It can be difficult moving to a new country, and it’s even more difficult if you’re not used to the banking style of that particular country.
The increase in the number of immigrants in the United States – about 50 million foreign-born people currently live in the United States, according to the immigration think tank Center for Immigration Studies – offers startups the opportunity to adapt their financial services to this population. Companies like Comun, Maza, Alza and Welcome Technologies, for example, help Latin American immigrants open bank accounts.
Magnus Larsson, himself a Swedish immigrant, encountered similar problems and created Miami-based Majority in 2019 to solve them. For a fee of $5.99 per month, migrants can open a bank account and get a debit card, community discounts, fee-free international money transfers and discounted international calls. There is also a peer-to-peer payment feature.
Accounts do not require a Social Security number or U.S. documents, just a government-issued international ID and proof of U.S. residency. They also have no overdraft fees or minimum balance requirements. Additionally, users have access to Majority’s “Advisor Program,” a nationally trained network of support staff who are immigrants themselves.
“For many customers, we are the primary relationship they have when it comes to their financial services and services to reconnect with their own country,” Larsson told TechCrunch. “Most migrants are victims of numerous eviction fees. When it comes to financial services, remittances and cross-border money transfers, you pay a flat fee, but we waive other fees.
Majority’s approach has caught on: over the past year, the company has tripled its revenue while the number of users has doubled. In April, Majority reached $40 million in annual recurring revenue and $200 million in new deposits per month, Larsson said. Overall, transaction volume has quintupled, while remittances have quadrupled in 2023. Remittances are how someone in the United States sends money to someone abroad , as to the members of his family who remained in the country.
TechCrunch has been following Majority’s growth journey since closing a $19 million seed round in 2021. The company has since raised $27 million in Series A funding and multiple rounds of Series B funding, most recently a $9.75 million seed round in 2023, which included backing from existing investors Valar Ventures and Heartcore Capital.
All of this growth has led Larsson to consider raising additional funds to help fund more growth. Of the $20 million in capital raised, $12.5 million is equity, another Series B tranche. The round was led by fintech founders including Klarna co-founder Victor Jacobsson and l Swedish serial entrepreneur Hjalmar Winbladh. Valar Ventures, Heartcore Capital and another existing investor, Avid Ventures, are returning, along with Izettle co-founders Magnus Nilsson and Jacob de Geer.
The rest of the money was $7.5 million in debt financing from an unnamed bank. In total, Majority has raised $90 million in equity funding to date. Larsson also declined to give the company’s valuation, but said it was a flat round.
Additionally, the company recently hired Abhi Pabba as chief risk officer. Pabba was previously responsible for credit risk at Apple for the Apple Card. He will support Majority’s upcoming product expansion efforts.
With this new funding, Larsson intends to continue developing products, including helping users establish a credit score and access credit products. The company is also developing products for layoffs to better manage risks.
The recent financing is also the final step toward profitability, Larsson said.
“That’s always been the goal and it could happen as early as next year,” he said. “We’re at this point where we know our customers well, we know they love our product and we know very well how to scale this market. What we do is help people thrive and succeed better and faster. This is something that is necessary, and going forward we are evaluating how we can build this for 300 million people.
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