London fintech B-Social has completed a Seed 2 funding round of £7.8 million as it continues its push to become a fully-licensed bank.
The latest round, funded by angel investors, brings the firm's total funding to £13.25 million.
The company quietly released its live app in June and a beta debit Mastercard issued by Wirecard.
The app enables users to track spending and set up social groups to split bills and transfer cash. Users can make purchases on behalf of the group and split the expenses across the app.
B-Social says it has signed up 9000 users since launch.
The new cash will be used to double the team in its London HQ, with plans to hire developers, product managers and designers.
CEO Nazim Valimahomed says the firm will introduce a new feature in the coming weeks for users to fund their cards via bank transfers and embark on a rebranding exercise under the new monicker Kroo.
He says that the company is at the "last stage" of the pre-application phase for a UK banking licence with the aim of finalising its application in the near future.