Yolo Investments is a Australian venture capital company that specializes in investing in early-stage FinTech startups. Founded in 2020, Yolo Investments has quickly established itself as one of the most active venture capital firms in the FinTech space in Australia. With investments in over 20 startups so far, Yolo is making a name for itself by backing some of the most innovative companies that are disrupting the financial services industry. In this article, we will take a closer look at Yolo Investments, its investment strategy and some of its prominent portfolio companies.
Yolo Investments’ investment strategy focuses on early-stage FinTechs
As a venture capital firm, Yolo Investments specializes in early-stage investments, primarily focusing on seed and Series A rounds. Unlike many traditional VC firms that prefer later stage companies with proven traction, Yolo prides itself on identifying promising startups at their infancy and being the first institutional investor. This allows Yolo to get in early at more favorable valuations. According to partners at Yolo, the firm’s typical first check size is between $250k to $2 million.
Yolo has invested in a diverse range of FinTech companies and business models
Given Yolo’s singular focus on financial technology startups, its portfolio consists of companies across various FinTech sub-sectors:- Digital Banking: Companies reinventing retail and business banking such as digital banks, banking-as-a-service platforms etc.- Lending: Digital lenders focused on SMB lending, consumer lending, point-of-sale financing etc.- Payments/Transactions: Payment gateways, cross border remittance platforms, loyalty programs etc.- Investment Management: Digital wealth management, robo-advisory, stock trading apps etc.- InsurTech: Startups innovating insurance with better underwriting and distribution.- Blockchain/Crypto: Crypto exchanges, digital asset management, blockchain infrastructure etc.
Australia and Southeast Asia are the primary markets for Yolo
While FinTech is a global phenomenon, Yolo Investments is laser focused on opportunities in Australia/New Zealand and Southeast Asia. The partners believe that these markets are underserved by innovation in financial services and have a strong secular tailwind for FinTech adoption. Within Australia, Yolo has invested in neo-banks like Xinja and Volt Bank that are competing with incumbents through superior digital experiences. In SEA, Yolo has backed payments platform FOMO Pay and crypto exchange Coinstash. Although focused on APAC, fintech being a global industry, Yolo portfolio also includes companies in LatAm, India and EMEA.
Yolo has backed prominent FinTech startups like Fomo Pay, Volt Bank, UnoAsia
Some of the notable companies backed by Yolo Investments include:- FOMO Pay: Singapore based payments solutions provider with key markets in SEA.- Volt Bank: One of the first independent digital banks in Australia with a full banking license.- UnoAsia: Digital bank app developer serving millenial and Gen Z demographics in Philippines.- Xinja: Leading Australian neo-bank that received one of the first independent banking licenses.- Coinstash: Singapore based cryptocurrency exchange.- Frollo: Fintech company providing open banking and financial data aggregation solutions.- Otiva: AI powered credit underwriting and monitoring platform for lenders.- CREDi: India’s fastest growing smartphone based peer-to-peer lending platform.
Yolo fills the gap for early-stage FinTech funding in Australia
Yolo Investment’s rise has come amidst a boom in Australia’s FinTech ecosystem that has seen record levels of funding in recent years. However, a majority of these large funding rounds have focused on later stage companies while the availability of early-stage capital remains more limited. As a homegrown firm with an intimate understanding of Australia’s startup ecosystem, Yolo Investments has successfully positioned itself as a preferred partner for promising young FinTechs looking to raise their Seed/Series A rounds.
In summary, Yolo Investments is an Australian venture capital firm specialized in backing early-stage financial technology startups primarily in Australia/NZ and Southeast Asia. With its investments in over 20 FinTech companies across banking, lending, payments, crypto and insurtech, Yolo has established itself as a leading investor actively shaping the future of financial services.