TONIK closes USD6 million funding round
TONIK, the first digital-only bank in Southeast Asia, has announced that it has closed a USD6 million round of equity funding, led by regional VC investors Insignia Ventures Partners and Credence Partners.
TONIK will use the funding to launch its digital bank in the Philippines, targeting the start of commercial operations in Q3 2020, according to a press release.
TONIK will be launching on the basis of its own bank license, which was recently granted to it by the banking regulator in the Philippines. This makes TONIK the first digital bank in Southeast Asia and one of the very few globally to be operating on the basis of its own bank license. Philippines represents a USD140 billion retail deposit market, and a USD100 billion unsecured consumer lending opportunity.
TONIK's veteran team members have previously built and scaled multiple digital and retail banks and FinTechs across Global Emerging Markets. TONIK is led by Founder & CEO Greg Krasnov, who had previously co-founded four market leading fintech start-ups in the consumer finance space in Asia, as well as founded, built and successfully exited a significant consumer finance bank in Emerging Europe.
Greg Krasnov, Founder & CEO, TONIK, said “We are honoured to have secured the backing of such prominent regional investors as Insignia and Credence. Over 70% of the adult population in the Philippines remains unbanked, and market research indicates that over 50% of existing bank clients would be keen to switch their deposits to a pure-play digital contender. We look forward to working with our new investors to improve financial inclusion in the country.”
Yinglan Tan, Founding Managing Partner, Insignia Ventures Partners, said “We are delighted to partner with the TONIK team led by Greg. Consumers in emerging markets deserve the ease and convenience of offerings like Amazon, and they expect the same from their bank. Building a modern bank from front to back is an incredible challenge, and we haven't met a better team to take it on!”
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