Icelandic challenger bank Indó prepared to launch, securing €1 million

The Icelandic challenger called Indó just raised €1m in seed funding in three rounds, with the last one having more than 30% excess demand.

The investors were mainly angel investors and private individuals that share the company’s vision to change how digital banking works. The seed funding was raised with the help of Icelandic Venture Studio and was a part of a €5m fundraise for the Icelandic startups.

Read also: UK startup Dzing launches digital payment app

Bala Kamallakharan, co-founder of Iceland Venture Studio, said: “Indó is the first commercial bank license that will be issued by the Icelandic authorities after the 2008 financial crisis.”

“The mission of Indó is to do to banking what Amazon did to retail. The principles are the same and I think the timing could not be more perfect.”

With that, Indó applies for a banking license from the country’s central bank and Financial Services Authority.

Indó wants to take on the market since it will be the only bank in the country to offer “100% safe deposits” and completely backed by government-issued securities.

Also, as the banking sector in Iceland was largely nationalized since 2008 crisis, this is supposed to change significantly with Indó.

It claims that it will release fee-free accounts, only charging a transaction fee.

The founders Hakon Skúlason and Tryggvi Bjorn Davidsson are both former bankers.

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Sources: https://www.finextra.com/newsarticle/35545/icelands-first-challenger-bank-ind-moves-out-of-stealth-mode https://fintechranking.com/2020/03/31/icelands-first-challenger-bank-indo-moves-out-of-stealth-mode/ https://www.fintechfutures.com/2020/04/icelandic-challenger-bank-indo-prepares-for-launch/