Yoyo Wallet, a UK-based mobile wallet technology producer backed by telecommunications firm Telefónica and wholesale and food retailer Metro Group, secured $30m in funding from investment firm Hard Yaka today.
Yoyo Wallet was co-founded in 2013 by Touchstone Innovations, the commercialisation firm spun out of Imperial College London and since acquired by IP Group, and entrepreneurs hailing from the credit card industry.
The company operates a mobile app that combines payments with loyalty schemes and marketing tools that help retailers target consumers in store. Clients can also commission branded apps based on the platform.
The app made its debut across Imperial College’s food and drink outlets in 2014 and today counts large high-street players such as coffee chain Caffè Nero among its clients.
Hard Yaka invested as part of a strategic partnership agreement that will involve Yoyo integrating its omni-channel technology with Global iD, the user identification platform owned by Hard Yaka.
Yoyo raised $15.3m in a June 2017 series B round led by the investment arm of Metro Group’s digital division and backed by Touchstone and investment firm Woodford Investment Management.
Touchstone had already led Yoyo’s $10m series A round in 2015 and a $5m seed round the year before, investing alongside Telefónica and Firestartr. The company had received $380,000 from Touchstone in 2013 to help it launch.
The original version of this article appeared on our sister site, Global University Venturing.
