Oxygen raises $17 million for digital banking platform

Oxygen only launched in January 2020 but has already opened more than 125,000 accounts and achieved a 969X revenue increase

San Francisco-headquartered digital banking platform Oxygen plans to use the $17 million raised from its series A funding round to scale its team, accelerate growth and continue to build products for consumers and small businesses.

The series A round attracted investors such as Runa Capital, S7V, 1984.vc, EFG Hermes, Rucker Park and Inventures, as well as Frank Strauss, a long-time Deutsche Bank retail banking executive.

Strauss, who will serve as strategic adviser to Oxygen, believes the platform is “offering something truly different for consumers and small businesses”.

Oxygen only launched in January 2020 but has already opened more than 125,000 accounts and achieved a 969X revenue increase.

Its consumer and small business accounts have no minimum balance or monthly fees, are US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-insured via a partnership with The Bancorp Bank, and come with a Visa debit card that includes cash-back rewards on selected everyday spending categories and merchants.

“Oxygen is the premier banking platform for today’s digital consumer,” comments Andre Bliznyuk, general partner of Runa Capital, which led the series A round.

“Their all-in-one banking app serves both consumers and businesses, ranging from tech-savvy consumers who are just looking for a better banking experience to burgeoning entrepreneurs and small businesses looking for digital banking solutions that meet their strict requirements. It’s banking done better.”

Hussein Ahmed, chief executive officer of Oxygen, says the digital banking platform’s team is “humbled that our investors are putting their faith in us with this most recent round of funding”.

Ahmed continues: “This investment not only validates what we’ve built but also enables us to continue pursuing our vision of building financial tools that integrate seamlessly with the digital world of today and delight our customers.”

“We founded Oxygen because we wanted to provide financial services in the same way people interact with technology in their everyday lives. We didn’t see that and believe this led to exclusion for many. This is an important milestone, but we are just getting started.”

Image: Shutterstock

Mark Dugdale