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- Lydia
Lydia Valuation, Funding & Investors
Lydia is valued at $1B as of December 2021.
Last Lydia valuation
$1B
Series C · Dec 2021
Last Lydia funding round
$100M
Series C · Dec 2021
Cumulative funding Lydia raised
$259M
across 7 funding rounds
Key investors in Lydia
XAnge
NewAlpha Asset Management VC
Accel
Tencent
Founders Future
AA Sons
About Lydia
Lydia is a Paris-headquartered mobile payment platform enabling peer-to-peer transfers, bill splitting, and merchant transactions via a single app linked to bank cards. Founded in 2013, it supports NFC payments, crowdfunding, and salary advances across France, Spain, Germany, and Italy. The service processes millions of transactions monthly for consumers and businesses.
Founded
2013
HQ
Website
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2C & B2B
Revenue model
Commission
Valuation
$1B (Dec 2021)
Lydia Valuation
Lydia is currently valued at $1B, based on its Series C in December 2021.
The $100M round was led by Accel, Dragoneer and Tencent, with participation from Echo Street Capital and Founders Future.
Lydia valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Dec 2021 | Series C | $1B |
Lydia Funding History
Lydia has raised a total of $259M across 7 funding rounds.
Lydia's first fundraising round was a $800K seed round in September 2013. The most recent completed round was a $100M Series C in December 2021.
Lydia funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2021 | Series C | Accel (lead); Dragoneer (lead); Tencent (lead); Echo Street Capital; Founders Future | $100M | $1B | Lydia, a France-based fintech superapp, raised $100 million in a Series C funding round in December 2021, led by existing investors Accel, Tencent, and Founders Future, with new participation from Dragoneer Investment Group and Echo Street Capital. This investment propelled the company to unicorn status with a post-money valuation exceeding $1 billion. The app, which started as a peer-to-peer payment platform, has evolved into an all-in-one financial services solution offering mobile payments, debit cards, instant loans from €100 to €3,000, savings accounts, stock and crypto trading via Bitpanda, shared accounts, and money pots. At the time of the round, Lydia had approximately 5.5 to 6 million users, primarily in France where it became the dominant mobile payment app and the second-most downloaded fintech app. The company generates the majority of its revenues from subscription fees rather than interchange, with additional income from commissions and spreads on trading activities, where average trade sizes were €30. Unlike competitors, Lydia maintained modest costs, having raised €257 million total prior to this round, and avoided heavy marketing spend. Proceeds from the $100 million raise were earmarked for aggressive expansion, including hiring nearly 800 employees over three years (160 in 2022 alone), launching new credit and investment products, and entering at least three European markets such as Portugal and Spain. Lydia aims to become the primary banking account for 10 million Europeans by 2025, positioning itself as a simplified 'superapp' for millennials and Gen Z, inspired by models like WeChat and competing with neobanks like Revolut. CEO Cyril Chiche highlighted the timing for hedge fund involvement ahead of potential IPO preparations. |
| Dec 2020 | Series B | Accel (lead); Romain Afflelou; AA Sons; Hedosophia | $86M | - | Lydia, a French fintech founded in 2013, operates as a mobile-first financial services platform starting with P2P payments similar to Venmo and expanding into an all-in-one super app with features like flexible debit cards, money pools, direct deposits, premium plans (Lydia Blue and Black), and international expansion beginning with Portugal. On December 17, 2020, Lydia extended its Series B round by raising an additional $86 million (approximately $85.5 million) led by Accel, bringing the total Series B to $131 million, marking the largest round for a French fintech at the time; existing investors including Tencent participated, and Accel venture partner Amit Jhawar joined the board. The company reported significant business growth in 2020 due to pandemic-driven digital adoption, with users engaging more in newer services, and aimed for profitability while redesigning the app and relaunching premium offerings with higher limits and insurance. |
| Jan 2020 | Series B | CNP Assurances (lead); Tencent (lead); XAnge (lead); NewAlpha Asset Management VC; Founders Future | $44M | - | Lydia, a French mobile payment company founded in 2013 by Cyril Chiche and Antoine Porte, announced a €40 million ($44-45 million) Series B funding round on January 15, 2020, led by Tencent with participation from existing investors Open CNP by CNP Assurances, XAnge, and New Alpha Asset Management. The funding aimed to scale its mobile financial services platform, expand across Europe, and develop its app into a comprehensive finance super-app offering P2P payments, accounts, payment cards, loans, insurance, money pots, gift cards, and a marketplace of third-party financial products. At the time, Lydia had 3 million users in France, with 25% penetration among 18-30-year-olds, and its brand had become synonymous with mobile P2P payments. The round represented the first close of what later expanded to $131 million by December 2020 with an additional $86 million, bringing total funding raised to over $160 million. Tencent's involvement was highlighted for its expertise in user engagement via WeChat and gaming investments, positioning Lydia to challenge traditional retail banking with a mobile-first model similar to successes in retail, music, and travel sectors. Prior funding included a $16.1 million round in early 2018 led by CNP Assurances and others, plus earlier raises of $4.5 million in 2014 and $820,000 in early 2014. Lydia operated in five European countries including France, UK, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal, focusing on real-time onboarding and network effects built with minimal prior investment. CEO Cyril Chiche emphasized ambitions to become Europe's leading mobile financial services provider, leveraging Tencent to accelerate growth and avoid scaling pitfalls. |
