Spare

Spare, listed here under the slug sapre, is a mobile app that works like a virtual ATM. Instead of hunting for a machine and paying high fees, users request cash through the app and pick it up from participating local merchants. Founder D'ontra Hughes built it to cut ATM fees and give small businesses a reason to keep cash moving, framing it as a more modern, lower-cost way to get money in hand.

Hughes pitched in Season 10 with an aggressive ask, $500,000 for 3.5 percent, implying a valuation north of $14 million. The sharks pushed back hard on that number relative to the company's stage. Mark Cuban saw potential in the fintech angle and countered well above the offered equity, putting $500,000 on the table for 14 percent, which Hughes agreed to on air.

The pitch stood out for tackling a real, mundane annoyance, ATM fees and access, with a marketplace twist that benefited merchants too. Fintech ideas can be hard to demo on television, but the simple promise of getting cash from a corner store through your phone made the concept easy to grasp and gave the segment a distinct, forward-looking feel.

The deal with Mark Cuban did not close after filming, and he did not end up on the company's cap table. Spare continued building out its merchant network and app independently, expanding the number of states it operated in and signing up additional retail partners to act as cash pickup points across more local markets.

Reporting around Spare describes continued growth after the show, including expansion across many states, a large merchant network, and partnerships within the payments industry. Because fintech metrics and company status can shift quickly, treat specific figures with caution and check the company's current site or app store listing for its latest availability before relying on it.