Led · Series D · Dec 2024

Tyme Group builds and scales hybrid digital banks that combine online banking with physical service touchpoints in emerging markets. The Singapore-based, South African‑born fintech was founded in 2019 and now serves 15 million customers. Its South African brand TymeBank has been a key growth driver, and GoTyme launched in the Philippines in 2022 in partnership with the Gokongwei Group. The company plans to expand into Vietnam next year. Tyme remains majority-owned by Patrice Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital, which retains a 40% stake. After the latest round, the company reached unicorn status with a $1.5 billion valuation. Tyme designs, builds, and commercializes digital banks for the mass market in emerging markets, combining digital services with physical retail integration. TymeBank, part of the Tyme Group, was the first bank in South Africa operated fully off a cloud-based infrastructure and enables regulated account openings in under five minutes via online or kiosk. The group has partnerships with retailers Pick n Pay, Boxer, TFG and the Zion Christian Church, and in 2022 acquired Retail Capital, which has provided over 43,000 business owners with more than R5.5 billion in working capital. GoTyme launched in the Philippines in October 2022 in partnership with the Gokongwei Group, and the company maintains offices in Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh City. Tyme reports over 7 million customers since its February 2019 launch, with an acquisition rate of about 200,000 customers per month and a 70% 30-day account activity rate. The company plans to use the new funds to deepen operations in South Africa and the Philippines and to support further Southeast Asia expansion. Tyme Pte is a Singapore-based digital banking firm that offers digibank services. It operates in Vietnam, South Africa, and the Philippines. The company's core product is a digital bank serving customers across those markets. The article reports a fundraising development but does not provide product feature details or future plans. Tyme has raised an additional $70 million as part of its Series B funding. No revenue, user numbers, or other operating metrics were disclosed in the article. Tyme is a multinational digital banking group based in Singapore that provides modern digital banking services. It focuses on enabling greater financial inclusion for underbanked and underserved populations. TymeBank claims around 2.8 million customers roughly two years after its February 2019 launch and has been rated the number two bank in the Philippines by its clients. The company is pursuing expansion across the ASEAN region beginning with the Philippines and plans to apply for a virtual bank license from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in partnership with JG Summit Holdings. Tyme also aims to bring foreign investment into South Africa and will use new capital to grow TymeBank’s operations there. Recent investors include Apis Growth Fund II (managed by Apis Partners) and JG Summit Holdings; parts of the deal are subject to standard regulatory approvals.

Participated · Seed · Jul 2022

Dbank is a fintech startup headquartered in Islamabad that aims to expand the reach of financial services in Pakistan. The company positions itself to democratize banking and to take on the informal credit system that often exploits customers with exorbitant and unpredictable interest rates. Founders Tania Aidrus and Khurram Jamali draw on experience at Google—where they worked on payments rails for the Next Billion Users initiative—and Aidrus' subsequent role as Chief Digital Officer at the Government of Pakistan. Dbank has applied to become a digital retail bank and plans to build a customer-centric digital bank for the Pan-Islamic world beginning with Pakistan. The startup cites Pakistan's public digital infrastructure—Raast (real-time payments) and NADRA (digital identity)—as key enablers for its digital-native approach. Financially, Dbank raised a $17.6 million seed round, described as the largest in Pakistan, co-led by Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia and Kleiner Perkins with participation from Nubank, Askari Bank and Rayn.

Led · Series B · Aug 2021

Jupiter Money operates a mobile-first fintech platform designed to simplify banking and personal finance for India’s millennial users. The company reports more than 3 million customers, with about 60 % of them active on the platform and over 25 % using at least two Jupiter products, indicating growing cross-sell depth. Jupiter says its revenue grew more than 2.2× in the last fiscal year and it expects to double revenues again in FY25. Beyond its core money-management app, the firm also runs an NBFC vehicle supported by direct investor backing to power lending operations. Management plans to evolve this NBFC into a comprehensive lending suite covering personal, SME and secured loans. Founder and CEO Jitendra Gupta positions Jupiter as the “go-to money app” that is transparent, inclusive and helpful in day-to-day life for millions of Indians. The fresh capital strengthens the balance sheet and funds responsible scaling of both existing products and the new lending roadmap.