TORONTO, Sept. 13, 2021 /CNW/ - Stack Capital Group Inc.
("Stack Capital") (TSX: STCK) (TSX: STCK.WT) is pleased to announce
that it has completed an investment in the amount of $5 million USD into Varo
Money, Inc., the parent company to Varo Bank, N.A., (collectively "Varo") – a
member of the 2021 Forbes Fintech 50 list, No. 7 on the recent Inc.
5000 list, and the first all-digital bank in the US with a national
bank charter. Stack Capital invested directly into Varo's
Series E $510 million USD
oversubscribed funding round which included several other prominent
private equity funds and hedge fund
investors.
Varo has an impressive management team led by Colin Walsh, a former American Express executive
who made the bet early in Varo's development to seek a US national
bank charter. In the last 13 months since obtaining its bank
charter, Varo has doubled its opened accounts to four million and
tripled its revenue. This charter allows Varo to provide the
highest standards of consumer protection while eliminating banking
intermediaries. Today, Varo offers checking accounts with
access to two-day early pay day, savings accounts with easy
autosaving tools, fast and accessible short-term credit with Varo
Advance and a rewarding cashback program with Varo Perks. The bank charter allows Varo
to expand into a broad array of integrated products nationwide,
including retirement accounts (ie. IRAs), credit cards (ie. the
upcoming Varo Believe card), home equity loans and more.
Varo's mobile-first structure with no physical branches, lowers
the cost to serve and enables the company to operate without
charging its clients overdraft fees, or requiring minimum monthly
balances, representing a significant competitive advantage over
traditional financial service providers. Varo's target market
consists of roughly 180 million "battler and builder" banking
clients who historically have been overcharged, underserved, or
left out entirely by existing financial service providers.
"This investment in Varo is an exciting inaugural portfolio
company for Stack Capital with long-term growth potential", stated
Jeff Parks, CEO of Stack
Capital. "Varo's ability to eliminate the intermediary with
its US bank charter will allow the company to create more
opportunity and value for its underserved customers and along with
its new capital, enable the business to continue to drive future
growth."
About Stack Capital
Stack Capital is an investment holding company and its business
objective is to invest in equity, debt and/or other securities of
growth-to-late-stage private businesses. SC Partners Ltd. (the
"Manager") has taken the initiative in creating the Company and
acts as the Company's administrator and is responsible to source
and advise with respect to all investments for the Company.
For more information, please visit our website at
www.stackcapitalgroup.com
SOURCE Stack Capital Group Inc.