Pocket money app PennyOwl raises $1.3m in seed funding

Children's pocket money app PennyOwl has raised $1.3 million in funding, in a seed round that included support from Flipside Investments' Richard Fontaine, Silicon Valley Bank and Enterprise Ireland.

The app, which aims to teach children about money management, is expected to use the funding to expand its team as it officially launches. The company, which is led by brothers Seamus and Gene Matthews, intends to add another 30 jobs as it increases its customer offering in the United States and other international markets.

PennyOwl officially launches on June 10th in the US, and will open its New York office on the same day.

"Having trusted investors like Dick Fontaine and Enterprise Ireland participate in our round is a great endorsement of PennyOwl. Both teams bring strategic value in terms of advisory and networking support and we plan on being their next big success story," said chief executive Seamus Matthews.

The company has previously received backing from MasterCard and Silicon Valley Bank. It was also named as one of Enterprise Ireland's high-potential start-ups. Angel investor Kevin Neary, who set up Gamesworld in 1993 with Michael Finucane, was an early backer and is chairman of PennyOwl.

“Our LLC, FlipSide, has made an investment in PennyOwl as they have proven to have an entrepreneurial leader, a committed team and a business model that combines an opportunity for growth while at the same time providing parents with real-world, hands-on experience in helping to raise money smart kids,” said Mr Fontaine.

Using PennyOwl’s service, parents can “lodge” pocket money into a child’s account through a linked credit card. The balance can be spent on toys, books or games in PennyOwl’s curated store. Children are only offered content suited to their age group; once a transaction goes over a certain threshold, the parents must approve the purchase. Parents can also deduct money spent on real-world items from the balance in the account, and money is charged to the linked credit card only when it is spent in PennyOwl.

Enterprise Ireland's head of the high-potential start-up division, Kevin Sherry, said the investors secured were a strong endorsement for an innovative product, management team and business plan.