There are many things that make human beings who they are, and one among them is our ability to find solutions. This solution-oriented mindset has, in fact, done a lot to orchestrate our progression through the years. If we are being honest, it is still doing so, but that effort has now dispersed into different real-world iterations, each one catering to a unique need. However, there is also one that can look after all your requirements without causing much of a hassle. Yes, we are talking about technology. Technology’s tendency to deliver the most convenient yet effective answer under all situations has been a game-changer from the very beginning. While the creation appeared on the scene as a product of human imagination, it has long transcended our own capabilities in the said regard, therefore becoming the most important pillar of this modern generation. Nevertheless, even after getting to such a a massive milestone, technology has continued to make the difference for us under some capacity or the other, and looking at a recent funding, we can say that those attempts are not going to stop anytime soon.
Elis, a startup focused on helping international students who are planning to study in the US, has successfully raised over $5.6 million in seed funding. Led by Kindred Ventures, the round saw further participation coming from the likes of Castle Island Ventures, 20VC, Dreamers VC and V1.VC. Notably enough, many immigrant founders, including Pipe Founder’s Harry Hurst; DoNotPay’s Joshua Browder; Balaji Srinivasan; EightSleep’s Matteo Franceschetti; Sardine’s Soups Ranjan; Monzo’s Tom Blomfield; River FInancial’s Alexander Leishman and Andrew Benson etc, also threw their hat in the ring. According to certain reports, Elis will use the newly-raised cash to work on product and engineering. Beyond that, the company plans to invest a part in scaling up its core distribution strategy of partnering with education agencies around the world.
Founded on the back of founder, Sampei Omichi’s own struggles as an immigrant, Elis starts off by collecting basic documents like a passport, Form 1-20 or DS-2019 before using them to provide the immigrants with a phone plan, international checking account and a debit card before they move to the U.S. While it doesn’t ask for a social security number at any step, the company’s platform helps you in getting one. Apart from that, the platform also automates all the other paperwork such as filing non-resident tax returns, building credit profiles, renewing visas and petitioning for work authorization.
For the future, Elis is mobilizing plans to develop a new co-signer product called Elis Rent. At present, majority immigrant students can’t act as a co-signer on rent due to their lack of US income. This creates a scenario where they have to pay 6 or even 12 months of rent upfront. Hence, Elis is working with insurance providers for the purpose of underwriting the said risk, as doing so will give it an option to be the co-signer.