An edu-wealth startup, Zinc, founded by Prashanth Ranganathan, a former CEO at PayU Finance India, has raised USD 25.5 million in its seed round. The funding round was led by Nexus Venture Partners and also saw participation from Quona Capital, EDBI, Global Ventures, and Credit Saison.

According to the company, the funds will be utilized to drive product innovation and expand offerings, thereby focusing on global investment tools. Furthermore, the company will also focus on leveraging AI-powered university counseling, and cross-border payment solutions to help families secure their children’s futures.

Tailored specifically for this purpose, Zinc will aim to address the rising costs of overseas education by building a robust financial foundation, coupled with its proprietary AI-powered edu-counselor platform - Ada - which will provide comprehensive support and guidance to young Indian aspirants.

Additionally, the company offers global investment tools which will enable parents to expand their savings across international markets, thereby helping them build financial plans for their children’s education while mitigating currency fluctuation risks.

In addition to this, Zinc has also secured RIA (Registered Investment Advisor) license approval from SEBI, coupled with in-principle approval for the PSP (Payment Service Provider) license. The company is also seeking a brokerage license from the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) in GIFT City.

The former founder of Paysense, Ranganathan, which was later acquired by PayU in 2020, joins the category of several second or third time startup founders who raised more than USD 20 million in their seed rounds in 2024.

If we look at the report from a startup data intelligence platform, notable recent seed rounds include blockchain startup Lyskraft, Avail (USD 27 million), Mukesh Bansal’s new venture (USD 26 million), and generative AI startups EMA and Nesya, whichrespectively raised USD 25 million and USD 20 million. Wealthtech startup Centricity and elder care startup Primus Senior Living also successfully raised USD 20 million each, thereby marking strong seed-stage funding activity.