Jumpstart, a fintech created to help immigrants access credit and financial services in new countries, has just completed a R$2.8 million pre-seed round with angel investors including Matthew Allan (former credit director at PayPal and Google), Brian Requarth (of Latitud), executives from Nubank, and executives from credit departments at major banks. A new round, now with funding, is already being structured.

The plan is to expand distribution of its core product: immigration advisory services powered by Artificial Intelligence ( AI ), with the possibility of financing fees, visas, courses, rent, cars, and, in the future, real estate. The fintech occasionally operates with credit partners and uses its own resources.

Founded by Fabiano Rocha and Jaqueline Dias, both engineers with degrees from the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (ITA), Jumpstart was born focusing on international payments. In its first few months, it transacted over R$1 million between Brazil and abroad. "We started as a cross-border payments platform, but we soon realized that the more serious problem lay elsewhere: immigrants' financial records become null and void when they move," says Jaqueline, Jumpstart's CFO.

Global financial identity

She now lives in the United States and says that despite having a good credit score in Brazil and broad access to credit, she arrived in the country without any approved credit limit." In the US, Canada, Europe, or Australia, the system requires you to build a new credit history. This applies to everyone, regardless of income," she explains. -

"Our mission remains the same: to create a global financial identity. But we realized that to get there, we needed to start with the immigrant's first pain point—the immigration process itself," says CEO Fabiano.

Today, Jumpstart offers hybrid legal advice: it combines technology with expert legal review. Users receive support in choosing the type of visa, gathering documentation, and submitting the application. According to the partners, the startup charges up to 50% less than traditional law firms and offers a partial refund policy if the application is denied. "If we have so much confidence in our model, it makes sense to share the risk with the client," says Fabiano.

The company operates with an MSB ( Money Service Business ) license in the United States and has partnerships with banks and payment platforms in Brazil and abroad, such as BS2, Banco Rendimento, Ouribank, Banco Presença, and Stripe. It also works with more than 12 currencies for operations in countries such as Australia and Canada.

Despite having pivoted the business, the infrastructure in place remains active and is used as a foundation for financing. "Today, we can pay even US government fees in 21 installments, use FGTS (Unemployment Fund) funds to finance the green card, and facilitate payments in reais for services contracted abroad," says Jaqueline.

Credit

The fintech also developed its own database with information extracted from immigration files, resumes, tax returns, and financial history in the country of origin. This data is anonymized and used to train credit models. The technology is led by a 24-year-old data scientist, Matheus, cited by both founders as a key player in process automation.

"The big banks say they don't have enough data on immigrants. But this data exists—it's just not organized. We solved this with our AI-trained model that can price risk even before the immigrant sets foot in the new country," says Fabiano.

For now, the fintech primarily serves Brazilians, but the product has already begun to be used by people of other nationalities. "It's our first truly global product. We already have clients from India, for example," says Fabiano. The plan is to scale distribution without increasing the team—currently, there are only five people.

Jumpstart is interested in larger loans, such as car and home loans. However, the fintech must be cautious. "Every mistake costs a car or a house, so we need to have a solid foundation of data and performance before moving forward," says the CEO.

The next round, with no set date yet, is expected to bring in funds focused on branding and distribution. "More than capital, we're seeking someone to help us scale. The thesis is validated. Now it's time to reach more people," says Jaqueline.

The post Jumpstart raises R$2.8 million and uses AI to provide credit and advice to immigrants appeared first on finsidersbrasil.com.br.