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A UK credit card rewards startup focused on millennials and Gen Z consumers who stumbled upon an integrated business model has now raised £12.5 million ($15.4m) in equity from investors.
Yonder is the closest credit card to AMEEX or Chase Sapphire in the US, but combines that credit card transaction model with a points-based rewards scheme at places like cinemas, wine merchants and restaurants in London. In other words, it’s like a combination of a travel experience startup and a credit card.
In fact, founder Tim Chong, CEO of Yonder, told me: “One customer literally described us as a combination of Amex, Secret London/NYC and Monzo.
It also raised a £12.5m equity round plus £50m in debt to expand its UK offering.
As Chong told me: “We are not a bank. So we have to finance credit card receipts when you spend on the card. It is a debt repository. So the debt is financing the credit card assets.
The Series A funding round was backed by venture capital firms NorthZone and RTP Global, with angel investors Joseph Moore, Crust Bros founder and Cred founder Kunal Shah joining existing major shareholders Sharmadean Reid, GoCardless founder Matt Robinson and former footballer Rio. Ferdinand
Instead of just doing a lot of financial production, it’s putting together a lot of urban peripheral experiences. It’s very experience-driven, kind of like how you’d describe an Airbnb experience compared to a Booking.com experience. Right now, it’s just where we’re starting, but our plan is to take this global,” added Chong.
Expat founders Chong, Harry Jel and Teso Jivajirajah started Yonder after failing to find good credit options in the UK.
Yonder plans to extend the round to members through a live private crowdfunding event in April.
The funding has resulted in a post-funding valuation of over £70m.
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