HiWi, a global cross-border remittance fintech, has raised Rs 7.25 crore in a pre-seed funding round, with Unicorn India Ventures and the Unmaj Group Family Office leading the investment. The capital injection is earmarked for advancing product development and executing a strategic go-to-market rollout. 

Headquartered in Mumbai, HiWi was co-founded by Dewang Neralla and the former founder and CEO of Atom Technologies, alongside Geeta Chauhan and Ujwal Tamminedi, accomplished professionals in the information technology and services sector. 

The company said that its inaugural offering is geared towards simplifying remittances for students studying abroad. The platform serves as a centralised and integrated solution for both study abroad agents and students, offering a comprehensive suite of financial services. This includes a user-friendly mobile application for students to transfer funds, open foreign bank accounts, access financing options, manage card expenditures, and accrue loyalty points, all while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements. 

HiWi aspires to assist more than 25,000 students in remitting  $100 million by March 2025 and aims to onboard 5,000 educational consultants onto its platform. 

Dewang Neralla, founder of HiWi said, "Although our initial focus is on education, we plan to expand our services to cater to SMEs, further streamlining and enhancing the remittance process." 

Commenting on the fundraiser, Anil Joshi, managing partner of Unicorn India Ventures said, “Foreign education is an ever-growing market. At Unicorn, we have studied this segment and made investments both in study abroad and fintech companies. HiWi is combining the power of tech and addressing a much-needed gap in facilitating cross-border payments that are easier and more convenient for both parents and students. The company is starting with foreign admission, but the product stack will be leveraged for other use cases post foreign admission, The future offerings canvas in this segment will give immense growth opportunities to HiWi.”