Leading on from an exciting partnership with Visa, Belfast-based fintech company, loyalBe, has secured £725,000 investment in an oversubscribed investment round led by Techstart Ventures with support from Co-Fund NI and angels. The company plans to use the funds to expand into the Irish market with its bank-linked loyalty solution.

Founder and CEO, Cormac Quinn, said, “We intend to use the funds to build partnerships and upscale our marketing efforts within Ireland. We have recently partnered with Visa to expand into the Irish market and this investment will allow us to accelerate our rollout of the app to local businesses.”

The loyalBe platform improves customer engagement between retailers and their loyal customers, by replacing outdated loyalty tools (for example, paper cards and QR codes) with an easy-to-use mobile app, and offering them a way to conveniently engage with top customers.

The loyalBe app uses new bank-linking technology, allowing customers to automatically earn rewards simply by paying with their debit card. This technology removes the need for any Point of Sale integrations or equipment in-store, allowing for a rapid and straightforward set-up.

 

loyalBe’s mission is to provide independent businesses with a powerful loyalty solution that will level the playing field and allow them to compete against multinational brands with huge resources. Their platform now enables local businesses to surprise and delight their best customers with tailored rewards and offers a new layer of insights, allowing them to get to know their customers better.

 

The past year has shone a light on the importance of supporting local businesses, to sustain the economy and protect jobs. loyalBe believes that shopping locally is crucial - now more than ever - and this is a message the team is passionate about spreading and incorporating as part of their business model.

Cormac said: “It is extremely important to rally behind local businesses. With loyalBe, we are encouraging customers to shop local and invest in the local economy. Our app helps businesses to create and engage with more loyal customers to drive repeat sales and we’re delighted to be supporting many local businesses already.”

He added: “loyalBe is growing extremely quickly, and we are looking forward to onboarding many more businesses and customers to the app in the coming months.”