Ex-Mastercard exec’s startup lands six-figure funding from Y Combinator, others

Singapore-based fintech startup Friz announced it has raised a six-figure funding in its seed round from Y Combinator, Iterative VC, 500 Durians, and 500 TukTuks.

Friz founders Ash Rhazaly (Left) and Nirali Zaveri/ Photo credit: Friz

Funds raised from the financing round will be used to increase hiring for the company’s engineering and marketing teams, and also expand into newer markets such as the Philippines and Thailand.

Launched in April 2020 by a former Mastercard executive, Friz is a financial platform for freelancers in Southeast Asia that leverages data insights to provide financial products such as credit cards, personal loans, insurance, savings, and investments in a timely and affordable manner.

“Freelancers are entrepreneurs and business people in every regard. For a very long time, they have fallen through the cracks of traditional consumer and business banking – but it is high time that all this changes,” said Nirali Zaveri, CEO and co-founder of Friz.

The company aims to create the first neobank for freelancers in Southeast Asia, which would be significantly different from a traditional bank. Currently, it has about six employees and intends to hire at least another 10 to 12 new employees by the end of the year.

Photo credit: Friz

The fintech startup provides freelancers with credit scores based on their five-year-long work histories. It also assesses 40 detailed indicators from platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, Freelancer.com, and Guru.com to give freelancers access to different loan products.

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Friz’s average loan ticket size ranges between US$5,000 and US$10,000, without the requirement of a collateral.

The company is also set to capitalize on the growing need for financial services in the region. Oxford Internet Institute’s online labor index highlights that about 70% of the talent supply on freelancing platforms comes from Asia.