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Qapital Raises $12 Million, Adds Debit Card Functionality

Qapital Raises $12 Million, Adds Debit Card Functionality

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Personal finance app Qapital pulled in some capital of its own today– $12 million worth, to be exact. This Series A investment brings the Sweden-based company’s total funding to $23 million.

Notable investors in today’s round include Industrifonden, Northzone, Rocketship VC and Anthemis Exponential Ventures, among others. Qapital has lofty goals for the new funds, planning to “strengthen [its] platform and lay the groundwork for continued reinvention in the financial services sector.”

Getting a head start on “strengthening the platform,” Qapital is launching debit accounts and payments capability. The addition of these features marks a pivot in Qapital’s strategy from a savings-only app into more of a traditional banking services provider. Offering debit card functionality will not only drive users to the app, it will also lead to a new revenue stream from interchange fees.

Qapital’s goal-focused platform uses behavioral economics to turn consumers’ everyday actions into positive financial habits. The company’s founders George Friedman and Erik Akterin plan to “rewrite the rules of retail banking” by helping millennials “translate money into happiness.” In the three years since it launched, 180,000 users have opened and funded savings accounts on the Qapital platform. The company is adding 10,000 new accounts per week.

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George Friedman (CEO & Founder) and Henrik Wrangel (Chief Product Officer) demo Qapital at FinovateSpring 2014

Pär-Jörgen Pärson, New York-based Partner at Northzone said in the press release, “The fantastic user engagement speaks for itself: the team has built a product that customers really love and the app is consistently rated one of the best personal finance apps in the industry. With millennials looking for banking solutions that put user experience first, we are excited about what the future holds.”

The company debuted Qapital for iPhone at FinovateSpring 2014 and launched on Android about a year ago. Earlier this year, Qapital was listed by PC Magazine as one of the best mobile finance apps of 2017.