Qoins, an Atlanta startup that helps people pay off their debts with change, raised $1.5 million in its first institutional investment round to expand its platform and double its staff, CEO and founder Christian Zimmerman said.
Front Row Fund led the round with participation from Rise of the Rest, Carolina FinTech Ventures, Rebel One and Service Provider Capital, Zimmerman said. Google for Startups also provided a grant, and Qoins previously raised $750,000 in 2018, which brings its total capital to $2.2 million.
Qoins, a 2020 Inno 50 on Fire winner, runs an app that allows people to manage and pay off their debts by rounding up the change on their purchases then automatically making monthly payments. The startup has a 200% year-over-year revenue growth rate, Zimmerman said.
Zimmerman founded the company in 2017 while looking for a way to pay off his personal and student loans after graduating from Georgia State University. Fellow GSU graduate Nate Washington is the co-founder and chief technology officer. The two were recently named Forbes 30 under 30 honorees.
Since its launch, the app has helped pay off more than $10 million of debt and has tens of thousands of users, Zimmerman said.
With the new funding, Zimmerman plans to build out the app into a financial wellness platform, which would include educational content and financial coaches. He also has a Qoins debit card in the works, which will allow for instant payments to lenders and initiate savings on purchases.
The app costs $2.99 per month, and Zimmerman is also packaging a premium version that will be $4.99.
Zimmerman said he will double the five-person staff by the end of the first quarter as the startup rolls out these changes.
