Riva Money, the global payments company, has raised a $3 million pre-seed round to solve the persistent pain points of global money transfers.
Cross-border payments can still take as long as five days to reach recipients, as transfers are routed through a range of banks and financial institutions.
Riva’s mission is to reduce the high costs and long settlement times of cross-border transfers by creating the next generation of business payment services. Its infrastructure bypasses the poor exchange rates of banks and legacy providers, while bringing modern technology to legacy systems that have seen little innovation for decades.
Riva was founded by Niklas Hoejman and Mahendra Katoch, two fintech professionals with deep expertise in cross-border payments, who worked at Revolut and Wise, as well as Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. Even at payment innovators, they witnessed how legacy systems led to delays, high costs, and poor transparency, creating a frustrating, opaque client experience. As expats and frequent users of international payment services, they experienced these issues firsthand, driving their determination to create a better way to move money worldwide.
Niklas Hoejman, Co-founder and CEO of Riva Money, said:
Our mission is simple: to enable businesses' limitless global money movement, instantly and at a fraction of the cost.
By combining blockchain technology with a robust regulatory framework, we’re building a solution that offers businesses the speed, transparency and cost-efficiency they need to thrive in today’s interconnected economy.
Riva uses blockchain technology, with stablecoins as a core application, to power its international payment infrastructure. Transfers can be routed through blockchain rails or traditional fiat-to-fiat channels, depending on what works best for the client. This flexibility ensures customers get the most efficient and cost-effective option for their transfers based on their location and needs.
The round was led by Project A, with participation from angel investors from Revolut, Monzo, and J.P. Morgan.
Malin Posern, Partner and Managing Director at Project A, said:
The way we move money around the world is changing. Niklas and Mahendra's deep expertise in payments and financial markets positions Riva perfectly to solve the real pain points businesses face with slow, opaque international transfers. By combining traditional payment infrastructure with blockchain technology, they're building exactly what frustrated finance teams have been waiting for – faster and more transparent global payments.
Riva will use the funding to grow its operations, expand its engineering team, and roll out services globally across Europe, Asia, and North America.
As part of this expansion, the company is seeking authorisation as a payment institution in the UK and EU, along with MiCA and VASP licences in the EU and Switzerland.
Lead image: Riva founders | Photo: Uncredited
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