Cignifi Snares $1.5M Series A

Cignifi which is revolutionizing the way banks insurers and mobile operators create and market financial products for emerging consumers worldwide announced today the completion of a Series A funding round The capital raise was led by Omidyar Network a Redwood City CA-based philanthropic investment firm established by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam with additional investments from Cignifi’s existing investors Cignifi is based in Cambridge MA with offices in Sao Paulo Mexico City and Oxford UK

We’re very excited to have Omidyar Network join Cignifi as a strategic partner and as an important contributor to our growth plans said Jonathan Hakim President and CEO of Cignifi This financing represents a major step forward for Cignifi and for our proven big data engine which enables mobile network operators and their banking and insurance partners to identify leads among millions of pre-pay customers ”

The Cignifi platform allows banks insurers and retailers to qualify and contact millions of underserved consumers who lack traditional credit histories unlocking a massive opportunity to serve these customers at scale Cignifi’s solution employs behavioral data of mobile phone users to assess credit risk with as little as four weeks calling history required to perform analysis

Omidyar Network is very pleased to invest in Cignifi an innovative big data company that is redefining the way banks and insurance companies reach emerging consumers added Arjuna Costa Director of Investments at Omidyar Network It fits squarely into our efforts to support game-changing entrepreneurial solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges We are especially impressed with Cignifi’s unique behavior-based credit scoring platform by using mobile phone data It has the potential to fundamentally transform the market for financial services for millions of consumers by shifting the paradigm to one that is more inclusive and responsive to the world’s emerging middle class ”

Cignifi is working with mobile operators and financial partners in Brazil and other emerging countries to roll out its pioneering technology

About Cignifi

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