Stockholm-based fintech startup Matters has come out of stealth with a $5 million pre-Seed round to build an AI-powered personal finance platform that combines neobank services with an AI advisor.
The Round
The round is anchored by Swedish angel investor Jakob Johansson. Other participants include Knut Frängsmyr, former COO of Klarna; Douglas Stark, co-founder of Voi; Johan Bladh, CEO of Röko; Patrik Tran, CEO of Validio; and Per Widerström, CEO of Evoke.
The funding will go toward the licences needed for its banking ambitions, expansion across the EU, growing its 14-person team and acquiring users. Part of the capital may also be used for strategic acquisitions.
The Product
Founded in April 2026, Matters is building a digital banking platform that automates parts of personal financial management. The planned service pairs neobank features with an AI advisor meant to help customers understand their spending habits, make better-informed decisions and save more.
The business model is subscription-based: customers pay a flat monthly fee. Matters also plans to return selected revenue generated through transactions, including interchange and foreign exchange, to users as cashback. The company says this aligns its revenue more closely with customers’ financial interests.
Per Österström, founder and CEO, said: “Banks earn more when consumers manage their money worse. At Matters, we’re purposely travelling in the opposite direction. Our goal is to build a bank that actively makes financial wellbeing available to anyone, not just those who already enjoy it. This angel investment allows us to enact this vision. Keep an eye out for our first consumer product we are launching in the coming weeks.”
The Team
Österström previously founded Sambla Group, a consumer loan brokerage that grew to more than 400 employees before it was sold to Nordic Capital in 2021. Matters has appointed Lars-Åke Norling, former CEO of savings and investment platform Nordnet, as chair. According to the company, Norling led Nordnet through a period in which its market capitalisation grew tenfold, reaching SEK 80 billion in less than seven years.
Norling said: “I have spent my career in regulated consumer finance, deciphering when a financial product will and won’t work. I am therefore confident that Matters and Per, as a second-time founder with prerequisite knowledge of the field, will help consumers with their personal finances. I am proud to be joining as Chair and feel excited by Matters’ mission and the products we will reveal in the coming weeks and months.”
What’s Next
Matters has not yet launched publicly; its first consumer product is expected in the coming weeks. Its longer-term ambition is a consumer banking platform where AI plays a central role in helping customers manage their money. It will need to secure regulatory approvals as it builds its banking offering and expands into new markets.
