Neat raises $11 million

Neat, the Hong Kong-based fintech startup, has raised $11 million in a Series A round to help small businesses do cross-border trade. The round was led by Pacific Century Group, with participation from Visa and MassMutual Ventures Southeast Asia, and returning investors Dymon Asia Ventures, Linear Capital and Sagamore Investments.

Founded in 2015, Neat claims to be a modern alternative to a bank for startups and small businesses, featuring an online, more efficient way to open business accounts for multiple currencies, send and receive payments from different countries and apply for corporate credit cards.

In the long run, Neat aims to make international trade “nearly frictionless” by not only offering a way for customers to move money, but also making use of a wide ecosystem of tools that automates their business processes such as payroll, accounting, and logistics to ultimately enable anyone to run an international business with ease.

Neat also announced a partnership with Visa, which means that in the next few months Neat will start issuing Visa credit cards to SMEs and startups.

“Our goal is to offer a truly global solution for businesses that trade across borders, regardless of their size or how long they’ve been in the market. Corporate credit cards, for example, can be incredibly difficult for young businesses to get. We’re excited to partner with Visa, one of the leaders in digital payments, to offer a product that hasn’t always been accessible to young SMEs.” – David Rosa, CEO and cofounder of Neat.

“We’re proud to support Neat in the company’s vision to support entrepreneurs. There is a clear demand for better financial products for SMEs, especially when it comes to cross-border payments and trade, and we’re confident that Neat’s passionate and innovative team will deliver.” – Ryan Collins, Managing Director of MassMutual Ventures.