Kyash, a Tokyo-based digital wallet, has raised $41.2 million (4.9 billion yen) in a Series D round to raise its valuation to approximately $107.7 million. The funding saw the likes of Jack Dorsey’s Block (formerly square) as one of the investors.
Japan Post Investment Corporation, Jack Dorsey’s Block, which was once known as Square, as well as Altos Ventures Goodwater Capital and StepStone Group in the United States, were among the worldwide investors and Japanese banks who participated in the round.
Greyhound Capital in the United Kingdom, SMBC Nikko Securities, JAFCO Group, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Capital, and others also contributed. Kyash is the first Asia-based startup in which Block has invested, according to a Nikkei report.
The funds will be used to hire more personnel, increase the company’s product offerings, and boost its service operations, according to the company.
Kyash’s president and CEO, Shinichi Takatori, stated that “creating a viable business model based purely on the payment and settlement business has been tough,” and that he expects that these funds will position the company for “high capital efficiency.”
He was particularly grateful for Block’s new investment, which he described as “a leader in financial innovation in the United States and other nations.”
“Kyash’s user-first, mobile-first concept and design is a significant component of the global, irreversible trend toward unbundling traditional financial institutions and bundling them with technology,” said Taikuma Baba, managing director of Japan Post Investment Corporation.
Kyash is a neobank, or online bank, in the same way as Robinhood, Chime, SoFi, and Revolut are. In 2020, it raised $45 million in Series C financing.
In November, Jack Dorsey announced his departure from Twitter. In December, Square rebranded as Block and announced the addition of many Bitcoin (BTC) startups to its portfolio.
Square, CashApp, and Tidal, the music platform, are all still run by Block. Since then, Dorsey has concentrated on growing Block’s crypto activities.
