Founded in 2020 by former employees of credit-scoring startup Clearscore, Yonder offers users a credit card with rewards like meals at high-end restaurants, event tickets, and points toward flights. The startup charges a monthly subscription fee of £15 (about $18.80).
The startup initially focused on expats in the UK who didn’t have a credit score, but is now targeting a wider market of non-expat customers living in cities including London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Bath.
“It’s a very challenging time for fintech startups looking to raise money, so we’re very proud of the round we’ve been able to secure in this environment,” Yonder CEO and co-founder Tim Chong told Business Insider. “We haven’t seen a lot of consumer fintechs raise money recently, especially at our stage,” he said, adding that most of them are pre-IPO or very early stage.
The company’s funding was led by Repeat (formerly Jigsaw) and RTP Global, as well as existing investor Latitude, LocalGlobe’s sister fund.
He follows $78 million debt and equity fundraising in April 2023, led by NorthzoneYonder says its latest fundraising is a significant round, resulting in a post-funding valuation of over $132 million.
“We are building for the long term and we have generally found that investors who are long-term thinkers and bullish on this space really understand us,” Chong added. “It has not been easy because this time around there has been more focus on unit economics, payback periods and long-term profitability.”
The company said it will use the new funding to expand its team from 45 to about 60 people, while aiming to maintain a lean headcount, Chong said. Additionally, Yonder said it is targeting European expansion and is closely monitoring where customers are traveling to decide its next step.
Check out Yonder’s 11-slide pitch deck below:
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