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Sometimes, the easiest way to find a great startup idea is to look beyond the current problem you’re solving for your customers.
This is exactly what worked for my founders Ki bye. Davis Chan and his co-founders previously helped small and mid-sized merchants improve their revenue and traffic in Asia, but eventually noticed how inefficient it was to manage payments and finances for their customers.
Traditional financial solutions for merchants and SMEs do not effectively meet modern needs for business agility, integration and data-informed decision-making, Chan said. “This fragmented approach leads to inefficiency, high costs, and a lack of actionable business insights.”
This vision led them to create KPay, a comprehensive financial management platform for merchants and SMBs. The company has seen good traction in the three years since its inception: it now serves 45,000 merchants in Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan, and collaborates with more than 150 SaaS providers, banks and financial services companies. The company says it aims to increase its partnerships to serve more companies in Asia.
“We are investing in payment technologies that provide greater flexibility, speed and security for merchants to accept all major payments, support payroll, invoice reconciliation, and local and global transfers as a unified financial management platform,” Chan told TechCrunch.
Investors have certainly noticed the opportunity here: KPay recently secured $55 million in a Series A round led by a London-based investment firm. APIS PARTNERS.
The new Series A funds will be directed towards product development, enhancing speed to market, improving customer experience through organic growth, as well as expanding into new Asian markets and supporting inorganic growth strategies such as strategic mergers and acquisitions. Christopher Yu, KPay’s CFO, told TechCrunch. Additionally, the startup is exploring how AI will improve the merchant experience, increase operational efficiency, and boost revenue.
Yu did not provide specific details about KPay’s revenue and profitability, but said its revenue has achieved a compound annual growth rate of 166% since its inception.
“Looking to the future, our goal is to empower 1 million merchants over the next five years, creating an inclusive digital economy where neighborhood businesses enjoy the same opportunities as big brands,” Chan said.
The company has about 440 employees across its bases in Hong Kong and Singapore.
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