Fintech UNOAsia secured $32.1 M Pre-series B funding for growth in Philippines

In a pre-Series B round, Singapore-based fintech company UNOAsia Pte Ltd raised $32.1 million to further its goal of transforming Philippine banking in the future.

UNOAsia said in a statement on Tuesday that this funding round’s combination of debt and equity bodes well for the organization as it works to strengthen UNO Digital Bank’s position in the Philippines and to increase its investments in cutting-edge technology.

“In just fifteen months since its commercial launch, UNO Digital Bank secured accounts with a million customers and amassed $100 million in deposits, predominantly within transaction, savings, and time deposit accounts,” said Manish Bhai, Chief Executive Officer of UNO Digital Bank.

The Chairman of UNO Digital Bank, Kalidas Ghose, agreed that the five primary banking products—transaction, savings, loans, investments, and insurance—are the lenses through which their relationship with customers is viewed.

Intending to broaden the reach, the bank recently introduced a few Personal loan product variants that assist in closing the formal credit gap between the salaried, professional, and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) segments.

Anand Kumar, a co-founder of Gateway Partners, says the investment will support initiatives to promote financial inclusion and revolutionize the Philippines’ digital financial landscape.

He stresses that Gateway Partners’ assistance is consistent with their goal of making investments in rapidly expanding industries in developing nations.

“We are excited to be part of UNO’s journey and to back the founders and their experienced management team who have built a solid foundation over the past 15 months,” he said.

Omar Mahmoud, the managing director of Creador Private Equity, expressed his gratitude for the renewed collaboration and his support for the goal of providing formal financial services to all Filipinos.

“Our investment in UNO Digital Bank provides a large underbanked population with a safe place to manage their finances through the simplicity of a single digital platform,” he added.

UNO Digital Bank was primarily incorporated by UNOAsia. The business intends to extend its digital banking platform into strategic South and Southeast Asian markets.

Under the Digital Banking License framework that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in the Philippines has established, UNO Digital Bank operates as a full-spectrum digital bank focused on credit.