Australian venture capitalists have deposited $500,000 into Pocketbook, a Sydney finance management startup that has built the Australian equivalent of Mint.com.
The financing round included Tank Stream Ventures, TV and consumer finance personality David Koch, former Investec Bank CEO Geoff Levy, Dimensions Data Australia founder David Shein and SydStart founder Peter Cooper.
Pocketbook said it plans to use the funding to hire developers and marketers.
Pocketbook has a website and mobile apps that import transactions from a large selection of Australian banks and provide tools to show users where their money is going. It currently has 40,000 users.
“Pocketbook is a potentially disruptive player in the banking sector,” Levy said in a statement. “Pocketbook is focused on giving individuals more control of their finances and could end up being the new model for a consumer bank.”
Banks and other enterprises are increasingly turning to startups for help spurring innovation.
“Pocketbook has already started to fill the gaping holes in personal financial management left by low levels of innovation by traditional players,” said Cooper.
Earlier this year, Pocketbook co-founder Bosco Tan told Techworld Australia that Pocketbook aimed to provide a “ridiculously simple” service that beat what was offered by the banks.
Some banks provide similar services, “but nothing is very easy to use or of much value besides showing your balance and transferring money,” he said.
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