The fintech, which promotes the use of gold as a currency, intends to boost its customer base.

Glint Pay, a currency fintech that encourages people to ‘buy, sell, spend and share’ their physical gold through its app, announced Friday its fundraise of an additional £2.5 million. Of this amount, the startup received £1.25 million as a private investment, with a matching amount contributed by the U.K. Government’s Future Fund. (UK INVESTOR MAGAZINE).

Glint’s P2P payments network

In September, Glint said in a blog post that it was creating Glint It! – a P2P payments network that would allow real-time transactions in gold and three major currencies.

Glint pioneered a way to make physical gold liquid and spendable after it linked its platform with MasterCard (NYSE: MA) and allowed gold transactions. Users could therefore use the card, and their gold, for everyday purchases.

Through the new P2P service, Glint cut out middlemen and reduced transaction costs for users wanting to gift gold, send it to relatives, or use it on travels. The system works with email ids and is simple enough for a transaction to execute with just a few taps on the phone.

New funds

Glint will use the new funds to support the growth of its fintech app, expand its user base, boost its marketing, and hire key personnel.

“After last year’s expansion into the US and the launch of our P2P offering, Glint It!, we’re eager to tackle the next stage of our growth and meet our ambitious targets over the next 12 months,” said Founder and CEO, Jason Cozens. “Additional funding will help to facilitate this, but it is our diverse and exceptional leadership team that provides us with a clear, competitive edge.”

Gold as a haven

According to Cozens, during his lifetime the US dollar and British Pound have both lost about 85% of their purchasing power. In stunning contrast, the purchasing power of gold has surged by more than 500% in that same period.

Cozens points to the massive global stimulus by central banks and governments, as well as government debt, which has reached unprecedented levels. He says there is a risk of the debasement of national currencies resulting in a loss of people’s hard-earned money because of crumbling purchasing power.

A long-time proponent of gold as a haven, Cozens asks: “What happens when the music stops?”

Related Story:  Glint It! A P2P Gold Transfer Service Inside An App