Gumi Cryptos Capital led the pre-seed round, which included participation from Xpring, LuneX and Blockchain Valley Ventures.
"Due to their complexity, passwords have become the weakest means of authentication. Not only are billions compromised in breaches every year – hackers are also figuring out how to bypass two-factor authentication systems that rely in-part on something the user knows- like passwords and recovery phrases,"
The funding will support growth across the UK and expansion into Germany and wider European markets.
"We’re thrilled to be working with a partner like M-Venture as their investment will help us to super charge our growth in the late night sector and ensure more people across Europe won’t get caught out when their phone battery is low."
The funding round was backed by a consortium of global financial heavyweights to expand the reach of its merchant services technology.
"Retail banks around the world are facing common issues, but they remain the only ones in the payment chain who can connect directly with both merchants and consumers. They are therefore best placed to help SME’s process transactions, support their balance sheets, and grow their businesses, creating a virtuous circle between the bank, merchants, and consumers. As we know consumers increasingly expect a more personalised service from the businesses they interact with, regardless of their size, so at its heart Pollinate is about relationships and growth through connection – our platform enables relationships to be strengthened through fantastic digital experiences, and real-time data processing analytics and integrations."
GC Angels backed the pre-seed round to support the launch of the digital platform and fund content expansion.
"GC Angels have been great to work with; at the stage we were at they were crucial. We’re looking to grow both the content and userbase, helping as many players as possible which the investment is enabling us to do. Years of hard work collecting masses of content and building an appropriate site to host it can now come to fruition with the GC Angels funding the dissemination process."
The funding round was led by Forward Partners with participation from Seedcamp and prominent angel investors.
"When I moved to the UK from the USA my credit history did not come with me. This made getting a credit card or loan difficult, if not impossible. I realised this is a problem that affected millions of people who are new to the country, but also people who have not built a credit history in the UK more generally. Koyo was built to give people who have historically been taken advantage of, an opportunity to access credit at a competitive rate and build credit history. The opportunity is further evidenced by a seasoned management team which includes Kevin Allen (former CRO of RateSetter) and Guy Evans (former CTO of LendInvest)."
