FinTech News
Stackin’ Announces $12.6 Million Funding Round
Despite concerns that the FinTech deals were slowing before the pandemic and would continue to slip as a result of shifting economic conditions, news of startups investments continue to roll in. This past week, Stackin’ announced that it had raised $12.6 million in a funding round led by Octopus Ventures. The Series B also brought participation from new and existing investors such as Experian Ventures, TechStars, Cherry Tree Investments, Mucker Capital, Unlock Venture Partners, Wavemaker Partners, and Dig Ventures. Not only will the funds go towards expanding Stackin’s stateside product but the company also plans to launch in the United Kingdom later this year.
Stackin’ is a text messaging-based service aimed at providing people with financial tips on a regular basis. Among the money topics Stackin’s tips address are reducing debt, investing, and more. It also recommends curated products to users. Currently the service has more than one million subscribers and has delivered over 100 million text messages.
Speaking to how the latest round will impact his company, Stackin’ co-founder and CEO Scott Grimes said in a statement, “This funding allows us to provide our current users a more personalized and connected experience, expand and enhance our partnerships and continue our rapid growth.” Grimes went on to say, “We’re thrilled to partner with Octopus Ventures to support our vision to create an entirely new type of financial relationship with the next generation of consumers.”
Marieke Christmann, Principal at Octopus Ventures, also explained the VC’s investment in the FinTech, stating, “For those of us living in big cities, exposed to lots of advertising, it’s easy to forget that large parts of the population are unaware of the range of financial services available to them, often those with better service and superior value. Stackin’s mission is all about increasing access to financial products and it’s clear that this has resonated with millions in the US across a broad demographic.” Of course, Octopus being a London-based firm, they’re also quite excited about Stackin’s expansion across the pond, with Christmann adding, “With its deep fintech expertise and array of direct to consumer offerings, the opportunity for expansion in the U.K. is just as exciting, and we look forward to helping Scott and the team make this a reality.”
In recent months, financial education has proven to be one of the fast-growing and most investable niches in FinTech. For example, Savology — which allows users to create a free financial plan in a matter of minutes — announced $750,000 in seed funding in April. Meanwhile, earlier this year, Intuit announced that it would be acquiring the popular free educational credit score site Credit Karma for a whopping $7.1 billion. With Stackin’ now armed with fresh funding and already looking toward foreign markets, perhaps the service could grow to rival Credit Karma and others while helping consumers around the world to better manage their money.
