Lithuanian bill-splitting startup Cino has raised has raised €3.5m in Seed funding led by Balderton Capital to expand into the UK.
Launched in 2023 by CEO Elena Churilova and COO Lina Saleh, the real-time shared payment app allows a group to split the bill and pay their share directly from whatever bank account or wallet they choose.
Users securely connect their card to the Cino app, get a virtual card, and can join shared payment groups where they set adjustable custom split ratios. Any group member can pay for anything, wherever Visa is accepted, and everyone’s share is automatically deducted at checkout.
Importantly, Cino is bank-agnostic; people no longer need to use the same bank to make shared payments, or share bank details. All payments appear in the group feed for full transparency and users can join or leave payment groups anytime.
The firm claims to be experiencing 100% month-on-month growth in Finland and Italy, with groups using Cino, on average, 17 times a month, spending up to €3,000.
Elena Churilova, co-founder and CEO of Cino says: “Fintech has always been one-dimensional but we are social creatures. Our payments should reflect how we actually spend money - together. Back in the cash days, it was simpler. Now that we’ve gone digital, payments need to evolve to keep up.
Alongside the expansion into the UK, she says Cino will soon launch new shared payment features and explore new verticals including B2B payments and rent.