Photo Credit: Rewire
Rewire, a Tel Aviv, Israel-based fintech company that has developed an international banking platform for migrants, has raised $12 million in Series A funding. This round of funding was led by Viola Fintech and it is supported by new and existing investors BNP Paribas through the venture capital fund Opera Tech Ventures, OurCrowd, Moneta, Professor Yair Tauman, Yaron Lemelbaum, Leon Vaidman and strategic partner Standard Bank of South Africa.
In conjunction with this round of funding Viola Fintech Fund co-founder and partner and former deputy CEO of Bank Leumi Professor Daniel Tsiddon is joining the board. The other board members include Professor Yair Tauman (former director of Bank Hapoalim), Adoram Gaash, (Moneta Venture Capital Fund co-founder), and Oded Zehavi (former VP at Payoneer) along with representatives of the company founders.
Founded by entrepreneurs Guy Kashtan, Saar Yahalom, Or Ben-Oz, and Adi Ben-Dayan, Rewire plans to use part of the funding for global expansion and penetration into additional European markets — which complements existing operations already implemented in Germany and Italy (locations where a high concentration of migrants reside). The funding will also be allocated towards extending and strengthening partnerships with local banks in origin countries.
Since Rewire partners with leading banks in migrants’ countries of origin, the company’s innovative technology enables migrants to deposit money into a digital bank account that can be used locally, receive a debit card by Rewire, and transfer funds home. Currently, Rewire serves tens of thousands of returning customers and processes hundreds of millions of dollars a year. Rewire also manages global communities of migrants with an emphasis on Nigerians, Filipinos, Indians, Thai, Nepalese and Sri Lankan migrants.
“We believe in creating a fair digital banking platform accessible for everyone, wherever they may be in the world. We have seen a surge in global migration in recent years and identified an opportunity where Rewire can provide an efficient, transparent and affordable international banking platform for migrants which have previously been disadvantaged by banking systems,” said Rewire CEO Guy Kashtan. “With our vision to support and fulfill the financial potential of each migrant and their family, this investment further demonstrates the confidence of leading global financial institutions that are committed to creating a meaningful change to migrants’ lives in a short period of time.”
Recently, Rewire opened offices in Amsterdam to support their European operations. Alex Bakir is going to build out the company’s team there. In the next year, Rewire is expected to grow its staff by 40% with a focus on expanding the research and development team.
“With this being our second investment to this fund, we continue to express our investment portfolio beliefs which are based on the principle of Fintegration, meaning cooperation between financial institutions with fintech companies. This investment reflects our principle of operation, which directly connects investors in the fund with the creation of value for the companies in which we invest,” added Tsiddon. “Rewire has succeeded in creating a solution for the target community that greatly needs this type of resolution, while winning favor with banks and educating them as to how they can best serve this community and expand their activities.”
