Cleo Ai
“Can an AI-native financial assistant become the primary financial relationship for underserved Gen Z consumers in the US, monetising through subscriptions and embedded credit products at scale approaching IPO?”
Founded2016
HQLondon, England, United Kingdom
FoundersBarney Hussey-Yeo
Total raised$130M+
Latest roundUndisclosed round, 2024 (£38.8M from existing investors)
IndustryFintech / Consumer banking
The story
Founded in 2016 as a UK-based AI financial chatbot, Cleo pivoted aggressively toward the US market, making it their primary revenue base by 2020. The company evolved from a budgeting/tracking assistant into a full consumer fintech offering cash advances, credit-building tools, and savings products — monetised via a tiered subscription model. By 2025, Cleo had nearly reached breakeven on $135M+ ARR and was publicly signalling IPO ambitions, representing a shift from growth-at-all-costs to profitability-first.
Product timeline
2016
Cleo founded in London as an AI-powered financial assistant chatbot connecting to users' bank accounts.· pivot
2020
Raised $44M Series B led by EQT Ventures; U.S. becomes largest market.· banking
2020
Launched cash advance product targeting Gen Z users in the US.· lending
2024
Revenue doubled year-on-year from $65.9M to $135.7M; near breakeven with pre-tax loss of $769k.· pivot
2025
CEO Barney Hussey-Yeo teases potential IPO on London or NYC exchange; company approaching $500M ARR.· ipo
The stack
2 layers disclosed in Cleo Ai’s embedded-finance stack
Payments / PSP
Lending
in the full report
Accounting gap: minor
2 more providers across 1 layer, with confidence-scored evidence and source URLs, are in the Embedded Finance Index report.