not be reviewed.