A Kenyan-based, U.S mobile technology and data science company,TALA, which operates within the scope of East Africa and South East Asia is focused on changing the way credit scoring and financial services are working around the world.
In conjunction with IVP, a later stage venture capitalist and growth equity firm, together have managed to raise more than US$30million for funding startups into new markets by accelerating their product development cycle.
This partnership has led to merging of the teams and appointing of one of IVP’s General Partner Jules Maltz,to Tala’s Board of Directors.
Tala’s mobile app for Android aggregates more than 10,000 different data points on a customer’s device, including financial transactions, savings, network diversity, and geographic patterns, and builds a customized credit score, or financial identity.
Once a customer has been scored through the app, he or she can quickly apply for credit and receive an instant decision. The size and terms of the credit product are customized based on a customer’s risk and capacity. Credit is disbursed directly to customers’ mobile money accounts in less than 5 minutes, and customers repay their loans directly from the app.
Tala has delivered more than one million loans totaling over US$50 million, and more than one million individuals have accessed the product in East Africa alone.
“From day one, Tala’s mission has been to change global financial systems so that people have more access, choice, and control,” said Shivani Siroya, Founder and CEO of Tala. “With this new round and team of phenomenal investors and advisors, we are positioned to connect millions of undeserved people to financial services that can advance their lives.”
“By using smartphone data to build financial identity, Tala is pioneering a new model that can reach more than two billion people globally who have been undeserved by traditional finance companies,“ Jules Maltz stated.
He added, “We are thrilled to partner with Shivani and the Tala management team to help accelerate Tala’s next phase of growth and unlock capital and opportunity for millions of people across the world.”
