GoHenry, the U.Ok.-based monetary training app and pre-paid debit card supplier for youths, has expanded into Europe for the primary time with the acquisition of French startup Pixpay. Phrases of the deal weren’t disclosed.
Based out of London again in 2012, GoHenry has emerged as one of many preeminent fintech corporations for kids, concentrating on six to 18-year-olds with a digital platform that permits mother and father to allocate and management funds, whereas their youngsters discover ways to funds and acquire insights into their spending habits. GoHenry expanded into the U.S. again in 2018, and as we speak the corporate claims greater than two tens of millions customers throughout these two markets — it additionally says that one-sixth of 12-year-olds now have a GoHenry debit card.
Pixpay, for its half, was based out of Paris lower than three years in the past, and is a comparable proposition to GoHenry however with extra of a deal with barely older youngsters, ranging from 10 years of age. The corporate had expanded into Spain again in November, serving to to drive its membership to almost 200,000 throughout the 2 markets.
GoHenry goes to Europe
In some ways, the Pixpay acquisition serves as the perfect automobile for GoHenry to increase its horizons. The U.S., to this point, has all the time been its precedence after its home market, and when GoHenry raised a $40 million funding spherical 18 months in the past the message on the time was very a lot about continued enlargement within the U.Ok. and U.S. However GoHenry CEO Alex Zivoder instructed TechCrunch that Europe was by no means removed from its ideas.
“After we launched within the U.Ok. in 2012, we pioneered a brand new class in fintech, and due to this fact needed to develop an entire class from scratch with noone to study from earlier than us,” he stated. “As soon as we determined we have been able to increase internationally, our timing in Europe was all the time a part of the plan. Our first step was to launch within the U.S., which we did in early 2018 and have skilled triple-digit year-on-year progress. Following our funding spherical in December 2020, we have been in search of the proper alternative to increase into Europe.”
GoHenry: Cellular app and pre-paid debit card
Whereas GoHenry has just about needed to construct itself up from scratch within the U.S., it’s clear that it’s adopting a wholly completely different strategy for markets nearer to house — and there are a lot of benefits to purchasing a longtime model with traction because it has accomplished with Pixpay, maybe chief amongst them being that GoHenry doesn’t need to concern itself as a lot with hiring, localization, and launch campaigns. Certainly, GoHenry stated it has no plans to combine the 2 corporations, with their respective manufacturers, leaderships groups, and headquarters remaining as they’re.
“As a longtime chief in teen banking in France and Spain and a trusted model, the acquisition of Pixpay made excellent sense to assist speed up progress throughout Europe, enhance our aggressive benefit, and cement our international management place,” Zivoder stated.
That’s to not say that there received’t be some resource-pooling happening sooner or later, nonetheless.
“With Pixpay centered solely on youngsters and GoHenry catering for youths as younger as six-years-old, this acquisition will enable us to mix our experience in monetary training to the good thing about our members,” Zivoder added.
Pixpay cellular app
Present me the cash
GoHenry touts robust progress for 2021, claiming its income greater than doubled to $42 million, one thing that Zivoder places all the way down to — you guessed it — the pandemic.
However what’s the correlation there, precisely? Properly, whereas the corporate’s core providing is actually a monetary administration product that helps mother and father give their children some monetary independence, it’s additionally very a lot about training. By GoHenry, Youngsters can discover ways to funds, whereas there are so-called “cash missions” that ship mini classes on all-things monetary.
Throw into the combo a broader societal shift away from money, a motion that has accelerated over the previous couple of years, and plainly GoHenry was well-positioned to capitalize.
“Monetary training is a vital life ability and a secular development, interval,” Zivoder stated. “However through the pandemic, the necessity to train children the right way to be good with cash in a cashless world, magnified with social distancing measures and college closures driving increasingly more folks on-line, and plenty of retailer house owners nonetheless now not accepting money.”
Cash missions: GoHenry teaches children cash abilities
The Pixpay acquisition is sensible for GoHenry by way of powering its enlargement plans with out having to begin from scratch in new markets. With this one deal, GoHenry instantly has two extra markets below its wing, and one other two scheduled for later this 12 months as Pixpay gears as much as launch in Italy and Germany.
And from Pixpay’s perspective, it additionally is sensible, on condition that GoHenry already has a major foothold in two large markets and ten instances the variety of members as Pixpay. Consolidation — slightly than competitors — makes each corporations lives simpler.
“It made sense to mix our experience with that of GoHenry to spice up our progress plans,” Pixpay CEO Benoit Grassin instructed TechCrunch. “With shared values and ambitions, we consider that this mix with GoHenry will allow us to go sooner and additional than if we had operated on our personal.”
