- Lili, an all-in-one banking app that is designed for freelance workers, announced it raised a $10 million seed funding round
Lili, an all-in-one banking app that is designed for freelance workers, announced it raised a $10 million seed funding round for empowering modern workers with the financial tools and services they need to balance work and life. This round of funding was led by Group 11 with major participation from Foundation Capital, AltaIR Capital, Primary Venture Partners, and Torch Capital. And the funds will be used for building out the platform further and expand the product, marketing, and operations teams.
There are about 60 million freelancers in the U.S. and they make up 35% of the American workforce. And Lili is the only company that combines banking services with real-time expense tracking, tax tools, and financial insights, so freelancers are able to stay in control of their finances.
Launched in 2018, Lili has helped tens of thousands of freelancers across dozens of industries and all 50 states have opened Lili accounts via the iOS and Android mobile apps.
Whether customers are full-time independent workers or part-time freelancers, Lili’s customers span across many industries ranging from e-commerce shop owners to designers, programmers, fitness instructors, construction workers, chefs, beauty professionals, etc.
Lili’s founders are serial entrepreneurs with 20 years of banking industry experience, including CEO Lilac Bar David and CTO Liran Zelkha — who previously worked as a freelancer and was inspired to create a solution for independent workers’ financial pain points.
“We’ve built the only solution that truly enables freelancers to holistically manage their bank accounts and their expenses for work and life, saving them up to 60 hours and $1,700 per year,” said co-founder and CEO Lilac Bar David. “We’ve analyzed the challenges of the modern worker in all aspects of banking, taxes, expenses and savings and have created an easy-to-use mobile app that helps them thrive in today’s ever-changing work environment.”
Bar David and Zelkha had previously founded Pepper (the first and largest challenger bank in Israel). And they grew the company to over 200 employees — who designed the banking product from scratch, including Pepper Pay (mobile payments), Pepper Bank (banking services) and Pepper Invest (investment app).
“Lili is redefining banking for freelancers and we’re thrilled to be partnering with the team,” explained Dovi Frances, founding partner at Group 11. “As the future of work continues to evolve more quickly than ever in these uncertain times, Lilac and Liran’s forward-looking vision is changing how modern workers manage their finances, while saving them valuable time and money.”
Lili’s key product features in its iOS and Android apps include no account fees, minimum balance requirements, overdraft fees, or foreign transaction fees. And it also offers free access to 38,000 ATMs across the country and early direct deposit. Plus it offers a free expense management tool that allows users to track spending and categorize expenses in real time with a quick swipe. The app also has a tax savings tool that automatically puts aside a percentage of income in a “Tax Bucket” sub-account. You will immediately receive funds directly from online marketplaces such as Etsy and Shopify. And you can instantly send and receive money through mobile payment apps like Cash App and Venmo.
