1337 Ventures, through its 1337 Accelerator Fund I, has announced its investment in Vircle, a Malaysian neo banking platform focused on transforming financial literacy for children.

In a statement, Bikesh Lakhmichand, Chief Executive Officer and Founding Partner of 1337 Ventures, said Vircle is at the forefront of reshaping financial responsibility for the younger generation.

“It’s not just about teaching children how to manage money, but about setting them up for a future of financial independence and literacy,

“As they expand across public schools and into the regional market, we are proud to continue backing their efforts through our funding,” he added.

Vircle is Malaysia’s first child-safe financial management and pocket money platform provides parents an app to manage all their child’s pocket money and financial learning skills at one place, both for in school and out of school spending.

For it’s school spending, Vircle Club provides children a prepaid Visa card , the first with parental controls and child safe protection.

Designed to help children budget, save, and spend responsibly, the platform has set an ambitious target of banking one million children in Malaysia and expanding to three million across Southeast Asia within five years.

Vircle also partners with major private and international schools by providing class leading cashless school platforms and has recently partnered with U Mobile to pilot cashless payments in Malaysian public schools, further accelerating its mission to empower a generation of financially responsible individuals.

With Vircle’s innovative platform and over 100,000 families across 150 nationalities, many families are already benefiting from its secure, child-focused approach to family finance.

Vircle has already secured follow-on funding and gained significant traction in its mission to revolutionize financial education.

“Our core mission has always been to teach kids how to manage money wisely, and this investment enables us to scale our operations and expand our reach,

“With the support of 1337 Ventures & strategic guidance, we’re poised to grow across Southeast Asia, helping millions of children develop critical financial skills,” said Gokula Krishnan Subramaniam, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Vircle.

Launched in January 2022, the 1337 Accelerator Fund I addresses the critical gap in early stage funding for Malaysian startups.

The fund is managed by 1337 Ventures in collaboration with seasoned investors such as Asgari Stephens and Suresh Thiru (ex-Chief Operating Officer of JobStreet), to provide early-stage startups with critical capital, mentorship, and strategic support.

The fund has supported numerous high-potential startups through its signature accelerator program Alpha Startups™.

The fund is dedicated to supporting innovative, high-growth startups that create lasting impact and deliver long-term value across diverse sectors.

As part of its continued dedication to fostering innovative founders, 1337 Ventures introduced the 1337 Capital Fund 1 in 2024.

Established in 2012, 1337 Ventures is a Malaysian venture capital firm that invests in pre-seed and seed-stage startups.

Gobi Dana Impak Ventures invests in Malaysia’s fintech firm DCAP