Matters, a Stockholm startup building an AI-native consumer bank, has emerged from stealth with a $5m pre-seed round. The company announced the funding on 15 October 2026.
Swedish angel investor Jakob Johansson anchored the round. Other angels include former Klarna chief operating officer Knut Frängsmyr, Voi co-founder Douglas Stark, Johan Bladh of investment firm Röko, Validio chief executive Patrik Tran and Evoke chief executive Per Widerström.
The $5m is all the company has raised so far. It did not disclose a valuation.
“Banks earn more when consumers manage their money worse. At Matters, we're purposely travelling in the opposite direction.”Per Österström, Founder and CEO, Matters
What Matters is building
Matters is developing a neobank with an AI advisor that is meant to help customers spend more carefully and build savings towards their goals.
Customers will pay a flat monthly fee for banking services. Income that a traditional bank would keep, such as interchange fees paid by merchants on card transactions and foreign exchange fees, will be passed back to customers through a cashback scheme that builds up over time. The company argues that this aligns its incentives with customers, so that growth depends on retention and loyalty. It has not said how much the subscription will cost.
"Banks earn more when consumers manage their money worse. At Matters, we're purposely travelling in the opposite direction," founder and chief executive Per Österström said. He said the first consumer product would launch in the coming weeks.
The Next Web noted that Matters will compete with Revolut, which already operates across Europe.
Who is behind it
Österström founded Matters in April 2026. It is his second fintech company: he previously founded Sambla Group in 2014, which became the largest consumer loan broker in the Nordics, grew to more than 400 staff and about $200m in revenue, and was sold to Nordic Capital in 2021.
Lars-Åke Norling, who ran the Swedish savings and investment platform Nordnet until earlier this year, has joined as chair. Norling said he had spent his career in regulated consumer finance working out which financial products succeed.
Matters has 14 employees.
Who invested
The round was raised entirely from individual investors rather than venture firms. Jakob Johansson, a Swedish angel, anchored it, and The Next Web described him as the lead.
Several of the other backers come from Sweden's fintech and mobility scene. Knut Frängsmyr was chief operating officer of Klarna, Douglas Stark co-founded Voi and Patrik Tran is chief executive of Validio. Per Widerström, now chief executive of Evoke, was previously chair of Sambla, Österström's earlier company, according to The Next Web.
Österström said the company's aim is to build a bank that makes financial wellbeing available to anyone. Norling said further products would follow in the coming weeks and months.
What the money is for
The company said it will use the funding to apply for banking licences, expand across the EU, grow its team and user base and possibly make strategic acquisitions. It has not named the licences it is seeking or the countries where it will launch first.
Company website: matters.inc