Digital wallet provider Curve has raised £37m from its latest funding round to forgo this year’s objectives of providing more personalised offerings to its customers.
Led by Hanaco Ventures, Curve also received funding from existing shareholders such as Fuel Ventures, IDC, Lord Stanley Fink and Outward VC.
Central to Curve’s ambitions this year is to launch a series of ‘industry-first’ digital wallet features that will set it apart from the rest of its competitors and continue to reward customers through perks, benefits and personalised offerings.
The latest funding round means that Curve has raised £300m in capital. The company has over six million customers across the globe and provides a range of physical and digital wallets that cover many customer preferences, from buy now, pay later to earning rewards from performing transactions.
Shachar Bialick, Founder and CEO of Curve, said: “This latest investment reflects the confidence in Curve’s vision to redefine the digital wallet space.
“The Wallet Wars are here, and the only available solutions for customers to date are simple wallets which do nothing more than let you pay with your card. Curve is the only wallet that adds superpowers to your money; avoid FX fees from any linked card, split old purchases into instalments, earn cashback on top of any card and more.
“We see issuers looking to enter the market, and networks introducing innovative products such as Visa Flex and Mastercard One Credentials. This investment would allow us to invest further in our customer experience, bring new partnerships, and accelerate our path to profitability.”
Curve to fight in a competitive market
Digital wallets have become the predominant payment method across the UK and Europe since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Due to their seamless integration into mobile devices, with Apple Pay and Google Pay taking an early lionshare of an increasingly competitive market, customers are now seeking more personalised digital wallet offerings tailored to their preferences.
While digital wallet adoption shows no signs of slowing down, Jeroen Hölscher, Global Head of Payment Services at Capgemini, told Payment Expert that “there are likely too many players currently” when it comes to potential digital wallet market oversaturation.
Curve is aiming to address these demands through a series of features. For example, the Curve ReFI offering performs instant bank transfers that seek to avoid late payment fees and overdraft charges.
Other Curve features include the introduction of real-time and spending reporting, enabling customers to see what, how and where they are spending their money on its most popular wallet, Curve Flex.
“Curve reimagined the digital wallet, delivering a one-of-a-kind financial experience that simplifies and supercharges how you pay and manage your money, all without changing your bank,” added Tomer Jacob, General Partner of Hanaco Ventures.
“The Curve team has proven to be resilient and innovative, and we are excited to support Curve as it continues to grow, bringing more choice and flexibility to the digital wallet market, and to its millions of users.”
The digital wallet provider is now preparing for the launch of Curve Pay, a digital wallet available to iOS and Android users.
