Fintech startup secures £1.3m investment for gig economy workers

Local fintech startup, Portify has announced it has raised £1.3m seed investment to build essential financial products for gig economy workers.

Founded by Entrepreneur First alumni, Sho Sugihara (CEO) and Chris Butcher (CTO), Portify is the first UK startup to address the financial volatility many flexible workers face.

The funding round was led by Kindred Capital and Entrepreneur First, with participation by investors in the fintech and technology sectors.

Portify offers tailored financial products, accessible via its mobile app, to help give security to workers. The app is said to connect with users’ bank accounts, so they can see and manage their day-to-day financial activity across all platforms.

Portify’s CEO, Sho Sugihara, said: “Around six million people do some form of independent work in the UK - this number is only set to grow.

“We started Portify because we saw so many workers could not access the basic financial products they deserve. Our current system does not trust the flexible workforce with products like loans and credit but Portify is here to change that.

“At Portify, our mission is to set flexible workers on the path to financial wellbeing. We are already working closely with a number of platforms and workers to ensure our app meets their needs, and we’re using the investment to build more financial products.

“We want to work with every company that hires gig workers, contractors or freelancers to ensure all independent workers can improve their financial health and access a robust range of benefits beyond discounts and perks.”

Portify’s financial products are all accessible via the app between jobs.

According to reports by McKinsey, there are more than six million independent workers in the UK, including self-employed, temp agency and other flexible workers.