Worth Founders Recognized Among Most Influential Executives in Florida

Florida Trend has named Worth co-founders Sal Rehmetullah and Suneera Madhani to the 2026 Florida 500, its annual guide to the 500 most influential business leaders in the state. Sal, Co-Founder and CEO, and Suneera, Co-Founder and Chief Evangelist, were both recognized in the Tech, Information, and Media category.

What the Florida 500 recognizes

The Florida 500 is the product of a year-long research effort by Florida Trend’s editors, now in its seventh year. Selections come from reporting and interviews, not advertising, and no firm can place more than three people on the list. The editors say they look for demonstrated impact beyond a leader’s own company, with a high premium on community service and philanthropy.

Sal Rehmetullah: building Florida’s next generation of business leaders

Sal and Suneera built Stax Payments into a unicorn in Orlando, then launched Worth in the same city to bring the same ambition to a different problem: how financial institutions onboard and underwrite small businesses. Sal says agentic AI is already changing that work.

"The rise of agentic AI is a game changer in fintech. It's transforming everything in finance from underwriting to risk management. Small businesses are getting the tools they need to thrive, and we're seeing more financial institutions leverage data-driven insights to improve efficiency and inclusion, creating more equitable access to capital." — Sal Rehmetullah, Worth Co-Founder & CEO

His community work is part of why he made the list. Sal established the first fintech scholarship at UCF and serves on the Orlando Economic Partnership board. He's brought Worth’s start-up mentality to young Floridians and local entrepreneurs, and that the city is personal to him.

Suneera Madhani: making finance fairer for the businesses often overlooked

Suneera spent nine years at Stax seeing how small businesses are underserved by the credit system. At Worth, that experience shapes the mission.

“I'm laser-focused on scaling Worth and empowering women to build the businesses they deserve. I'm being intentional with my time this year because showing up for my family and my work aren't competing priorities. They fuel each other.” — Suneera Madhani, Worth Co-Founder & Chief Evangelist

This year she hosted the Unicorn Summit, an event for women building billion-dollar companies, and she continues to grow her community for women founders. She also supports the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation, which helps Orlando’s young people build confidence and chase their goals.

Built in Orlando

Worth is headquartered in Winter Park, and the team has grown there alongside the platform. In March 2026, Worth closed a $30 million Series A led by American Express Ventures and Fulcrum Equity Partners, with participation from TTV Capital. That capital has gone toward growing the Central Florida team and the platform built to help financial institutions onboard and underwrite small businesses faster, with a verified record behind every decision.

Recognition like this helps the next hire, the next customer, and the next founder see what can be built here. Congratulations to Sal and Suneera, and thank you to Florida Trend for the honor. See the full 2026 Florida 500 list.

Want to see how Worth fits into your onboarding and underwriting workflow? Book a demo here.