Jakarta-based Wagely, a financial wellness platform that enables earned wage access, has announced that it has raised US$5.6 million in a strategic round of investment.
The round is led by Integra Partners (formerly known as Dymon Asia Ventures) with participation from ADB Ventures (the Asian Development Bank’s venture arm), PT Triputra Investindo Arya (one of Indonesia’s largest privately held groups), Global Founders Capital, Trihill Capital, 1982 Ventures, Willy Suwandi Dharma (former President Director of PT Asuransi Adira Dinamika), and others.
Founded by Tobias Fischer (CEO) and Sasanadi Ruka (CTO), former Grab and Tokopedia executives, the investment will be used to accelerate the adoption of wagely’s financial wellness platform.
“More than 100 million Indonesian lower- and middle-income workers are living paycheck to paycheck and struggle with unexpected financial expenses between paychecks – which in turn impacts businesses with higher turnover, lower productivity, and more employee loans,” said Tobias Fischer, CEO, wagely. “Our workplaces are changing rapidly, especially since COVID-19 struck. Now the way people are getting paid is changing too, and at scale. wagely turns paychecks into progress providing financial flexibility for millions of underserved lower- and middle-income workers in Indonesia and beyond.”
Commenting on the investment Christiaan Kaptein, Partner, Integra Partners, said, “We are proud to partner with Tobias, Didi, and the team at wagely in their mission to bring financial wellbeing to employees in Indonesia and across the region. The strategic participation of several Indonesian investment groups as well as the Asian Development Bank underscores wagely’s leadership role in the space and the Indonesian market.” Daniel Hersson, Senior Fund Manager, ADB Ventures adds, “Our investment affirms our conviction that wagely has what it takes to mainstream financial inclusion and literacy in Indonesia. wagely offers workers what they did not have before: a fair and accessible financial tool to help them manage life’s inevitable contingencies and emergencies, including those caused by climate change.”
Arya has been a part of the Content & Research Team at Hrnxt.com. She is a keen observer of economic developments, emerging businesses, people in business and keeps a tab on latest happenings in the business environment.