Cross-border remittance fintech HiWi said on Thursday that it has secured ₹ 7.5 crore in a funding round led by Unicorn India Ventures and the Unmaj Group Family Office.
The fintech said the funds will be used to advance product development and execute a strategic go-to-market rollout.
The Mumbai-based company was cofounded by former NTT Data India CEO Dewang Neralla with Geeta Chauhan and Ujwal Tamminedi.
Aims to resolve issues
The company said it aims to resolve issues around opacity in exchange rates, exorbitant forex margins and documentation challenges for different sectors, including the study-abroad sector, as well as trade and finance for small and medium enterprises.
“Although our initial focus is on education, we plan to expand our services to cater to SMEs, further streamlining and enhancing the remittance process,” said Narulla.
Initially, HiWi is working on a centralised and integrated platform to simplify remittances for students studying abroad. This includes a user-friendly mobile application for students to transfer funds, open foreign bank accounts, access financing options, and manage card expenditure.
“Foreign education is an ever-growing market. At Unicorn, we have studied this segment and made investments both in study abroad and fintech companies,” said Anil Joshi, managing partner, of Unicorn India Ventures. “HiWi is combining the power of tech and addressing a much-needed gap of facilitating cross-border payments that are easier and convenient for both the parents and students.”