Rain, a startup that offers an employer-integrated earned wage access (EWA) app with financial wellness features such as overdraft alerts and spending trends, has secured $75 million in an all-equity Series B funding round.<\/p>\n
Led by Prosus, the funding round values the company at $340 million post-money. According to co-founder and CEO Alex Bradford, the new funds will be utilized to expand Rain’s product offerings to include credit card and savings products, as exclusively shared with TechCrunch.<\/p>\n
A report published by Bank of America in October reveals that approximately 35% of households in the U.S. with an annual income below $50,000 live paycheck to paycheck, a significant increase from 32% in 2019. This trend is more pronounced in the South and affects populations of all ages.<\/p>\n
The challenge of waiting for biweekly paychecks can be daunting, especially when bills are due at any time of the month. EWA platforms provide a solution by allowing employees to access a portion of their paychecks early, often with a small fee, and are considered a less predatory alternative to high-interest payday loans.<\/p>\n
Rain aims to differentiate itself by offering automation and attracting employers who want to provide their employees with access to earned wages between paychecks. The company’s connection to major payroll and timekeeping systems enables seamless onboarding and minimal manual work for employers.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur automated tooling makes it easy for employers to onboard, and once we’re live, there’s hardly any work required day-to-day or pay period to pay period,\u201d Bradford explained.<\/p>\n
Since its inception in 2019, Rain has onboarded over 2.5 million employees and distributed more than $2 billion in earned wages. The company claims that its app also helps employers retain employees.<\/p>\n Rain targets mid-market and enterprise customers with over 300 employees, charging a fee equivalent to an ATM fee, averaging around $3 per transaction, for instant transactions. However, employees can also opt for the free ACH option, which credits their account up to the next business day.<\/p>\n The startup is committed to moving beyond its EWA app and already offers a financial education portal, one-on-one financial coaching, and a free tax filing and refund service via the taxation solution provider April, according to Bradford.<\/p>\n Interestingly, services beyond EWA account for 70% of Rain’s monthly adoption rate, with EWA making up the remaining 30%.<\/p>\n \u201cOur definition of success is that users will require EWA less and less as they start saving more and more,\u201d Bradford explained.<\/p>\n The Series B funding, which included participation from Nextalia Ventures, Spark Growth Ventures, and existing investors such as QED, Invus Opportunities, and others, will enable Rain to expand its offerings beyond a simple EWA app.<\/p>\n In the third quarter, Rain plans to launch an EWA-secured credit card with a dynamic credit limit based on verified earned wages from employer payroll systems.<\/p>\n Later this year, the startup will introduce a product that simplifies the use of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) by allowing employees to spend on any card and get reimbursed. Additionally, Rain will launch savings accounts with features such as auto-save and rewards.<\/p>\n Rain’s funding comes amid a more favorable environment for the fintech ecosystem, which had experienced nearly flat growth in recent years. Funds like Ribbit Capital are raising more money, while startups such as Plaid have seen a decline in valuation despite securing significant funding rounds.<\/p>\n According to PitchBook data shared with TechCrunch, venture funding in global fintech companies declined 45% year-over-year to $50 billion in 2023, with a similar funding level recorded in the previous year. In 2025, $13.1 billion has been raised by global fintech startups, with the average deal size increasing 20% year-over-year to $21.94 million.<\/p>\n Unlike employer-integrated platforms like Rain, employee-side EWA platforms such as Earnin have faced regulatory crackdowns over allegedly predatory loans. Rain’s approach to enabling savings and financial awareness, combined with its automated features, sets it apart in the market.<\/p>\n \u201cDeveloping a comprehensive platform of financial wellness products will help us achieve our mission of guiding millions of people toward financial freedom,\u201d Bradford stated.<\/p>\n The startup, with 175 employees, is scaling its go-to-market strategy by building a sales team and investing in sales enablement, marketing, and channel partnerships. It also plans to invest in tooling to add convenience for employers managing their services.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/rain-app.jpg\")
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