Our investment in Supply Pay
Unlocking capital liquidity and efficiencies in agriculture cross-border trade.
For decades, small and medium-sized produce exporters in Mexico have faced a frustrating reality: long payment cycles that choke cash flow, limit growth, and create systemic inefficiencies in the $6.5 billion fresh produce export market. These delays ripple through the supply chain, leaving farmers and exporters struggling to reinvest in their businesses while importers juggle complex payment workflows.
Enter Supply Pay, a fintech and data automation platform designed to transform cross-border trade between the U.S. and Mexico. By combining AI-powered underwriting with a digital collaboration workspace, the company is unlocking faster, more reliable access to capital for exporters while streamlining financial operations for importers. The potential impact extends far beyond produce—Supply Pay is targeting the broader $150 billion food logistics industry and the massive $476 billion US-Mexico trade ecosystem.
Solving a Market-Wide Bottleneck
Headquartered in South Texas near the Pharr International Bridge—where more than 65% of the U.S.'s fresh produce imports cross into the country—Supply Pay is tackling a critical inefficiency in food supply chains. The company’s AI-driven underwriting model provides much-needed liquidity by assessing transaction risks more accurately and expediting payments, enabling producers to scale faster and with greater financial security.
Beyond financing, Supply Pay is developing a digital collaboration platform to address a long-standing industry challenge: the fragmented and paper-heavy nature of cross-border transactions. By integrating financial liquidity with real-time data visibility and automation, the platform enhances efficiency across the entire trade lifecycle—helping businesses navigate issues like tariffs, regulatory changes, and procedural delays.
A Team with Cross-Border Expertise
The leadership team behind Supply Pay brings a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities within this sector. Co-founder and COO Jorge Ayala previously served as head accountant for an agricultural exporting cooperative in Mexico and as CFO of an importing company in Texas, giving him firsthand experience with the financial struggles of cross-border trade. CEO and co-founder William Steele has a background in building data-driven tech solutions, positioning Supply Pay to capitalize on the fintech revolution reshaping global supply chains.
Investor Confidence in a Category-Defining Company
Supply Pay’s potential has already attracted a strong syndicate of investors, including Supply Change Capital, Audaz Capital, Antler, and Ollin Ventures. The company’s pre-seed round will fuel the development of its AI-powered platform, with a focus on scaling its underwriting technology and expanding its customer base across North America.
As cross-border trade continues to grow and the demand for faster, smarter financial solutions increases, Supply Pay is emerging as a pivotal player in reshaping the future of food logistics. With a clear path to expansion and a market desperately in need of modernization, this is a fintech company poised to lead the next era of cross-border commerce.