UK-based mobile wallet technology producer Yoyo Wallet closed a £12m ($15.3m) series B round yesterday led by the investment arm of wholesale and food retailer Metro Group’s digital unit.
Touchstone Innovations, the commercialisation firm spun out of university Imperial College London that was formerly known as Imperial Innovations, provided £4m for the round, which also included Woodford Investment Management.
Founded in 2013, Yoyo has developed an app that combines mobile payment and loyalty rewards. The platform also includes marketing tools to enable retailers to target consumers when they are in store.
The app was launched in early 2014 across food and drink outlets at Imperial College London. It has since grown to more than 1,700 outlets and counts more than 400,000 users.
The funding will support growth, with Yoyo aiming to target high-street retailers and independent shops. It will also support an international expansion into Europe and the further development of the company’s artificial intelligence marketing platform.
Touchstone led Yoyo’s $10m series A round in 2015, having previously led its $5m seed round in 2014 with participation from telecommunications firm Telefónica and Firestartr. Touchstone had supplied £250,000 in funding to help launch Yoyo in 2013.
– The original version of this article appeared on our sister site, Global University Venturing.