Prominent UK payments fintech Kodypay, owned by a York University final year student – now co-founder and CEO Yoyo Chang (now 22) – raised another $5 million in Q3 2022. While the latest investors remain undisclosed, the total funding of the company has reached $10 million.
New and existing investors in previous rounds include KodyPay Chairman Hank Uberoi (Former Chairman/CEO Earthport PLC), Paul Rippon (Monzo Bank Co-Founder), Adam Knight (CoinFloor and BeZero Carbon Chairman) , Alok Sama (former President and Chief Executive Officer, SoftBank Group International) and IBM Partner Cognition Foundry, among other senior industry executives.
“Our ultimate goal is to provide brick-and-mortar businesses with easy and free online payment options,” said founder, president and CEO Yoyo Chang in a company press release. “This oversubscribed round of funding is a testament to the KodyPay team’s continued commitment to our fulfillment. Outstanding effort in mission. We are now more equipped than ever to truly be the future of payments and build the solutions businesses deserve.”
The Gen Z Prodigy
Son of Paul and Pauline Chang, who immigrated to the UK from Taiwan in 2003 – Yoyo Chang co-founded KodyPay when he was around 19 and a senior in high school. At the age of 13, Chang started investing in the stock market, hoping to develop a career in investment banking. In the fourth quarter of 2016, the return rate exceeded 80%, leading the school team to win the first place in the national investment competition. In 2018, however, Chang made his first foray into payments, launching KodyPay with a £120,000 investment of his own. Currently working with co-founder Jack Howell, Chang is on a mission to simplify payment acceptance.
Payment Powerhouse
Kodypay’s goal is to become a major payment provider. He’s developing a tech that lets businesses accept both in-person and online payments with multiple functions all at once. Kodypay envisions this new system integrating e-commerce benefits into a physical business transaction.
These services will assist in automatic payment reconciliation across all payment providers, including leading e-wallets, Buy-Now-Pay-Later and Open Banking. Additionally, cryptocurrencies will be a part of these services.
KodyPay’s infrastructure already includes the ability to work with Visa, MasterCard and IBM. This allows businesses to utilize custom checkout options alongside KodyPay’s built-in products such as no-app QR codes that allow contact-free checkout. Consumers can avoid the need to be served by staff and receive services at their convenience by registering businesses online. Doing so provides instant access to low-cost processing and increased revenue due to reduced employee costs. On average, businesses that provide hospitality services have seen a 20% increase in tips from employed staff.
KodyPay, a UK-based app, has seen significant growth since being featured on the BBC in October 2021. It grew at 90% month over month and had gross payment volumes exceeding $100 million annually. Additionally, the app has over 500 venues signed up in the UK— expecting strong growth next year.
To increase the value of their products and services, the company invests in strategic partnerships and increases its headcount across the United Kingdom. This allows them to release new product features, including embedded finance, improved data analytics and a loyalty system. These features will give businesses more value and help them grow.
KodyPay gives brick and mortar businesses the option to accept online payments through a single app or physical card machines. They can also use it on tablets or other mobile devices. KodyPay offers an all-in-one payment solution that’s integrated with every aspect of the business.
Kodypay was created after its founder came up with an idea for an app that would allow people to easily pay their bills via their phones. The app would eliminate the need for hardware like card readers, which would reduce its cost and give customers a lower fee. Kodypay is still actively working on this goal.
