Estonian-founded fintech Lightyear closes $25M round backed by Virgin Group

Estonia and UK-based investment app Lightyear has closed a $25 million Series A equity round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and backed by Richard Branson’s Virgin Group. The company’s seed investors Mosaic Ventures, Taavet+Sten, and Metaplanet also participated in the round, alongside new and existing business angels, Tech.eu reports.

• Founded in 2020 by ex-Wise employees Martin Sokk and Mihkel Aamer, Lightyear offers a simple way to make investments globally without unnecessary barriers and custody fees. With the platform’s multi-currency accounts, the user can add, hold, and invest in different currencies. Thus, bridging the gaps between international markets for customers.
• The lead investor Lightspeed Venture is the US venture capital firm that invests in consumer, enterprise, technology, and cleantech startups throughout all stages.
• Virgin Group, a global venture capital conglomerate founded by Richard Branson and Nick Powell in 1970, also backed the startup. Earlier, Virgin Orbit, its subsidiary company, invested $30 million in Polish nanotech SatRevolution.
• Lightyear has raised a total of $35.6 million in funding over three rounds, according to Crunchbase. In June 2021, the startup raised a £6.1 million seed investment and a £1.5 million pre-seed in September.
• The fresh funding will allow the startup to launch its product in 19 European markets, including the Baltics and most of Western Europe. So the customers from those countries will be able to access thousands of US and European stocks in addition to Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).