• Published on 11 June 2020
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Singapore-based fintech startup Fincy receives $11 million from GBCI Ventures

Singapore-based fintech startup Fincy received $11 million from its parent company GBCI Ventures. Led by Douglas Gan, Vanessa Koh and Lim Ming Wang from GBCI Ventures, Fincy is the venture capital firm’s ambitious new endeavour that aims to provide an affordable alternative to existing financial services, starting with simplifying currency exchange via a multi-currency wallet.  

Fincy’s journey began when co-founders Douglas Gan, Vanessa Koh and Lim Ming Wang were frustrated with the unfavourable exchange rates and exorbitant transaction fees charged to beleaguered travellers. Gan and Koh, who were themselves frequent business travellers, set out to create Fincy as a solution that would allow for seamless, more affordable currency exchanges and a way to store residual currencies after returning from trips. Beyond currency exchange, the app also enables users to build their own social networks in-app and make contactless mobile payments. 

“This venture building investment from GBCI Ventures is a massive vote of confidence for Fincy as a fintech solution that will solve real-world money problems,” Fincy’s co-founder and chief technology officer Vanessa Koh said. “We look forward to taking Fincy to new heights in Asia and building a strong core team in Singapore.”

The $11 million funding will be used to: 

• Build presence in Singapore and accelerate its growth, first across Southeast Asia then the rest of Asia
• Establish a base, in a 6,700 square feet office in the central business district, where the technology, product development, compliance, sales and marketing work are done
• Strengthen capability to support a growing user base through the strategic expansion of its data centre network across Asia
• Boost the team with 50 strategic hires to support its rapidly growing team in Singapore via a $1 million allocation for talent acquisition
• Attract its target audience of expats and travellers who are actively looking for a better currency exchange solution, particularly at lower volumes

“GBCI Ventures has invested $11 million in Fincy because we believe that by leveraging a secure financial infrastructure built on blockchain technology and by offering round-the-clock customer support, Fincy can provide an affordable, contactless alternative to existing financial services, especially in a post COVID world,” GBCI Venture’s CEO Douglas Gan said.

Pioneering contactless payments 

This contactless approach is already being utilised in Myanmar’s Yatai City, a pioneering smart city powered by the same Building Cities Beyond (BCB) blockchain protocol upon which Fincy is built.

Fincy is the exclusive provider of financial infrastructure to the city’s growing number of residents, who can use the Fincy app to make purchases, perform transactions, receive salary and manage their money without the need for physical contact. 

Fincy is also pioneering contactless mobile payments in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where the fully licenced money app is accepted at more than 700 merchants and used by over 40 companies for payroll. 

In addition to receiving the venture building investment from GBCI Ventures, Fincy will be finalising an external funding round in the coming weeks.

Re-disseminated by The Asian Banker