ING invests in Czech mobile payments app Twisto

Dutch bank holding company ING Group and its venture capital arm, ING Ventures, joined three other VC groups to fund a €14 million (about US$ 15.75 million) Series B investment round for the Czech-based mobile credit payment app Twisto.

Twisto, a fintech startup based in Prague, recently completed a Series B funding round led by Finch Capital and Velocity Capital with ING Ventures, ING Group and UNIQA Ventures joining the round. The investment will be used to expand Twisto’s user base to a target of two million customers across Central and Eastern Europe. The company also plans to add a debit feature to the app this year to enable customers to prepay for their purchases.

“The 2017 Series A allowed Twisto to establish itself in Poland, offering the fastest ‘buy now, pay later’ payment in e-shops. This year we will launch the full version of the app linked to Mastercard and Apple Pay in Poland," stated Michal Smida, founder and CEO of Twisto, in the press release. "Thanks to the new funds we will solidify our leading position in the Central and Eastern Europe and launch several unique product innovations this year."

According to Crunchbase, a website that tracks investments in private startup companies, Twisto has raised over €34.5 million (about US$ 39 million) in debt and equity in nine funding rounds since its first seed capital round in 2013. ING Ventures also participated in Twisto’s 2017 Series A funding round.

In February, Wirecard began offering Apple Pay to Twisto customers as a means of payment. Twisto users add their digital Twisto Mastercard to Apple Pay and can use it at merchants through smartphones and wearables in addition to e-commerce channels. The addition was part of Wirecard’s recent Central European expansion efforts.