Ep 209: Janis Stirna

Written By Janis Zeps
 

No Cards, No Phones, Just Your Hand: How Handwave Raised €4.2M to Build the Future of Payments With Palm Biometrics

Jānis Stirna is the co-founder and CEO of Handwave. The company’s palm-scanning tech enables cardless, phoneless payments and identity verification, emphasizing security (two-factor biometrics) and affordability to outpace rivals like Amazon One. With $5M raised—including a $4.2M seed from Practica Capital in August 2025—Handwave partners with Visa and targets retail pilots in Europe, the U.S. and beyond.

On this episode we talk about:

  • How fintech innovations like Apple Pay inspired Handwave

  • Navigating $5M in funding for hardware B2C fintech

  • Leveraging Riga’s fintech hub for talent and pilots, challenges in U.S./EU markets (regulations/privacy)

  • Visions for mainstream palm payments by 2030, AI’s role in scaling and the next big platform

  • Scrappy tips for Baltic founders—like focusing on technical edges and avoiding hype pitfalls.

We are on YouTube and Linkedin as well

 Watch select full-length episodes on our YouTube channel > https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP6ueaLnjS-CQfrMCm2EoTA 

Connect with us on Linkedin > https://www.linkedin.com/company/pursuit-of-scrappiness/

 
 
 
Janis Zeps
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Ep 208: Atis Hermanis