Employee gift card provider Glede was among the companies selected for Mastercard Lighthouse's spring 2026 programs, announced on March 16. The combined cohort comprised 21 fintech and impact-technology businesses from the Nordic and Baltic region.

Mastercard described Glede as enabling businesses to send employees digital gift cards usable through mobile wallets at Mastercard acceptance locations. Its participation was part of the FINITIV program, rather than an announcement of a new issuing arrangement or a new Glede product.

FINITIV selected 15 companies working in areas such as cybersecurity, embedded insurance, payment acceptance and AI. Other participants named in the announcement included Alvenir, AQRISK, Avido AI, Dreamplan, Skjoldet, Gain Technology, Preventum Labs, Tabify and Tillit.

The parallel MASSIV program selected six impact-technology companies: SpennX, Manje Health, Octany, CorPower Ocean, Soldera and Plussa. Mastercard said they would receive support from organizations including UNDP, Swedbank, Danske Bank, Nets/Nexi Group and Synch, along with individual advisers.

The programs connect participants with banks, investors, corporate partners and Mastercard. They run twice a year, with the spring 2026 edition emphasizing Norway, Denmark and the Baltics. The announcement described the selected cohort and planned support, not completed commercial partnerships for every participant.