Helping children and teenagers learn the fundamentals of free markets, entrepreneurship, spending, saving, and investing is one of the most crucial, though often overlooked, components of a child’s education, according to schools, organisations, and educators around the world.
According to research from the University of Cambridge, your child’s financial habits are often established by the age of seven, which is an exceptionally young age by any standard. Learning how to communicate in English is a necessary ability in today’s world, and financial language is an equally crucial component of a well-rounded education.
Meanwhile, Goalsetter, a fintech platform based in Brooklyn, NY that provides banking, savings, investing, and financial education tools to families and K-12 students, has raised $15M in Series A funding led by Seae Ventures.
It saw participation from other investors such as Mass Mutual, Sterling National Bank, Citizens Financial Group, Cuna Mutual Financial Group, Astia Fund, Kevin Durant, Fearless Fund, Carmelo Anthony, Andre Drummond, Anthony Anderson, and Lance Gross.
The funds will be used to expand the company’s B2B collaborations with enterprises and financial institutions dedicated to improving financial education and wealth access for all Americans.
So What Does Goalsetter Do?
Goalsetter, founded in 2016 by Tanya Van Court, CEO, is a family saving, investing, financial education, and smart spending platform that enables families to become cashless while teaching them money management skills. Its smart money platform for families includes an FDIC-insured savings account, an investment platform powered by Goalsetter Advisors, LLC (an SEC registered investment advisor), the Mastercard Cashola Teen and Tween Debit Card with parental controls, game-based financial education quizzes, the “Learn before you Burn” parental control feature on the debit card, and the “Learn to Earn” financial reward programme, as well as the most recent cybersecurity features to protect users.
Primarily, the idea is that traditional banks may lag behind newer competitors such as smart card services and neobanks. Goalsetter may give a fully baked platform that can assist families in setting up their first savings account, investment account, and financial education for their children.
Series of Goalsetters A funding round follows the debut of Goalsetter Invest, a tool that empowers families to purchase, sell, and trade stocks while providing them with the financial education they need to do so comfortably. Goalsetter now has a fully featured financial app for the entire family, offering savings accounts, debit cards, investment accounts, and entertaining, game-based financial education for parents, teens, kids, and tweens.
“In the United States, wealth discrepancies are wide and prevalent in every corner of our country,” stated Goalsetter Founder and CEO Tanya Van Court. “If we want to change the wealth distribution in our country, we must first ensure that the next generation of Americans is savers, investors, and owners. Goalsetter accomplishes this by offering students early access to financial tools and making financial education relatable, engaging, and accessible.”
Furthermore, a new agreement with Fiserv will enable Goalsetter to reach millions more prospective consumers by making it simple for financial institutions to offer co-branded Goalsetter services to their account holders, the company said in a statement. Fiserv, a provider of payments and financial services technology, has ties with thousands of financial institutions and provides integrations that allow them to deliver relevant fintech experiences to help recruit and serve the next generation of account holders.
Goalsetter has partnered with businessman and philanthropist Robert F. Smith, NBA stars Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes, and NFL star Russell Wilson and wife Ciara, as well as organisations like Nike, American Express, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Pittsburgh Steelers, to provide a path to financial freedom for one million Black and Latinx kids across the country, the company revealed.
