Ilkley "fintech for good" secures £1.75m to take credit union platform overseas

A Yorkshire fintech aiming to digitise credit unions and community banking has closed a £1.75m investment round.

Fintech incuto has secured investment from NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, the government’s Future Fund; Ascension Ventures’ Fair By Design Fund; and the North East Innovation Fund - supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Northstar Ventures.

Founded in 2016, incuto is the brainchild of CEO Andrew Rabbitt, a business consultant who had identified the need for a digital platform while working with credit unions, who joined forces with banker John Neasham and businessman Les Walker to launch the firm.

Used by over 40 credit unions and with more than 500,000 registered users, incuto has already established partnerships with the likes of Experian, Telefonica, Google and TransUnion.

The new funding will allow the Ilkley-based company to roll out its platform to a wider range of UK credit unions as well as prepare for overseas expansion.

Andrew Rabbitt commented: “We’ve been extremely busy supporting our credit union partners during Covid-19. The lockdown not only escalated the need for credit unions to offer their members digital access, but also to communicate with them more regularly and effectively, something our technology also enables them to do.

“Credit unions have been at the forefront of supporting financially excluded and often vulnerable individuals and families over recent months, so we are delighted to offer them technology which not only better supports existing members in a digital world, but also enables them to promote their message of ethical, supportive banking to a wider audience.”

NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance - is managed by Mercia and is part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF). Tom Kitchen of Mercia added: “incuto provides a complete end-to-end solution for credit unions.

“The company has already established a strong presence in the UK and has potential for wider use in the UK and beyond.

“This funding will help it to meet growing demand at home and prepare for international expansion.”

Looking to promote your product/service to SME businesses in your region? Find out how Bdaily can help →