ekko

Idea

Introduction

Welcome to ekko, the transformative app, debit card & ecosystem that turns the tide on climate change without you needing to do anything different!

We are on a mission to make it effortless for everyone to do something about climate change - we’re starting with a debit card that plants trees and clears ocean-bound plastic bottles as you use it, but our vision goes far beyond this.

The vast majority of us want to do something about climate change, but we don’t know how. 72% of us say the barriers to choosing sustainable brands are complexity, inconvenience, cost and time.

ekko changes that.

By simply using the ekko debit card when you buy your coffee or go shopping, you'll be planting trees, recycling ocean-bound plastic bottles and tracking your carbon footprint.

In our app, you can watch your own forest grow, see the number of bottles you've prevented from entering our oceans, monitor your own carbon impact from what you've bought and buy from sustainable providers in our marketplace.

Substantial accomplishments to date

Launched brand in April 2021 in partnership with Mastercard as part of a 5 year multi-million pound deal (N.B. Value of deal is dependent on future performance of company).

Over 2,500 on the waitlist in under 3 months.

Significant press in maintream and major publications including: iNews, Green & Ethical Checklist with The Guardian, Sifted, Design Week, SME Climate Hub, Finextra, Financial IT, Startup Observer.

Became the first UK fintech to join the Mastercard Priceless Planet Coalition alongside Citi Bank, HSBC and Santander.

First globally to use Thames Technology recycled plastic debit cards.

Built a proven leadership team who have built multiple fintechs and managed millions of customers.

Working with a highly-experienced team of engineers, developers and designers who have worked together before to build apps and fintechs.

ekko is FCA authorised as an EMD agent and is partnered with a regulated EMI institution for the operation of ekko debit cards.

Technology in build and testing mode ready to soft launch to waitlist in coming months.

Monetisation strategy

We believe that a sustainable business needs to be financially, as well as environmentally, sustainable.

Our revenues will be broadly be split into 3 buckets:

1. Interchange and Foreign Exchange

This is the amount we will charge to merchants (i.e. the seller) whenever a customer makes a puchase or when an ekko card is used outside of the UK. This revenue funds our customers planting trees and preventing plastic bottles from entering our oceans.

2. Consumer & Business Subscription

Aside from promotional periods or referrals, ekko intends to charge a small monthly subscription to cover the running costs of the business.

As we expand into corporate expenses, businesses will pay a monthly fee for using ekko - in line with the current market.

3. Marketplace

Suppliers will pay a small fee to offer their products on the ekko marketplace as well as a small charge per sale.

Use of proceeds

Investment in ekko will be used for:

1. Marketing: we will continue to promote ekko across channels by using a variety of data-led activity to optimise growth and minimise cost per acquisition.

2. People: we will be expanding our team as we continue to grow. Building out our marketing team and hiring an experienced compliance manager are our first priorities.

3. Product features: we will continually build new features for our customers in line with their feedback and expand our marketplace offering.

4. Onboarding & Other: the majority of this covers the costs of opening an account for customers and printing and posting their iconic ekko debit card.

The majority of funds invested above our initial target will be allocated to marketing and super-speeding our customer growth.