Zolve, i2c Aim To Remove Financial Barriers For Immigrants

The digital payments and banking technology firm i2c announced on Tuesday (May 18) that it has formed a partnership with the FinTech Zolve, which provides financial services to immigrants who are moving to or visiting the United States.

Zolve lets users set up bank accounts from their home country for use in the U.S., including credit card and debit card services. The accounts, which offer FDIC protection through a partner bank of up to $250,000, and can be set up online with any starting balance. The company’s credit card does not require a Social Security number, allowing customers to begin using it upon arrival in the U.S.

“Traveling to a new country for work, school or to even visit can be challenging enough without the added concerns of navigating a foreign country’s financial services landscape,” Zolve Founder Raghunandan G. said in a news release. “Zolve and i2c’s partnership works to offer these individuals a smooth transition, saving users time and empowering them with financial security from their first moment in the U.S.”

“We’re delighted to partner with Zolve and to share in their vision of removing barriers to financial access across the world,” said Amir Wain, founder and CEO of i2c. “Our partnership with Zolve reinforces this commitment by expanding access to financial services for global citizens, supporting them as they travel to the U.S. and increasing their peace of mind along the way.”

In an interview with Forbes India earlier this year, Raghunandan said the idea for Zolve stemmed from his own experiences, as he saw people he knew paying for things with debit rather than credit cards. “These were people I had studied with and worked with [who] had done well in life … but they didn’t have a credit card,” he noted. When they arrived in the U.S., banks had no way of determining their creditworthiness and considered them a higher risk, making it very difficult to get a credit card. “You have to give $1,000 as a deposit to get a card with a limit of $250,” Raghunandan told Forbes.

For more on i2c, read the interview that President Jim McCarthy did with PYMNTS’ Karen Webster earlier this month, in which he talks about the connected economy’s transition from infant to toddler phase.