Bloom Money raises £1 million to digitize financial services for ethnic groups

Bloom Money, with the vision to facilitate ethnic minorities, has raised £1M in its pre-seed round. Led by Zinal Growth, the fundraising saw the participation of  January Ventures, Pact VC, and angel investors Bérénice Magistretti and June Angelides, M.B.E. 

The UK- based company operates on the ‘rotating savings and credit association’ (ROSCA) model – an informal financial system. ROSCA offers savings and borrowing opportunities to a money-pooling group functioning as a collective bank. Moreover, the Bloom Circles app feature allows people to form groups of 10 people whose payouts are made automatically. 

Driven by their experiences and observations in the U.K., Co-founders Nina Mohanty and Dan James are determined to succeed. Having witnessed immigrants’ challenges upon moving to the U.K., Mohanty felt compelled to make a difference.

“I saw firsthand the benefits that using ROSCAs can bring people, especially those entering the U.K. who have historically been underserved by the existing financial sector,” the CTO, Dan James also stated.

The Bloom App reflects the founder’s empathy as additional features help immigrants settle in the U.K. From guidelines on obtaining a driver’s license to setting up a trust fund and understanding credit scores, the app is a valuable resource.

Notably, the fundraising process faced challenges due to bias from investors and regulators. 

“Some very racist, xenophobic things were said to us,” Mohanty said. “Even going through the regulation process, there was a lot of prejudice that we had to overcome.”

Nonetheless, they are thriving with the current cap of nearly 70% women. In a nearly 1:1 ratio, the individuals are from minority ethnic backgrounds, and first or second-generation immigrants.

Hence, Bloom Money exemplifies financial empowerment for ethnic minorities and highlights the transformative potential of inclusive fintech solutions.