Australian challenger bank Xinja Bank has collected a AUS $433m ($258m) from Emirates’ World Investments.
The investment will be spread across two years, with the bank initially being given AUS $160m ($95m). The remaining AUS $273m ($163m) will be made available to the neobank in multiple tranches over the course of the next 24 months.
Xinja did not disclose what it will be using the capital for.
Later in the year, the digital bank is hoping to release its personal and home loan products.
World Investments CEO H.E. Zayed bin Rashid Al Qubaisi said, “We believe Xinja Bank is at the cutting edge of next generation banking in Australia. Its technology, commitment to customers and ethical banking philosophy made it an obvious investment choice for us.”
The challenger bank received its digital banking licence in September 2019. Earlier in the year, the bank stopped opening its high-interest Stash accounts due to the Reserve Bank of Australia dropping interest rates.
Xinja Bank founder and chief executive Eric Wilson said, “We think this is the largest single investment in an Australian neobank or start-up, and combined with exceptional customer acquisition and deposit growth, positions Xinja Bank as a frontrunner in the Australian neobank market,”
Earlier in the month, fellow Australian challenger bank Judo Bank reportedly raised $350m credit facility from Citi Bank to help support its coronavirus struggles.
In 2019, a total of $1.4bn was invested across 39 transactions in Australia, compared to the $503m invested into the country the previous year, according to data from FinTech Global. One of the reasons the market could be doing so well is the release of the country’s consumer data right (CDR), an open banking initiative.
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