A London FinTech start-up which reinvests 80% of its profits into听reforestation projects has raised听拢3.7 million.听
TreeCard, which has generated publicity through its wooden Mastercard,听has organically grown a waitlist of 140,000 people ahead of launch in the coming months.听
The new funding, led by EQT Ventures,听will be used to support its UK rollout and expand into the US and European markets.听
The round saw participation from听Seedcamp听and Episode 1, alongside听angel investors including GoCardless founder听Matt Robinson and听ComplyAdvantage听founder听Charlie听Delingpole.听
TreeCard听links with current bank accounts, making it easy and convenient for users to integrate听it听into their usual spending habits. The card is completely free to customers and regular purchases contribute to tree planting projects by Ecosia, the green search engine.听
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Founded in August 2020 by 23–year-old听CEO听Jamie Cox,听CMO听James Dugan and听CTO听Gary Wu,听TreeCard听makes money from the interchange charge and operates in a similar way to Amex, which gives a huge percentage of profits back to consumers in cashback rewards.听听
Instead of funnelling money back to the customer,听TreeCard听invests 80% of profits into sustainable causes, including reforestation in partnership with Ecosia. Over the last 10 years, Ecosia has planted more than 119 million trees all over the world.听
鈥淲e wanted to create a financial product with a difference, one that was far removed from greenwashing and allowed customers to improve the impact of their spending without drastically changing their habits,鈥� said Cox.听听
鈥�We鈥檙e听really excited to be backed by EQT Ventures; it was clear throughout the fundraising process that the team really understood and resonated with our mission.听听
鈥�As a multi-stage fund, EQT Ventures鈥� presence across both Europe and the US provides the perfect springboard for us to launch into international markets.鈥澨�听
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Tom Mendoza,听deal听partner at EQT Ventures, said: 鈥�TreeCard听has the potential to become a leading green finance brand, going where no brand has gone before in creating a de facto platform for impactful financial management.听听
鈥�At EQT Ventures, we鈥檙e increasingly aware of the environment and the impact that our investments have on the world around us, so we鈥檙e听really excited to support the听TreeCard听team, who are actively working with the financial system to create a better future for the planet.鈥�听