Amit Jain, the former head of Uber’s Asia Pacific division, revealed his new venture, Zamp Finance, that aims to simplify the process for businesses to invest their excess capital in US Treasury bills to hedge against bank failures and other uncertainties.
Zamp offers a treasury management platform that enables businesses worldwide to invest surplus cash in U.S. Treasury bills and notes, partnering with BNY Mellon Pershing, which manages over $2 trillion. The platform serves businesses of all sizes, it said.
The U.S. Treasury Bills are regarded as a safe investment, as they are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, has high liquidity, predictable yield and tax benefits.
“Our customers, and a lot of them are startups, are not looking for a particular yield or want to speculate with the cash they have. They are looking for ways to keep their cash safe in a way that protects them from risks related to currency or institution,” said Jain in an interview.
He also disclosed that the U.S.-registered startup raised a seed round of $21.7 million last year, publicly commenting on the fundraise for the first time. The round was led by Sequoia India and Southeast Asia, with participation from a number of high-profile executives, including Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, former SoftBank chief operating officer Marcelo Claure, and Doordash chief executive Tony Xu.
TechCrunch reported about the investment talks in May. Jain left Sequoia India and Southeast Asia, where he served as a partner, last year.
Zamp has multiple appeals: It eases a firm’s access to financial instruments and serves as a corporate treasurer, allowing businesses to focus on their core operations. Zamp’s customers get brokerage accounts with BNY Mellon, meaning that their funds remain segregated from those of other customers.
Zamp declined to reveal how many customers it has, but noted that more than a 100 businesses signed up in two weeks following the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank.
“If all your money is in a bank, then you’re subject to the risks of the bank. It’s not something that people thought much about earlier, but obviously has been in the news for the last few weeks. Now an increasingly growing number of founders are thinking about diversification of cash into multiple bank accounts,” Jain said.
Zamp plans to add more financial instruments over time. Jain said the startup has evaluated several sovereign funds and corporate bonds, but he asserted that whether Zamp offers them to customers depends on their feedback and demand.
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