Check, Hi Clever & Zywa

On FinTech Futures, we know it can be easy to let funding announcements pass you by in this fast-paced industry. That’s why we put together our weekly magazine In case you missed it (ICYMI) funding round for you to get the latest fintech funding news.

Checka know your customer (KYC), know your company (KYB) and data management platform, has raised money from SC VenturesStandard Chartered’s innovation, fintech investment and venture arm, as part of its latest round of funding.

The “multi-million dollar” round was led by HSBC, with participation from the venture capital company SOSV.

“Chekk is already an established partner of SC Ventures, as our go-to KYC/KYB provider for a number of ventures we have incubated,” said Alex Manson, head of SC Ventures.

“While several companies claim to optimize the customer experience in banking, none come close to Chekk, with real-time data collection that provides a digital advantage across multiple stakeholders.”

Founded in 2013, Chekk has offices in Hong Kong, Singapore and Paris, and clients across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Australia-based payment technology Hi Clever have packed $4.5 million in fundingconsisting of a $1.7 million pre-seed and a $2.8 million seed round.

Hi Clever co-founders Caroline Tan and Gavin Nguyen. Image source: Hello Clever

The seed round was led by Vectr Fintech Partners with participation from CrossFund, Yolo Investments, Magnivia Ventures, Son Tech Ventures, Boson Ventures and notable angels such as Anthony Warren and Olivia Warren of Peter Warren Automotive, Ken Cheung (former founder of Asia Pacific – Facebook and Instagram and co-founder of OurSong with John Legend), Daniel Johnson of Mercurien Insurance and Bosco Tan.

“We want to introduce a new ecosystem that allows consumers to be financially healthier and our trading partners to increase sales/reduce operating costs,” the startup says.

“That’s why we’re not a simple product, it’s a ‘smart way’ to execute payment strategies to achieve better business results. From Hello Clever as a consumer-facing app, we’ve now evolved to build Hello Clever Business, Hello Clever Business API and Hello Clever Yield – which is our way into financial investment for Gen Zs.”

Hello Clever claims to be “the first Australian buy-to-earn platform designed with the customer in mind”. It provides real-time cashback for customers through payment API – an instant payment solution powered by the New Payments Platform (NPP), PayTo and PayID.

Lead investor Mark Munoz says he “hadn’t seen a fintech app for young audiences in the market with the same kind of traction and positive customer feedback”.

He predicts that Hello Clever could grow into Southeast Asia through the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam – markets with “large, young and tech-savvy populations”.

Zywaa UAE-based fintech for teenagers and young people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), has announced a $3 million seed funding round.

Investors that participated in the round include Goodwater Capital (the largest consumer technology VC globally), Dubai Future District Fund (the venture capital fund in Dubai, anchored by Dubai International Financial Center and Dubai Future Foundation), Rebel Fund, Trampoline Venture Partners, Zemu VC and some of the most prominent European family offices, as well as strategic angel investors.

At the beginning of this year, Zywa raised $1 million in pre-funding.

Founded in 2021 and backed by Y Combinator, the fintech offers a gamified community-based banking app and payment card to 11-25 year olds. It claims to have received 100,000+ entries.

It is currently present in the United Arab Emirates and Egypt and plans to launch in Saudi Arabia in early 2023.