Nina Mohanty grew up surrounded by Silicon Valley innovation. But after a decade living in the U.K. and building products for fintech giants like Starling Bank, Klarna, and Mastercard, she noticed something missing.
Mainstream banks weren’t building for immigrant communities.
In 2021, the 32-year-old entrepreneur launched Bloom Money, a fintech platform designed to bring traditional money circles — also known as rotating savings and credit associations (ROSCA) — into the digital era. Backed by $2 million in venture capital, Bloom aims to transform how immigrant communities in the U.K. save and build wealth.
“It was frustrating building the same product for the same person over and over,” Mohanty told Millionaire MNL. “I kept asking — who’s building for us?”
How immigrant communities save — and why banks don’t get it
Unlike typical savings accounts or personal loans, immigrant communities often rely on informal group savings. These money circles involve pooling funds among trusted friends and family, distributing the collected sum to one member each month.
“Every culture has a name for it,” Mohanty explained. Chit fund in India, pardner in Jamaica, ajo or esusu in Nigeria, hagbad in Somalia — the concept is universal.
Historically, these systems emerged because formal financial institutions excluded immigrant groups. “When the Windrush generation came to the U.K., banks wouldn’t lend to Jamaicans. So they built their own microcredit systems,” Mohanty said.
Yet today, this culturally ingrained practice is still misunderstood. Mohanty recalled how, during her time at Monzo, traditional money circles were flagged as suspicious activity. “It was often mistaken for money laundering. But this is simply how our communities build financial resilience.”
Bloom Money’s mission: Formalizing informal wealth building
Recognizing the gap, Mohanty saw an opportunity to use technology to digitize and legitimize these savings practices.
Bloom Money’s app allows users to create private savings circles, invite trusted members, and manage contributions securely. Unlike traditional banking, the platform is built with cultural context in mind, preventing account closures due to misinterpreted activity.
“There’s a clear gap here,” Mohanty said. “We have the tech to bring this into the formal financial system — but in a way that respects how our communities actually save.”
Bloom isn’t alone. Apps like Moneyfellows in Egypt and Hakbah in Saudi Arabia are addressing similar needs. But Mohanty believes Bloom’s focus on diaspora communities balancing life across two countries sets it apart.
Fighting for a more diverse financial system
The challenge goes beyond digitalizing savings circles. Immigrant communities often face systemic barriers: discrimination, thin credit files, and lack of access to wealth-building products.
A 2023 report by Fair4All Finance found that 20% of ethnic minorities in the U.K. reported experiencing racial discrimination from financial providers. Worse, positive behaviors like sending remittances or participating in money circles do not contribute to credit scores — and in some cases, may even be flagged negatively.
“It’s a fight for a more diverse formal financial system,” Mohanty said. “We want to change how financial credibility is measured.”
Building wealth for the next generation
Bloom Money’s ambitions go beyond community savings. The company plans to offer investment products, helping users channel their circle payouts into pension pots, gold, and other wealth-building tools.
“Immigrants are so focused on sending money home, they’re not always planning for their own future,” Mohanty told Millionaire MNL. “Our goal is to make investing as easy as clicking a button after you receive your payout.”
By bridging informal savings with formal wealth management, Bloom aims to empower immigrant communities to build intergenerational wealth — and challenge a financial system that has long ignored them.
Source: cnbc
