UK savings app Oval Money has raised £1.3m – with the majority of money coming from crowdfunding.
More than 60% of funds raised (£800,000) were generated through a crowdfunding round on the Crowdcube platform, and the startup’s goal initial target of £500,000 was achieved in less than 72 hours.
Overall, the campaign attracted more than 1,000 investors, Oval Money says, with 35% of these already using of the app.
Tech entrepreneurs including Fabio Cannavale, CEO of Lastminute.com and Mauro Del Rio, founder of Buongiorno, have also backed Oval.
The company is aimed primarily at flexible, zero hours and gig economy workers as it helps them to track, invest and save money.
Oval was founded in 2016 by the former head of Uber in Italy, Benedetta Arese Lucini. She recently defended Uber and its leadership amid controversy.
Speaking about Oval’s funding announcement, she said the team are overwhelmed by the support the company has received. “Not only because it illustrates true value in our product, but because it has allowed us to focus on the next chapter in the platform’s development, allowing us truly to democratise saving and investment, and help tackle the poor savings culture that has become endemic within Europe and the UK.”
The company has raised a total of $4.3m (£3.01m) across five funding rounds. This latest raise will be used to help launch a feature within the platform for people to invest their money in its multi-sided marketplace for savings and investments products.
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