Financial wellbeing app Wagestream has raised £17.5 million in a funding round joined by a British Business Bank subsidiary.
BBB unit British Patient Capital has pumped £7 million into Wagestream, with Lombard Odier Investment Managers and Northzone providing additional financing.
Launched in 2018, Wagestream works with 1000 employers in the UK, Spain and US to enable three million people - mainly shift and frontline workers - to access an interactive payslip, choose when to get paid, save for a rainy day, save money on bills and get debt advice. Employers currently offering the service to their employees include Asda, Bupa, Burger King, Hilton and the NHS.
The company will use the new funding to expand its range of services and become a ‘complete financial platform’ for low and middle-income workers.
This year will see the addition of a credit-builder card, the result of the recent acquisition of startup Keebo, which uses Open Banking data to approve customers based on their broader financial behaviour - instead of just their credit score. Shopping discounts, AI-powered financial coaching, and loans are all also in the pipeline.
Peter Briffett, CEO, Wagestream, says: "We believe frontline workers deserve essential services and better financial futures. More than 1,000 employers agree. Together we’re closing the gap, with a platform that helps wherever people are in their financial life - from paying off debt, to saving for the first time, to building a credit file and planning for the future."