Skor Technologies, the parent company of Indonesia-based startup Skorlife and Skorcard credit card, has raised $6.2 million in a pre-Series A funding round, led by Southeast Asia-focused venture capital firm Argor Capital, according to an announcement on Tuesday.
The round also saw participation from existing investors QED Investors and Saison Capital, along with new investor Digital Currency Group. The new round also claims to have brought its total funding to over $12 million since inception in 2022.
The seed round was closed in May 2023, which was led by Hummingbird Ventures and supported by Bolt by QED, AC Ventures, and Saison Capital. At the time, Skor was primarily focused on its credit-education platform, Skorlife.
However, in March 2024, the company launched Skorcard, a digital-first credit card developed in partnership with Bank Mayapada International. Over the past several months, the company has been focused on setting up the card operations and testing the card demand and take-up with users.
Ongki Kurniawan, Skor’s co-founder and CEO, said, “We believe Indonesia is a supply-constrained market for the credit-line product, and it is the right time to solve this growing consumer need, starting with a digital-first credit card. The opportunity to build a 2 million card customer base exists, and along with our bank partners, we are incredibly motivated to make this a reality.”
Indonesia presents an enormous untapped market for consumer credit, particularly in credit cards, where penetration is less than 3% — significantly lower than regional neighbours like Thailand and Malaysia, where penetration is 8% and 20%, respectively.
Adding to this challenge is a lack of financial literacy among Indonesians, with fewer than half understanding basic financial concepts, according to a 2022 survey by the Financial Services Authority (OJK). These factors, combined with high rejection rates for credit applications, create a frustrating experience for consumers, which Skor aims to address.
The company envisions building a customer base of 2 million credit cards by leveraging its partnership with Bank Mayapada International to scale operations in 2025. Bank Mayapada’s commitment to a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) model aligns with Skorcard’s goals, enabling both parties to capitalise on their respective strengths.
Vincent Suteja, consumer business head of Bank Mayapada, stated, “As a bank, we see partnerships like Skorcard instrumental in growing our consumer banking business which leverages our strengths with theirs. The pilot programme we ran with Skorcard proved we can operate this win-win partnership, and now we are looking to scale this partnership into 2025.”
Skorcard distinguishes itself by focusing on an “experiential” digital-first approach. It is one of the few startups in the region to prioritise a monoline credit card product, supported by a purpose-built mobile app incorporating gamification to enhance user engagement. The strategy has yielded promising results, with Skorcard surpassing $10 million in annualised spending volume and Skorlife exceeding 2 million downloads in its first operational year.
In a statement, Skor’s investors showed optimism about Skor’s potential in Indonesia’s burgeoning credit market. Sid Pisharody of Argor Capital praised the leadership team for their complementary skills and deep understanding of the market, while QED’s Sandeep commended the company’s progress in building partnerships and navigating regulatory challenges.
To support its ambitious goals, Skor has strengthened its leadership team, welcoming experienced professionals like Kush Srivastava, a fintech veteran, as its third co-founder. Other strategic hires include Kirill Odinstov, formerly head of underwriting of HomeCredit Indonesia; and Surendra Singh, who brings expertise in data analytics from his role at Fi, a Bangalore-based fintech startup.
Skor aims to achieve $100 million in transaction volume by 2025, with the newly raised capital enabling the company to scale its operations and expand its team across the organisation.
