Atlanta-based app aims to speed payments for immigrant small business owners
An Atlanta fintech startup launched by an immigrant entrepreneur is transforming how small immigrant-owned businesses manage payments and cash flow - and one local photographer says it's changed his bottom line.
Pagarva, a mobile point-of-sale app built for multilingual immigrant micro-businesses, recently raised capital through Atlanta's new Pinnacle Innovation Accelerator and is now scaling across the metro area. The app allows merchants to accept cards, Venmo, Cash App, Zelle, PIX, and more in a multilingual interface with no extra hardware. It also offers instant bank payouts and tax reporting tools. Customers don't need to download anything.
The company's pilot program saw payment processing volume increase fivefold. There are about 6.6 million immigrant-owned businesses in the U.S., generating a $600 billion market that Pagarva is targeting.
Diego and Monica Salcedo have worked to open their Johns Creek studio, EVO Space & Studio, since 1999 - the year they moved to the United States from Argentina.
"We had no idea where Georgia was on the map, but when we came, we fell in love," Diego said.
For the couple, their photography and events business is more than a livelihood.
"Art is my passion," he said. "My passion is to bring the best of everybody out."
Monica handles events while Diego runs the photography, and together they've built a space centered on community.
"It's a really nice space to create a good memory for the people," Monica said. "We love to help people, we love to create a memory."
But behind the joy came the burden of running a small business.
"To be honest, we had a lot, a lot of problem to make a payment, or to receive a payment, to deal with the client," Diego said.
According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, immigrants start one in four new businesses in the United States. Many still face hurdles - including less access to credit and capital. For small businesses, cash flow is everything. Waiting days for payments to clear can mean the difference between paying rent and falling behind.
"We really struggle on this area," Diego said.
That's why Caetano Nobre created Pagarva.
"Even one to two days difference, that means a lot in their cash flow," Nobre said.
Nobre, a native of Brazil, saw how fast payment systems worked in his home country.
"Payment system in Brazil - everything's fast, everything's easy," he said. "When I came here, I realized that actually I could contribute to something in this country."
With Pagarva, payments transfer instantly to a bank account with a small transaction fee.
"We have a client. They are struggling with English. Using this, this is so easy for them," Diego said.
Nobre hopes to help thousands of businesses like the Salcedos' open up to any client in the world, and Atlanta is the perfect starting point.
Seventy percent of all credit, debit, and digital transactions in the United States are handled by companies in metro Atlanta - a region often called "Transaction Alley."
Keena Peirre, managing director for the Pinnacle Atlanta Innovation Accelerator, said Pagarva's inclusion in the program shows how the city's fintech sector is evolving.
"It has the opportunity to bring even more diversity, even more immigrant-based companies right here into the U.S.," Peirre said.
Nobre said his goal is to make that opportunity mutual.
"Our American dream is actually helping others to achieve theirs as well," he said. "I think it's extremely powerful. So how lucky you are if reaching your dream helps others to reach theirs."
With the 2026 World Cup around the corner, Nobre and his mentors at the Pinnacle Atlanta Innovation Accelerator hope this technology will help Atlanta's immigrant entrepreneurs shine on a global stage.
For Monica and Diego Salcedo, that dream is already taking shape. Their focus is back on what matters most - making memories, not money.