Say hi to MFast. They're a fintech that's here to help bring financial services to rural Vietnam fast! Now, they've just raised another $2.5M. ⚡️

• MFast was launched in 2020 by Vietnamese company DigiPay.
• They have helped nearly 600,000 people access financial services and insurance.

Investor check. Ascend Vietnam Ventures led the round. Wavemaker Partners, Do Ventures and JAFCO Asia also joined in.

• Their last round was a $1.5M Pre-Series A last year.

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🤷🏻‍♀️ Why it matters

Nearly 70% of Vietnamese people in rural areas have limited access to banking, insurance and credit services. Because of this, they're often victims of shady predatory services like loan sharks (yikes!) or don't trust digital financial services or insurance.

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🧐 How it works

Not-so-secret agent. MFast allows people to sign up as online "agents" and earn extra income doing online jobs. The catch? All these jobs involve introducing, educating and distributing digital and financial services to others.

• MFast agents will help you open online bank accounts, match you with loans, sell you non-life insurance and more.
• Earn an average of 4,500,000 VND (aka, $191) monthly.

This helps MFast's 14+ partners like HomeCredit, CIMB and Mirae Asset better expand their services in rural areas.

• It's all tech-backed too — they use software and data to pre-qualify applicants and match them to the right products.

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💰 What's with the $$$?

Lots of plans are up next! They'll be growing the team, upgrading their platform, developing systems to generate consumer credit ratings, expanding their agent network and experimenting with new business models. Most exciting of all, they're looking to expand to the rest of SEA!