Cross-border payments platform HiWiPay has raised $2 million in a seed funding round led by Unicorn India Ventures. The round also witnessed participation from Dewang Neralla’s family office, Jupiter Metaverse LLP, and other angel investors such as Ritesh Malik, Mitesh Shah, and Nilesh Doshi.
The proceeds will be used to expand and enhance the trade remittance business, as well as scale up operations in the education remittances sector, HiWiPay said in a press release.
Co-founded in 2022 by Dewang Neralla, Geeta Chauhan, and Ujwal Tamminedi, HiWiPay is a cross-border payments platform that offers a seamless digital experience, eliminating paperwork hassles and ensuring secure, compliant transactions. The platform removes challenges such as a lack of transparency in exchange rates, perceived high forex margins, due diligence, compliance requirements, and documentation obstacles.
The Mumbai-based startup aims to streamline processes across various sectors and industries facing intricate procedures. The platform provides competitive exchange rates and real-time tracking, making global payments effortless.
HiWiPay plans to introduce its student app in the UK to establish a presence in key hubs across Europe. The company claims to have partnered with multiple banks and NBFCs to help individuals secure education loans, making studying abroad more accessible and achievable. It also plans to enter the SME trade remittance space and is set to launch co-branded forex cards and other financial services to cater to students.
In the next 12–18 months, HiWiPay plans to onboard 5,000 international students on its student app. The company expects its transaction volume to reach $100 million in remittances and aims to double the network of education consultants to 1,000. It also plans to support 1,000 SME exporters with trade remittance solutions while strengthening banking partnerships to improve FX rates and payment efficiency.
It competes with Skydo and BriskPe on the trade side and Fly Finance on the education side.
