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The monetary sector is seeing an increase in challenger suppliers focusing on the distinctive wants of its 47M+ immigrant inhabitants in america. These innovators are addressing key challenges immigrants face in banking, akin to constructing credit score, overcoming language boundaries, and accessing appropriate fee companies. Comun, a digital banking platform, stands out on this area by providing immigrant-focused monetary companies. Their choices embrace no-fee accounts with no minimal stability necessities, entry to an enormous money deposit community, and remittance companies to seventeen Latin American international locations. This strategy has resonated strongly, leading to a formidable 52% month-over-month progress in energetic prospects since launching. By tailoring their companies to the particular wants of immigrant communities, Comun isn’t solely tapping into a big market alternative but in addition selling better monetary inclusion in america.
AlleyWatch caught up with Comun Cofounder and CEO Andres Santos to study extra in regards to the enterprise, the corporate’s strategic plans, newest spherical of funding, which brings the corporate’s whole funding raised to $26M, and far, far more…
Who have been your traders and the way a lot did you increase?Our traders have been Redpoint Ventures, ANIMO Ventures, Costanoa Ventures, FJ Labs, RTP International, and South Park Commons. Redpoint Ventures led our Collection A funding spherical of $21.5M.
Inform us in regards to the services or products that Comun gives.At Comun, we provide an inclusive, low-fee, digital monetary resolution that features an FDIC-insured US checking account, VISA debit card, instantaneous remittance service, entry to Zelle, and entry to the biggest money deposit community within the U.S., all accessible by way of a user-friendly, Spanish-first cell app.
What impressed the beginning of Comun?
My cofounder, Abiel Gutierrez, and I have been impressed to start out Comun after dealing with monetary exclusion within the U.S. after we migrated from Mexico. Once we each got here to the US to check, we confronted a number of challenges opening a checking account, from a language barrier to ID necessities.As we appeared into this matter, we discovered the Latino neighborhood has been underserved in accessing monetary services that match their distinctive wants. Many don’t have social safety numbers or credit score scores within the US, so the extra conventional methods banks assess and perceive potential prospects don’t work for this neighborhood. Along with these obstacles, entry to monetary companies within the US might be extraordinarily pricey. Latinos are 3x extra more likely to go unbanked and pay a mean of 5x increased charges for primary companies. All these elements, together with our personal experiences, impressed us to start out Comun. We need to present all Latinos within the US with easy-to-access and inexpensive banking options and assist them obtain upward mobility.
How is Comun totally different?Prospects can open an account with over 100 IDs from Latin America – now we have a really complete KYC system that has allowed us to take away lots of the friction factors immigrants usually face whereas additionally blocking fraudulent actors.
Our accounts don’t embrace charges – There’s a $0 opening payment, $0 minimal stability, $0 month-to-month payment, and $0 membership payment.
One of many largest and inexpensive money networks – our customers can deposit and withdraw money at ~100k areas across the US without cost or at industry-leading costs.
Worldwide transfers (remittances) to 17 international locations in Latin America – relations in LATAM can obtain funds at a checking account or by means of a money community of over 300k retailers throughout the area at industry-leading costs in comparison with incumbents like Western Union.
Spanish-first buyer assist – prospects can contact Comun 24/7 by telephone, e-mail, chat, and WhatsApp with native audio system.
Peer-to-peer instantaneous fee community – prospects of Comun can ship cash simply to family and friends who even have Comun accounts for no value.
What market does Comun goal and the way huge is it?At Comun, our mission is to empower immigrants and their households to show their onerous work into upward mobility. In the present day, the Hispanic inhabitants within the U.S. is greater than 63M and is anticipated to succeed in 111M by 2060.
What’s what you are promoting mannequin?Much like different fintech companies like Chime, our income comes from interchange charges and different product choices like our remittance program and money deposit community.
How are you getting ready for a possible financial slowdown?We’re lucky that our remittance service and expanded money deposit community have diversified our income streams, lowering our reliance on interchange charges and demonstrating resilience in opposition to 2025’s unsure macroeconomic headwinds. Our focus this yr is to proceed providing the very best product expertise and increasing our remittance program into different international locations in Latin America. We’ve additionally been very considerate in increasing our group and have remained lean regardless of our progress.
What was the funding course of like?To be frank, we weren’t seeking to increase our subsequent spherical. We began receiving preemptive gives from traders, which led us to launch a full course of. We obtained considerably extra curiosity than we might settle for, and each earlier investor determined to double down.
What are the most important challenges that you just confronted whereas elevating capital?We really feel very lucky that our traders imagine in our mission, which sparked this funding spherical.
What elements about what you are promoting led your traders to write down the verify?We obtained constructive suggestions from our traders. A standard theme amongst traders was our progress. Many VCs informed us that we have been one of many fastest-growing shopper fintech corporations that they had seen lately. We have been additionally informed we had superior unit economics than most different corporations they evaluated.
What are the milestones you propose to realize within the subsequent six months?We’ve aggressive objectives set for this yr that can assist deepen our relationship with our prospects. That features offering prospects with extra options on how they fund their accounts, enhancing our fraud detection capabilities, ensuring each buyer has an excellent product expertise, and together with extra international locations in Latin America the place prospects can ship cash.
What recommendation are you able to supply corporations in New York that wouldn’t have a recent injection of capital within the financial institution?Be laser-focused on what really issues. At Comun, we stripped away something non-essential and zeroed in on our core mission. We stayed near our prospects and ruthlessly prioritized solely what would considerably transfer the needle. In robust occasions, the flexibility to prioritize ruthlessly could make all of the distinction.
The place do you see the corporate going now over the close to time period?We envision Comun because the one-stop trusted monetary companion for immigrants within the US. Nonetheless, to get there, we acknowledge that immigrants want entry to credit score options, the data on find out how to construct an excellent credit score rating and ongoing monetary recommendation, whether or not it’s round saving for retirement, shopping for a home, or constructing an emergency fund. We imagine we’re well-positioned to turn into that trusted companion for our prospects.
What’s your favourite summer season vacation spot in and across the metropolis?I really like occurring highway journeys with my spouse and daughter and discovering new locations round New York. There’s at all times one thing new to discover only a quick drive from town.
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