Mexican Pay On Demand startup Minu raises $14mn in Series A funding

By Pavithra R

Minu, revolutionizing the financial health of Mexican workers, has announced securing $14mn in Series A funding led by FinTech Collective, with participation from VEF, XYZ Ventures, and FJ Labs, as well as DocuSign founder Tom Gonser and Gusto CFO Mike Dinsdale.

The investment round also saw participation from existing investors QED Investors, Next Billion Ventures, and Village Global. The round includes $2.5 mn of debt from Banco Sabadell Mexico. To date, Minu has raised a total of $20 mn.

Founded in 2019 by Nima Pourshasb, Rafa Niell, and Paolo Rizzi, Minu created the pay on-demand category in Mexico and has become the market leader with 100+ large enterprise clients, including TotalPlay, Scotiabank, OfficeMax, Rappi, Adecco, Telefonica, Manpower, Cap Gemini, and public sector clients such as the Electoral Institute of the State of Mexico.

The liquidity gap is profound in Mexican society. 75% of workers live from paycheck to paycheck with average wages of $550/month, 33% take loans out to cover their basic recurring expenses, and only 12% have a savings account. Minu bridges this liquidity gap between paychecks to reduce financial stress and avoid expensive loans. It offers 24×7 instant access to employees’ earned wages for a $2 fixed withdrawal fee.

“For today’s consumer who lives in an on-demand economy, not having access to the motor of their financial health – earned wages that legally belong to them – is surprisingly outdated. It generates high anxiety and forces absurdly sub-optimal financial decisions in a country with no usury laws. The pandemic has jumpstarted the momentum and urgency for this correction, and Minu is leading the charge towards a financially empowered and resilient workforce,” said Nima Pourshasb, CEO & Co-Founder at Minu.

The FinTech is planning to use the new funds to scale its sales team and expand its value proposition to include financial education, savings, smart spend and insurance products, and to start its regional expansion, to help continue winning enterprise deals in Mexico.