Indian-promoted Fin-tech InstaReM raises USD 13MN

Singapore-headquartered Instarem is a disruptor in the cross-border payments space, reducing the cost of money transfers due to the “FX spread” that banks impose.

InstaReM, one of APAC’s leading digital cross-border payments company has just received a USD 13m investment led by GSR Ventures, with participation from SBI-FMO Ventures, Vertex Ventures, Fullerton Financial Holdings (FFH), and Global Founders Capital (GFC).

Mumbai-bred Prajit Nanu is a co-founder at InstaReM. An erstwhile global sales director of TMF Group and VP- sales and account management at WNS (NYSE:WNS), he partnered with Michael Bermingham to set up InstaReM in 2014.

InstaReM will use this investment to building out its global payment infrastructure, which has grown 8x in volumes since its March 2016 funding. The investment will also be used to boost the employee strength of its office in Mumbai where most of the company’s teams are based.

Jefferson Chen, Partner at GSR Ventures, said, “The global payments infrastructure InstaReM is building is unique in this industry and GSR Ventures is excited to join this journey,” he said.

Prajit Nanu, co-founder of InstaReM says, “This fundraising is significant on multiple counts. GSR has a strong network in China and the US whereas SBI-FMO has a strong base in Japan and emerging markets. Jefferson Chen from GSR Ventures now joins the InstaRem board."

Suramya Gupta, Fund Manager at SBI-FMO Fund, said, "We are excited to partner with the InstaReM team to jointly build the leading regional cross-border digital payments platform. We look forward to plugging InstaReM into our global ecosystem of Fintech and financial service companies.”

In total InstaReM has now raised over $18 million. InstaReM’s global payment infrastructure platform is now becoming the platform of choice for many small and midsized banks, payment processors, corporates and individuals to send money across the border at a fraction of the cost compared to other operators. The fin tech has the capability to now send payments to 50+ countries with a guaranteed destination amount on the same day. Banks, telcos, mobile wallets and MTOs can access InstaReM’s payment infrastructure for a superior service at far lower costs enabling them to compete with global players.

In fact, World Bank has consistently listed InstaReM as one of the most cost-efficient money transfer platforms across many corridors from Austalia and Singapore. InstaReM currently holds 8% market share for users remitting to India from Australia.

By the start of Q4 2017, InstaReM will be available across all markets in Europe and US in addition to Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Canada.

Speed and service transparency have been the key differentiators for the company. InstaReM has recently re-branded itself to highlight its speed and service transparency through a new logo.

INSTAREM FUNDRAISING MILESTONES

The initial capital of $500,000 came from Global Founders Capital, followed by $5 million in 2016 lead by Vertex Ventures, the venture capital arm of Temasek, Fullerton Financial Holding and Global Founders Capital. This USD 13m investment led by GSR Ventures, with participation from SBI-FMO Ventures, Vertex Ventures, Fullerton Financial Holdings (FFH), and Global Founders Capital (GFC) is the third round.

BOILERPLATE

InstaReM is a Singapore-headquartered cross-border payments company. Founded in 2014, InstaReM is licensed as a Money Services Business (MSB) in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and Canada. It powers local payments to more than 50 countries across the globe. InstaReM has created a unique payment mesh in Asia, which is being leveraged by financial institutions, SMEs and individuals to make fast low-cost cross-border payments.