The pathway to citizenship in the United States is riddled with bureaucratic and financial hurdles. To add, millions of undocumented people across the country struggle with gaining equal access to educational, medical and legal resources along their journey.
Los Angeles-based fintech platform Welcome Technologies leverages proprietary data to provide immigrants and undocumented people with a wide range of resources that they might otherwise have difficulty accessing elsewhere.
“Government is really focused on security and citizenship, but there’s this practical everyday need of support that the communities are in need of and we want to fill that gap with what we’re building,” Amir Hemmat, co-founder and CEO of Welcome Tech, said in an interview with Built In.
On Wednesday, the company announced that it raised $35 million in fresh financing to expand the range of services it offers on its platform. The Series B was co-led by TTV Capital, Owl Ventures and the SoftBank Opportunity Fund.
Hemmat and co-founder Raul Lomeli-Azoubel — both of whom are part of first-generation immigrant families — have spent the last 20 years working to provide financial and educational resources to undocumented people throughout the country.
“It’s just astonishing that we’re sitting here in 2021, and I’m talking to you about these issues still,” Hemmat continued. “We have data and technology that can improve the journey, and serve as a more effective onboarding and integration support platform.”
Welcome Tech was born out of SABEResPODER, the company’s initial consumer-facing brand. The platform provides educational resources catered to the Latinx community across topics like finance, health, education and immigration status.
“In the U.S., we have the largest immigrant population in the world. Yet there’s never really been this formal onboarding integration support platform,” Hemmat continued. “If we want our communities to connect to key services and participate in society, we need to make those channels available.”
The company’s growing list of financial offerings includes a debit card, free bank account and a corresponding mobile app. The app is available in both English and Spanish.
“Banking is a beachhead to a lot of opportunities for community members across the board, not just immigrants, but all of us who have bank accounts are building a trail of data that enable us to access additional resources,” Hemmat said. “So helping an underbanked community get access to the latest and greatest is really critical.”
Welcome Tech is more than just a financial literacy platform though; the company aims to be a go-to resource for undocumented people on the pathway to citizenship and beyond. The company also offers telehealth services, English classes and academic advisement.
“This is a community that’s used to having to press two to get their language preference, right? They’re having to walk into a bank where they may or may not have someone who either understands their needs, or, frankly, speaks their language, let alone will help them understand why a banking relationship is key to their success here,” Hemmat continued. “This is a community that’s gotten a ton of fees, and has grown very skeptical of being taken advantage of in these sectors. Recognizing that and solving for it is one of the things we’re doing with our financial services that we think sets us apart.”
For $10 a month, Welcome Tech users can gain access to low-cost medical care, dental care, prescription drugs as well as free telehealth consultations for the household. The monthly subscription fee also covers additional financial and educational resources on the platform.
How, though, does Welcome Tech reach a consumer segment that can sometimes be hesitant, or financially unable, to adopt new technology?
Welcome Tech approaches that in two ways. First, it offers a wide range of its services for free. Further, it does outreach via Zoom and partners with several clinics, embassies and nonprofits to get the word out on its platform to local communities.
“A lot of companies start by building a bunch of services, and building teams, but have no path to actually reaching the consumer, so it’s incumbent on us to create as much value for the community as possible,” Hemmat continued.
The pandemic has also helped accelerate the adoption of digital solutions for just about every consumer segment across the market, including immigrants and undocumented people.
“I think it’s one thing to say the pandemic has forced [undocumented] people to reconsider digital solutions, it’s another thing for those digital solutions to actually exist,” Hemmat said.
Welcome Tech has served nearly three million users to date. The company will invest the additional capital in expanding its partnerships with media, government and community-led organizations in addition to growing its team.
Welcome Tech plans to place most of its hiring focus on expanding its engineering and product teams as it continues to scale.
“There’s not enough entrepreneurial energy and brainpower being thrown at real challenges in the world,” Hemmat said. “If you’re going to raise money and you’re going to work your tail off trying to do something in the world, pick a problem!”
Welcome Tech has raised $50 million in venture capital financing to date, according to the company.
