London, UK – 7th August 2025
MyPocketSkill, the award‑winning platform helping 13‑to 25‑year‑olds earn, save and learn, has been named national champion of the 2025 Sage Small Business XI. The win, recognising MyPocketSkill’s innovation, resilience and community impact and the link between sport and financial education, puts the fast‑growing edtech/fintech start‑up at the crest of a very public innings: a pitch‑side showcase alongside televised cricket fixtures, a grant and support from the global accounting firm as part of its partnership with cricket’s The Hundred.
“We’re absolutely bowled over,” said Zara Ransley, Co‑Founder and Co-CEO of MyPocketSkill, upon receiving the award at their offices in Clerkenwell during a surprise visit from cricketing stars Stuart Broad and Nat Scriver-Brunt. “Sage and The Hundred have given us the perfect platform, quite literally, to show that every young person can knock their financial goals to the boundary when the right tools, coaching and paid opportunities line up.”
Urgency for MyPocketSkill
Youth unemployment in the UK has edged up to 12.7 %, its highest since 2021, while entry‑level roles have shrunk by almost a third. For many young people, the hunt for that first payslip feels like batting on a sticky wicket. MyPocketSkill steps in, pairing Gen Zs with micro‑jobs, from content creation for local businesses to online tutoring, so they can earn money now while building employability skills for later.
The platform channels earnings into e‑wallets; users can ring‑fence cash for savings goals and soon, via PocketAI, receive real‑time coaching and inflow-upskilling that nudges them towards smarter budgeting, investing and career planning.
“Think of it as a power‑play,” added Matthew Harker, MyPocketSkill’s Co-Founder and Co-CEO. “Early action in a cricket match can tilt the outcome of the match. Likewise, the first money a young person earns and manages well can change their lifelong financial trajectory.”
In addition, MyPocketSkill surfaces talent for small businesses struggling to find the right skills for growth. MyPocketSkill’s reach now spans the whole of the UK from Edinburgh students offering Python tutoring to Cardiff teens shooting videos for independent cafés.
Cricket, Sage and MyPocketSkill is a winning combo
Now in its third year, the Sage competition scouts the UK’s brightest small businesses, who demonstrate innovation, resilience and community impact. Winners join the Small Business XI, an all‑star line‑up showcased throughout The Hundred, England & Wales Cricket Board’s high‑octane, 100‑ball competition that attracts millions of young fans each summer.
“Our mission is social mobility through financial capability,” added Zara Ransley. “Winning Sage’s Small Business XI is not only a validation of that mission but a springboard into our next innings: rolling out PocketAI to a million young people in the UK and beyond.”
The judging panel highlighted four factors:
NOTES FOR EDITORS
About MyPocketSkill
MyPocketSkill is an award-winning GenZ platform for financial education. It enables 13-25 year olds to Earn, Save, Invest and Learn about money with the help of behavioural science. MyPocketSkill addresses the decline in opportunities for young people that enable them to gain financial independence and employability skills.
With its roots in an evidence-based approach to financial education, MyPocketSkill has seen impressive growth with nearly 200,000 signed-up users. The company was recently recognised in The UK FinTech Impact Report 2024 (Innovate Finance) for it’s positive impacts on the UK economy and society and has won numerous awards, including the Santander X Global Challenge for Education, Employability and Entrepreneurship 2024, the European Institute of Technology ‘Digital Champion of Europe’ 2024 and most recently were Finalists at the Tech Impact Awards, from the organisers of London Tech Week.
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