TechCrunch Fintech: Meet PayJoy, a fintech that works at the intersection of doing good and making money

Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech! This week, we’ll take a look at how two fintech corporations serving disadvantaged individuals are doing, and more!

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Big story

PayJoy is an example of a company with positive unit economics and a mission to assist those in need. It’s rarely that these two things intersect, so after we do, we’re very excited. I wrote about the company’s milestone of reaching $300 million in annual revenue and profitability last 12 months, in addition to securing $150 million in Series C financing. The company’s model is exclusive: it helps people construct credit by financing smartphones on a pay-as-you-go basis with real use. Once the phones are paid off, customers can apply for loans through PayJoy, using their devices as collateral. Read all about his height here.

Weekly evaluation

Petal is one other fintech company that goals to assist underserved people “build credit, not debt.” Last May, TechCrunch wrote about the company’s $35 million raise and plans to spin off its data unit. Last week, Empower Finance announced its plans to accumulate Petal, which apparently began on the lookout for buyers last 12 months “when it was strapped for cash,” in keeping with Fortune. A Petal spokesperson told me via email: “Like Petal, Empower… uses cash flow guarantees as part of its suite of lending products. … With the acquisition, Petal will soon have a family of credit cards to complement this offering.” Will we see more mergers and acquisitions in 2024? I’ll willingly see that.

Dollars and cents

TransferGo, the British fintech company best often known as a consumer global remittance platform, has raised a $10 million round of growth financing from Taiwanese investor Taiwania Capital, with a view to expanding in the Asia-Pacific region. It last raised a $50 million Series C funding round in 2021. TransferGo says its growth combined with the recent investment doubles its valuation.

What else will we write?

Brazilian start-up volleys, a mobile carrier for businesses, was the only Latin American-based company in Y Combinator’s latest batch, the accelerator confirmed to TechCrunch’s Annie Heim. This is a significant drop from cohorts that got here through the accelerator during Covid-19 when it was distant, but in addition from newer classes. For example, the Y Combinator Winter 2022 group includes 33 Latin American corporations. Can the overall state of the fintech sector be partly in charge? Historically, about one-third of the 231 Latin American corporations that have passed through YC have focused on fintech. And with fintech funding declining, this might perhaps partly explain YC’s lack of interest in Latin American countries.