UK challenger sync. reveals £5.5m seed round

Written by Ruby Hinchliffe
7th August 2020

Sync., a UK challenger consolidating fintech services such as open banking, cross-border transfers, security and reward-linked current accounts, has landed £5.5 million.

The round – which counts as both pre-seed and seed stage funding – was closed earlier this year. The fintech has not revealed its investors.

The fintech offers an array of features, including account consolidation underpinned by open banking

“More than anything, we need the money for growth,” former Revolut employee turned sync. founder and CEO, Ricky Lee, told AltFi. “We currently have 31 employees, but we want to see that number closer to 60, or even higher, by the end of the year.”

Delayed launch

sync. is in beta mode at the moment, and is looking to tap the entire European Economic Area (EEA).

Initially due to launch in March, the coronavirus has pushed this date back considerably. The start-up says it has used the lost time to test its app.

The fintech offers an array of features, including account consolidation underpinned by open banking.

As well as managing all their bank accounts under one roof, users can also spend via a sync. bank account connected to a debit card. This is powered by Global Processing Services (GPS).

The card’s invisible strip allows users to change their CVC security code as many times as they want. They can also create virtual cards for online shopping, much like disposable card issuer Privacy.com.

Users can send other sync. users – at home or abroad – money for free. There is also a marketplace which offers cashback deals from the likes of Booking.com, linked to users’ sync. bank account.

What next?

CEO Lee says it’s “already looking to do a Series A”. The fintech has already bagged 37,000 registered users on its platform.

Lee hopes this number will rise now sync. is available to early access users. It is not clear when sync. intends to launch for all.

sync. has several products in its pipeline. These include a multicurrency wallet, an instant money exchange tool for 25 different currencies, a budgeting feature, and a more personalised rewards scheme. Though currently users can swap between GBP and EUR instantly.