Shouta

Shouta, an Australian fintech company founded in 2020 by Carly Shamgar and Nick Redwood, operates a digital gifting platform. The idea for the company arose from the founders' personal experience of wanting an instant and inexpensive way to send small gifts to friends and family, a need that was amplified during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shamgar's previous experience in a toxic work environment also highlighted the potential for 'nano-gifts' as a tool for employee recognition.

The company's core offering is a mobile application that allows users to send micro-gifts, such as coffee or drinks, to others instantly. These gifts are delivered to the recipient's phone as a link to a digital, prepaid Shouta Mastercard, which can be added to a mobile wallet like Apple Pay or Google Pay. A key feature is the flexibility of the digital gift card, which, unlike traditional gift cards, is not restricted to a specific retailer and can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted. Users can personalize their 'shouts' with messages, images, memes, or GIFs.

Recognizing demand from the corporate sector, Shouta launched Shouta Biz™, a B2B platform for workplace gifting. This service allows businesses to send customized and personalized gifts to employees and clients, either individually or in bulk. Shouta Biz offers features like scheduled sends, the ability to refund unclaimed gifts, and spending limits for users within a corporate account. The business model for Shouta Biz was intended to be a tiered subscription structure based on features.

In September 2021, Shouta secured $1 million in an angel funding round. On March 26, 2024, the company was acquired by YONDR Money, a Melbourne-based fintech platform focused on payments, loyalty, and budgeting. The acquisition aimed to integrate Shouta's gifting technology with Yondr's financial management solutions to create a more engaging and personalized user experience, expanding Yondr's reach to Shouta's user base of over 44,000 individuals and 250 businesses.

Keywords: digital gifting, micro-gifting, corporate rewards, employee recognition, fintech, mobile payments, digital wallet, prepaid Mastercard, B2B gifting, employee incentives, client gifts, nano-gifts, instant rewards, personalized gifts, Australian fintech, mobile gifting app, workplace culture, YONDR Money, Carly Shamgar, Nick Redwood