Paywatch, an earned wage access (EWA) service provider in Malaysia and South Korea, announced raising $9 million in a pre-Series A funding round anchored by existing investor Third Prime.
The round comes less than a year after the startup raised $5.2 million in a seed round backed by Third Prime, SparkLabs, Won & Partners, and CTK Investments.
Hana Ventures, the venture arm of Korea’s Hana Financial Group, Parkwood Corp, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Illinois Foundation, also participated in the latest funding round.
The startup works with banks such as Malaysia’s Hong Leong Bank and Hana Bank in South Korea to provide workers access to their wages before payday. It said it is working with five “established financial institutions” across Asia.
Paywatch, founded in 2020, said its EWA solution has already reached a 50% engagement rate among its Malaysia users this year. It claims to have over 100 corporate clients, including multinational companies and global brands such as Lotus’s, KFC, Pizza Hut, Wilmar International, TGI Fridays, Outback Steakhouse, Metrojaya Department Stores and more.
Founded by brothers Alex Kim and Richard Kim, Paywatch is one of the growing number of EWA startups emerging across Asia, such as GajiGesa and wagely in Indonesia, GetPaid in Singapore, Nano Technologies in Vietnam, and Refyne in India.
SOUTHEAST ASIA DEAL MONITOR
DealStreetAsia has put together a table listing prominent venture capital transactions in Southeast Asia in the fortnight beginning November 28, 2022.