November 22, 2024

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South Korean unicorn startup Viva Republica, the creator of mobile financial service platform Toss, has secured $64 million at a valuation of $2.2 billion in recent fundraising led by Hong Kong-based equity investment firm Aspex Management, the company said Aug. 8.

Joined by returning investors, this round will bring the total raised to date to about $250 million.

It also marks the first investment in a private company by Aspex Management, an Asian equity investment firm founded in 2018 that invests across public and private equity markets.

Toss’ existing investors participating in this round include Kleiner Perkins, Altos Ventures, Goodwater Capital, GIC, Sequoia Capital China and Bessemer Venture Partners.

“We like the large addressable market financial services offer and the unique leading position Toss occupies amongst mobile consumers,” said Hermes Li, founder and CIO of Aspex Management. “We are confident that the exceptional Toss team will solidify the company into a fully integrated consumer financial services platform.”

Since its launch in 2015 as a peer-to-peer money transfer service, Toss has evolved into a platform providing a full suite of financial services via one app, allowing users to view bank and credit card transactions, and manage their credit score. Toss users can also buy loan and insurance plans as well as investment services.

With more than 13 million registered users, Toss has processed total transactions worth $42 billion.

“We are truly pleased that Toss has gained further momentum to embark upon the next phase of its journey. Our mission is to provide the best possible financial service experience to users, and we will continue to do our best for Toss to become the only service needed for users’ safe and easy day-to-day financial lives,” said Lee Seunggun, founder and CEO of Viva Republica.

By Park Ga-young (gypark@heraldcorp.com)