NOW Money secures $700k investment

NOW Money has secured an investment of $700,000 from two U.S.-based venture capital investors – Accion Venture Lab, the seed-stage investment initiative of financial inclusion leader Accion, and Newid Capital.

Both Accion Venture Lab and Newid Capital make investments that target the financially underserved. Venture Lab invests capital in, and provides support to, innovative FinTech start-ups that increase access to, improve the quality of, or reduce the cost of financial services for the underserved at scale. Newid Capital focuses on such investments outside of North America and Western Europe.

NOW Money uses mobile banking technology to provide accounts, financial inclusion and a range of low-cost remittance options to low-income migrant workers in the Gulf region. It aims to provide access to affordable financial services for everyone.

The investment comes a year after NOW Money’s initial seed funding, which allowed the company to expand the team and develop the technology and brand. With the latest investment, also a part of its seed round, the team plans to launch the service across the UAE and expand into the other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Co-founder of NOW Money, Ian Dillon said, “having what’s understood to be the first early stage investment from U.S. venture capital into the Middle East is testament to the opportunities available here and how far the GCC has come in making itself a destination for investment. We hope this will be the first of many U.S. venture capital investments in the region, and will help to grow the ecosystem further.”

“We’re excited to be making such a big social impact in the region. Accion is one of the leading global institutions promoting financial inclusion, and Newid Capital was co-founded by Nigel Morris, who previously co-founded Capital One Financial Services. We’re excited to be working with them to bring financial inclusion to the 26 million unbanked in the GCC,” he added.

“Each year, migrant workers contribute more than $400 billion to their home economies, and the United Arab Emirates is among the top remittance-sending countries in the world,” said Michael Schlein, CEO and President of Accion, “NOW Money’s innovative approach and digital platform provide a faster and safer option for these workers to support their families and communities.”

“Our partnership with NOW Money marks a number of firsts for Accion Venture Lab – our first investment in the Middle East region, our first investment into a wholly-digital neobank, and our first opportunity to focus on reaching low-income migrant workers,” added Amee Parbhoo, Director of Investments at Accion Venture Lab. “As we reach this new group of financially underserved individuals, we’ll look to apply our learnings to Venture Lab’s work around the world.”

In the last 12 months, NOW Money has won six awards, including Chivas’ “The Venture” for the Gulf Region. The co-founders Katharine Budd and Ian Dillon speak regularly at FinTech events, such as Payfort and Wamda’s State of FinTech report, and are featured regularly in publications such as Entrepreneur Middle East and on the Dubai Eye radio station.