Branch International, a San Francisco, CA-based mobile branchless bank for emerging markets, raised $70m in Series B debt and equity funding.
The round – which brings total investment to $80m since its founding – was led by Trinity Ventures with participation from Victory Park, International Finance Corporation (IFC), Andreessen Horowitz and CreditEase Fintech Investment Fund. In conjunction with the funding, Trinity Ventures General Partner Schwark Satyavolu will join the Branch board of directors. Anju Patwardhan, Managing Director of CreditEase Fintech Investment Fund, will join as a board advisor.
The company intends to use the funds to expand its financial offerings to additional countries, first in India.
Led by co-founder and CEO Matt Flannery, Branch delivers financial services to the mobile generation in emerging markets using data science to reduce the cost of delivering them.
Based in San Francisco, Lagos and Nairobi, the company already processes tens of thousands of loans every day in amounts ranging from $2.50 to $500.
Branch expects to disburse over $250 million in 2018 and plans to diversify into savings and payments in the future.
FinSMEs
30/03/2018