GoHenry Acquires Pixpay to Strengthen Youth Banking Outreach

London-based GoHenry, which provides Visa debit cards and a financial education app for children aged 6 to 18, has acquired the French company Pixpay, which operates a similar service, according to a Sunday (July 10) press release.

Ten years after it launched in the U.K., the new deal will enable GoHenry to rapidly grow its customer base into continental Europe. Currently, GoHenry has over two million users in the U.K. and U.S.

The acquisition follows a successful $40 million fundraising round in 2020, which GoHenry has been using to accelerate its leadership position in the U.K. and expand into the U.S.

Investors include French entrepreneurial growth equity investment fund Revaia, U.S. growth-equity fund Edison Partners, Citi Ventures and Muse Capital.

Founded in 2019, Pixpay has established itself as the leader in teen banking in France and Spain, with nearly 200,000 members.

The startup has plans to expand into Italy and Germany later this year and has has raised more than 11 million euros ($11.1 million) to date to fund its growth.

“Ten years ago, we saw an opportunity to give young people access to the digital economy,” Alex Zivoder, CEO at GoHenry, said. “Since then we’ve looked to transform financial education for kids, teens and their parents through our groundbreaking financial education app and debit card.”

According to the release, GoHenry and Pixpay will continue to operate under their own brands with no change in leadership, headquarters or headcount. Instead, it claims that the acquisition will “allow both companies to accelerate their growth by executing synergies in knowledge and resource.”

On the news, Benoit Grassin, CEO at Pixpay, said: “We are delighted to be joining the GoHenry Group as we prepare to accelerate Pixpay’s expansion across Europe. GoHenry’s experience and heritage will only serve to strengthen the already strong proposition offered by Pixpay. We look forward to building a strong, long-term relationship with GoHenry and we are excited about what the future holds.”

In the U.S., GoHenry is competing with the likes of Copper Banking for the teenage market.

Noting record student loan and credit card debt, Copper Banking CEO Eddie Behringer told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster, “this is really the first generation that has been hyper attuned to the missteps of past generations as it comes to those things.” Unlike past youngsters, he said that today’s teens think “it’s cool to be smart about money.”

Watch the interview: 15-Year-Olds Are Reshaping Banking and Credit, and Changes Are on the Way

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