Brisbane fintech Paypa Plane, a leader in instant payments, has raised $10 million in a Series A.
The round was led by the Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC) through the government’s $100 billion Business Investment Fund, backed by payment platform Cuscal, Mastercard and Queensland VC Sprint Ventures.
Paypa Plane hopes to double its workforce to nearly 100 people. The company’s board has also expanded to include Bianca Bates, Cuscal’s deputy CEO and chief commercial officer, and Tyro CEO Jon Davey.
Founded in 2018 by Simone Joyce and Jonathan Grant, Paypa Plane is a digital payments provider, with a bank-grade platform for both traditional scheduled payments and payment initiation through the New Payments Platform (NPP) and PayTo. It enables financial institutions to introduce the fintech’s plug-in solution into their existing payment product offerings.
Last year, Commonwealth Bank took a 20% stake in Paypa Plane for an undisclosed sum.
Joyce said it’s an exciting time for Paypa Plane.
“We will focus on growth in Australia, which will be driven by changes in our payments landscape and increased competition in corporate banking. We will also continue our expansion into the US where we see similar growth drivers,” she said.
“We are fortunate to have such strong shareholders who will support us in these goals. We are pleased to welcome QIC, Cuscal, Mastercard and Sprint Ventures to our shareholder list.”
Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick said Paypa Plane’s products are changing the way banks interact with their customers in the global payments landscape.
“Now, with the support of QIC, Paypa Plane’s Brisbane team will grow from 40 to nearly 100 over the next five years to support further product development and implementation and strengthen Queensland’s growing financial sector,” he said.
QIC private capital associate Nick Capell praised the team and culture that Joyce and Grant have built.
“Australian financial institutions and their corporate clients continue to navigate a changing payment environment,” he said.
“That includes balancing the need to support legacy infrastructure and preparing for the impending shift to PayTo, which Paypa Plane is well positioned to take advantage of.
“The participation of strong domestic and global financial institutions in the round, and previous investments from CBA and Tyro, reflect the solution’s capability and the strategic importance of Paypa Plane’s technology.”
