Emerging market mobile banking app Branch International nets $70m Series B

March 29, 2018

Branch International, a mobile banking platform for emerging markets, has netted a $70m Series B to expand into additional countries.

Trinity Ventures led that funding round, with other participants including Victory Park, International Finance Corporation, Andreessen Horowitz and CreditEase Fintech Investment Fund.

As part of the transaction Trinity Ventures general partner Schwark Satyavolu will join the company’s board of directors. CreditEase Fintech Investment Fund managing director Anju Patwardhan will join the board as an advisor.

Branch is a mobile banking solution based acrous San Francisco, Lagos and Nairobi. The platform uses data science to help consumers in emerging markets access financing by using data from the phone to create accurate credit scores.

Machine learning algorithms process data points across the phone including handset details, SMS logs, social network data, GPS information, call logs and contact lists. All data is encrypted by the platform.

The company processes tens of thousands or loans each day ranging from $2.50 to $500, according to the company. It has grown by 20 per cent MoM and is expecting to issue $250m in loans during 2018. Capital from the round will be used to support the platform’s launch in to India.

Trinity Ventures’ Schwark Satyavolu said, “In America, financial services are well-established, and the smartphone market is mature. By contrast, millions of consumers in emerging markets lack access to basic financial offerings like credit. Meanwhile, smartphone adoption in those countries is accelerating at break-neck speed.

“Because of the confluence of these two megatrends – the tremendous gap in financial service offerings and the rapid rise of the platform able to deliver them – and because of the team’s incredible bench of talent, I’m excited to invest in Branch and am bullish on its future.”

This investment brings the company’s total funding efforts to $80m, having previously collected $2m in debt financing last year and $9m equity in 2016.