Richard sits down with Mercedes Bidart, the co-founder and CEO of Quipu Bank. Mercedes shares her remarkable journey from growing up in an entrepreneurial family in Argentina to founding a groundbreaking fintech platform that provides loans to small businesses in the informal economy. Listeners will hear about Mercedes' transition from studying political science to working on economic development in informal settlements, and how her experience at MIT led to the creation of Quipu Bank. She discusses how Quipu uses AI and alternative data to assess creditworthiness for unbanked businesses, and candidly shares the challenges of pivoting a startup and the importance of resilience as an entrepreneur. Mercedes offers valuable insights on overcoming setbacks, putting ego aside, and staying focused on creating positive change in the world. Her story, including a humorous anecdote about how lending to a sex shop owner helped launch Quipu's direct lending model, is sure to inspire aspiring entrepreneurs and anyone interested in innovative approaches to economic inclusion.