GoHenry, the prepaid debit card and financial education app for kids aged 6-18, has acquired French fintech Pixpay in a deal that will see the firm expand into Europe for the first time.

10 years after it launched in the UK, the new deal will enable GoHenry to rapidly expand its 2m-plus UK and US member base and accelerate growth across Europe as the company seeks to deliver on its mission to make every kid smart with money.

The acquisition follows a successful $40m (£33.6m) fund raise in 2020. Investors include French entrepreneurial growth equity investment fund Revaia, US growth-equity fund Edison Partners, Citi Ventures, and Muse Capital. GoHenry subsequently more than doubled its revenue during the pandemic to $42m in 2021.

Pixpay has almost 200,000 members in France and Spain. Its opening in Spain in November 2021, less than two years after its commercial launch in France, embodies its ambition to become a key player in Europe. Pixpay has plans to expand into Italy and Germany later this year. To support its launch, Pixpay has raised more than €11m (£9.3m) since April 2019 from the investment fund Global Founders Capital and BPIFrance via its Digital Venture division. 

“10 years ago, we saw an opportunity to give young people access to the digital economy,” said GoHenry CEO, Alex Zivoder. “Since then, we’ve looked to transform financial education for kids, teens and their parents through our groundbreaking financial education app and debit card to help children across the world gain confidence with money and finances. 

“Pixpay is the most developed player in Europe and we’re excited to combine our expertise in financial education to accelerate not only GoHenry’s growth but to accelerate the financial fitness of even more kids and teens globally. This deal marks a significant chapter for the future of financial education.” 

GoHenry and Pixpay will continue to operate under their own brands with no change in leadership, headquarters or headcount. The companies said the acquisition will instead allow both companies to accelerate their growth by executing synergies in knowledge and resource that will free up funds to reinvest in the financial education of kids and teens.