With Bling, the fintech startup revolution spreads itself into pocket money
Today, banks and fintech startups tend not to offer products dedicated to families in particular, and this has emerged as something of a gap in the market. Meanwhile, the general lack of financial education and financial literacy means families are missing out on securing financial prosperity for their families.
GoHenry (which raised $121.2 million), which bills itself as “smart banking for kids” has tried to crack a piece of this market, but is aimed at kids, not families, per say. Meanwhile, others chew on Gen-Zs and parents, such as Greenlight (US), Spriggy (AUS), Ruuky (DE), Step (US), Current (US), Nosso (UK), Unest (US).
Into this battle has entered Bling, a startup founded by a 20-year-old, which offers a financial platform aimed specifically at families, which is designed so that parents can do financial planning for their children, from pocket money to first investments.
It has now raised a €3.5 million seed round with funding from Peak (based out of Amsterdam); La Famiglia; angels such as Lea-Sophie Cramer, Verena Pausder, Felix Haas (co-founder IDnow), Jakob Schreyer (co-founder Orderbird), former ING-Diba CEO Ben Tellings, soccer World Cup winner Andre Schürrle, family ‘influencer’ Carmen Kroll, Angel Invest and Prediction Capital.
The startup says it addresses the estimated €3.3B in pocket money given out in Germany each year, just for children aged six to 13, along with €35B spent in the domestic market of Germany alone (German census).
The Bling product has educational modules for parents, offers a payment card for children, can for example cover additions via housework.
Founder Nils Feigenwinter started Bling at just 20 years old, creating it because, he says, he became frustrated during his high school years at seeing classmates already going into personal debt: “After twelve years in school, I looked back and realized: Fine, I can now recognize the Pythagorean theorem and boulders, but I have no idea how to save or manage money responsibly,” he said in a statement.
With Bling, parents register, but no KYC is required because it only operates in an initial amount of less than €150. They create a family account, receive a card and set up the child’s account. Children learn via modules, set up savings pots, can earn money via errands and tasks, and customize their cards.
After that, family members and the community join Bling via links, thereby contributing to savings pots and investment plans, managing household expenses and preparing for critical financial events.
Bling claims it now has 10,000+ kids using a Bling card as their first personal payment experience 6 months after launch, as it eventually reaches in as grandparents, godparents and friends, using network effects for growth.
The business model for Bling is direct subscription, transactions and fees from financial products, partnerships (first mobile phone plans, insurance, etc.).
Before Bling, Feigenwinter founded three other companies in the youth segment, including Switzerland’s largest student magazine, family goods and licensing house, as well as a consulting agency specialized in young adult topics, which led him to be described as a ‘fintech wunderkind’ by the German media. He is joined by CTO and co-founder Leon Stephan.
