Crypto startup Flint raises $5.1 mn seed funding led by Sequoia and GFC

Cryptocurrency (Representative image)

Crypto startup Flint has raised a $5.1 million seed funding round led by Sequoia Capital India and GFC.

Coinbase Ventures, Hashed, IOSG, Better Capital and MSA Capital participated in the round along with other 11 institutional investors and angels.

The angels include Kunal Shah (founder, CRED), Sandeep Nailwal (co-founder, Polygon), Jaynti Kanani (co-founder, Polygon), Do Kwon (founder, Terra), Nitin Gupta (co-founder, Uni), Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal (co-founders, Snapdeal), and Tanmay Bhat. 

The newly raised funds will be used to enhance the product based on early feedback, and hire seniors across engineering, design and product functions. Flint also plans to allocate a significant portion of the funding to strengthen legal and risk functions, ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory norms, and going above and beyond market standards to reduce business risk.

Founded in 2021 by Akshit Bordia and Anshu Agrawal who were previously product managers at CRED,  Flint aims to offer an investment opportunity beyond buying and selling crypto, enabling users to earn passive income. The company currently offers a simple and stable income opportunity where users can earn up to 13% per year on their deposited funds. Flint, in a statement, said that it doesn’t expose users to volatile crypto assets like Bitcoin or Ethereum. It only deals with stable cryptocurrencies like USDT, USDC, etc., that are free from fluctuations. 

“Flint’s mission is to make cryptocurrencies easy and accessible to everyone,” said Anshu Agrawal, co-founder.

 The platform targets users in the age group of 25 to 40 who are looking to diversify a portion of their wealth into crypto, are financially stable but lack the time to invest in understanding the complexities and fundamentals of the crypto market. 

The Bengaluru-based company said that the users are primarily from Tier-I cities who earn more than Rs 12 lakh per annum. They regularly use payment and investment apps, and have been investing in mutual funds or other asset classes.

Further, Flint plans to roll out ‘up to 13% interest’ offering on the early access list and will be opening access to international users soon.

Investments in crypto startups have significantly increased over the last year. Startups related to crypto, blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have raised $511 million in 2021, according to data provider Venture Intelligence.