AboundA fund transfer application that was transformed by Times Internet in 2023, raised $ 14 million in its first external financing round because it aims to reach more Indian expatriates in the United States
Fund flows to India increase as the Indian diaspora spreads throughout the world. In 2024, the country of South Asia recorded 129.1 billion dollars of fundsRepresenting 14.3% of the world market and at the top of the graphics, according to a World Bank report. ABOUND aims to press this growth with its mobile application.
“The Indians are among the largest groups of immigrants in the United States, the average household income in the United States is close to $ 58,000, and the average income of Indian households is around $ 150,000.
Mehta, who worked at Hulu at the head of her strategy and mobile growth for more than four years, joined Times Internet in 2019 after meeting his vice-president Satyan Gajwani to create a “super application” for non-resident Indians. The startup was incubated in the technological branch of the Indian media conglomerate, the Times of India group.
Initially appointed Times Club, Abound allows users to send money to India, earn rewards and get cashback on services, including live sports streaming, grocery store and OTT subscriptions. The company plans to explore tracks to allow users to access high -performance savings, India -oriented investments and cross -border credit solutions.
“In our model as a great application, we are considering a role for the banks themselves to be part of the platform,” Mehta told Techcrunch.
The company claims that it has dealt with more than $ 150 million in funding in total compared to its more than 500,000 monthly users, and that its income has increased by 50% per month since the launch.
The volume of funding from the ABOUND has increased by 15% each month and the startup dealt from $ 110 million to $ 120 million in the past 12 months, said Mehta.
ABSONE generates advertising revenues from awards and exchange changes on survey of monetary funds. Foreign changes have significant growth potential, said Mehta. The startup said that the Times of India more than 50 million monthly online visitors outside of India also help it reach new users and offer a range of awards.
“In funding, if you only play the exchange rate game, you always buy the user,” said Mehta. “In our case, because we have this layer of Times of India awards and other local advertisers, we do not have this problem. We can always compete in exchange rates, knowing that we do not have the same cost of acquiring customers as other companies could have. ”
This round of seeds was entirely equity and was directed by an almost foundation, with the participation of Circle Ventures, Times Internet and other investors. The company plans to use new cash to extend its presence, increase its offers and improve its technological infrastructure.
“In the United States, traditional banks do not focus on the financial requirements of this segment because there is no banking product built only for the NRI population. We see it as a big gap and an opportunity, “said Gajwani.
Following the agreement, Times Internet will continue to be the greatest player in abundance. Gajwani told Techcrunch The Times Internet “would use its strategic assets to help accelerate abundance growth.”
The market for platforms allowing sending of foreign funds is crowded with holders such as Western Union, Paypal and Moneygram, as well as new players such as derogation and sage. But Mehta thinks that abundance has an advantage because it “serves users” by offering competitive exchange rates as well as rewards and cashback in around 5,000 Indian grocery stores and access to cricket live – by far the most popular sport in India.
Abound currently has a team of 40 people, mainly based in India. He plans to extend his workforce and also create a management team in the United States.
Over time, the company plans to enter markets such as Canada, Singapore and Water, all of which have large populations of non -resident Indians. Nevertheless, Mehta said that the immediate objective was to cement his sole in the United States and then lead pilots in foreign markets.
