Brazil’s Nubank has spearheaded a $250 million investment round in Tyme Group, a digital banking entity operating in South Africa and the Philippines.
Tyme Group, headquartered in Singapore, boasts a customer base of 15 million across Africa and Southeast Asia. This Series D funding round marks a significant milestone for Tyme, occurring after the bank achieved its first months of profitability earlier this year, and elevating its valuation to $1.5 billion, thereby designating it as a unicorn.
In this funding round, Nubank contributed $150 million, with M&G’s Catalyst investing $50 million, and existing shareholders adding another $50 million.
Coen Jonker, the co-founder and CEO of Tyme Group, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership, stating, “Nubank has revolutionized financial services in Brazil. We are eager to leverage Nubank’s expertise and strategic insights, especially in areas like data analytics, credit risk management, product development, and marketing—elements we see as critical to securing our leadership position in the market.”
David Vélez, founder and CEO of Nubank, emphasized the importance of digitally-native companies in the future of global financial services. “We have engaged with numerous teams across various regions and strongly believe that Tyme Group is uniquely positioned to become a leader in the digital banking sector in Africa and Southeast Asia,” he noted. “We look forward to collaborating with Tyme and sharing our insights on scaling this model to reach hundreds of millions of customers.”
Nubank’s meteoric rise in Brazil is noteworthy; the company recently surpassed 100 million customers, which accounts for 57% of the adult population in the country. This achievement follows a record-breaking financial performance in 2023, reporting over $1 billion in net profit and revenues exceeding $8 billion.