| Feb 2018 | Undisclosed stage | CNP Assurances (lead); Oddo & Cie; XAnge; NewAlpha Asset Management VC; Le Groupe Financière Duval | $16M | - | Lydia is a France-based mobile payments platform founded in 2013 by Cyril Chiche and Antoine Porte that specializes in peer-to-peer and business-to-consumer payment solutions. The app targets millennials and Gen Z users, offering instant mobile payments, QR code transactions, virtual and plastic MasterCards, and Apple Pay integration across France, the UK, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal. In February 2018, Lydia secured €13 million in funding led by CNP Assurances, with participation from existing investors XAnge, New Alpha AM, Oddo BHF, and Groupe Duval, bringing total funding to over €23 million. At the time of the round, Lydia had surpassed one million users with 2,000 new accounts being created daily, and the company employed 40 people based in Paris. The funding was earmarked for developing new services and accelerating growth across Europe, positioning Lydia as a major player in the European cashless payment revolution. |
| Sep 2016 | Series A | NewAlpha Asset Management VC (lead); Oddo & Cie (lead); AA Sons | $8M | - | Lydia is a Paris-based peer-to-peer payment app that allows users to transfer money to friends without fees through a mobile application. In September 2016, the company raised $7.8 million (€7 million) from NewAlpha Asset Management and Oddo & Cie to expand into European markets beyond France. At the time of the funding, Lydia had 500,000 users in France and planned to launch in the UK, Germany, and Spain during the first half of 2017, with ambitious goals to reach 3 million users within two years. The company had also introduced a customizable MasterCard feature within its app, allowing users to set payment limits, block online payments, and manage foreign transactions directly from the mobile interface. |
| Nov 2014 | Series A | Belcube; XAnge | $5M | - | - |
| Sep 2013 | Seed | - | $800K | - | - |
Who has invested in Lydia?
14 investors have backed Lydia across its funding rounds, including XAnge, NewAlpha Asset Management VC, Accel, Tencent, Founders Future and AA Sons.
Lead investors include Accel, Dragoneer, Tencent, CNP Assurances, XAnge and 2 other investors.
Lydia Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Lead | Nov 2014 | ||
| 3 | Lead | Sep 2016 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Feb 2018 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Sep 2016 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Jan 2020 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Sep 2016 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Dec 2020 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Jan 2020 | ||
| 1 | Lead | Dec 2021 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Dec 2020 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Dec 2021 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Nov 2014 | ||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all 14 Lydia investors. Start Free Trial | ||||
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Start Free TrialLydia Competitors
Lydia competitors include listed companies like PicPay and Lesaka Technologies, and private ones like Tamara, Hala, DANA and TNG FinTech Group.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private | $360M | $52M | $1B | 2.8x | ||
| Private | - | - | $900M | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $1.1B | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $860M | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $1.2B | $205M | $1.2B | 0.5x | ||
| Publicly listed | $722M | $67M | $364M | 0.8x |
Lydia Public Comps
Lydia is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Agibank, Superbank Indonesia, Forbright Bank, Deluxe, Worldline, Wema Bank, Judo Bank, PicPay, Fawry and Green Dot.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $1.3B | $227M | 0.8x | 0.6x | 4.4x | 5.3x | |||
| $89M | - | 10.8x | - | - | - | |||
| $325M | - | 2.9x | - | - | - | |||
| $2.1B | $379M | 1.2x | 1.2x | 6.7x | 5.6x | |||
| $4.6B | ($5.2B) | 0.6x | 0.7x | (0.6x) | 3.8x | |||
| $312M | - | 2.8x | - | - | - | |||
| $368M | - | 2.2x | 2.1x | - | - | |||
| $1.2B | $205M | 1.0x | 0.5x | 6.0x | 3.8x | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Lydia competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Lydia
| When was Lydia founded? | Lydia was founded in 2013. |
| Where is Lydia headquartered? | Lydia is headquartered in Paris, France. |
| Is Lydia publicly listed? | No, Lydia is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is Lydia's valuation? | Lydia was last valued at $1B in its Series C in December 2021. |
| How much funding has Lydia raised? | Lydia has raised $259M across 7 funding rounds. |
| What was Lydia's last funding round? | Lydia's last funding round was a $100M Series C in December 2021, led by Accel, Dragoneer and Tencent. |
| Who are Lydia's investors? | Lydia's investors include XAnge, NewAlpha Asset Management VC, CNP Assurances, Oddo & Cie, Tencent, AA Sons, Accel, Founders Future, Dragoneer, Romain Afflelou and 4 others. |
| Which companies are comparable to Lydia? | Companies comparable to Lydia include Tamara, Hala, DANA, TNG FinTech Group, PicPay and Lesaka Technologies. |
See companies similar to Lydia
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