Freelancer-turned-founder develops fintech app

Startup Profile: Corgee

Freelancer turned founder: Dmitrijs Vitjazevs

Sector: Fintech/Freelancer Economy

Location: UK/Spain

Corgee, an AI-powered finance app to make personal finance simpler for the UK’s 5.3 million self-employed, has secured its first pre-seed investment from Think Bigger Capital.

With over 700,000 UK self-employed workers shutting up shop during the pandemic, Corgee told The Freelance Informer that it believes that something needs to be done to make money management straight-forward for the self-employed or those with unpredictable income.

What’s Corgee’s story?

The product concept of Corgee came about after founder Dmitrijs Vitjazevs struggled to find a simple way to manage his finances while self-employed. After realising that there was no personal finance app designed to cope with the unique challenges of being self-employed, he set about building his own.

“It started with an idea that all of us should be able to enjoy the benefits of new working modes without sacrificing financial security,” said the Corgee founder. “It does not matter if you are a self-employed, freelancer, or SME owner – you should not be discriminated against based on your professional circumstances. Not only is such a goal achievable, but it can also be designed in such as way that it becomes enjoyable and brings benefits across multiple areas of life. This is precisely why Corgee,  exists.”

What will Corgee do that’s different?

Corgee will let users see all of their income at a glance. It can do this through “intelligent algorithms and insights” that will help them predict when they might have a slower month, encourage them to tuck some money away for tax and, most importantly, send them gig opportunities through the app, so they can go beyond just managing their money and start earning more too.

“Ultimately, Corgee wants to put a financial and business advisor into every freelancer’s pocket, giving them the kind of personalised tips, recommendations, and analysis they’d get from an accountant or business analyst, all completely free,” Corgee said in a statement to The Freelance Informer.

“As somebody who struggled to stay on top of their self-employed finances, I’m very excited to be building the app that I wish had been around a few years ago,” said Vitjazevs.

“Unfortunately, the way financial services are set up is based on the outdated idea of getting paid on the same date every month, which just isn’t the reality for 26% of the UK workforce any more.”

He continued, “We’re building an app that drags personal banking into the 21st Century and lets you manage your money, however, and whenever it arrives. It’ll give you personalised advice, help you bid for more work and — most importantly — make managing your freelance finances as simple as checking your emails.”

Is the app available yet?

The personal finance app will be initially launched for UK-based self-employed and freelancer workers but is working on a product for freelancers based in Spain, where it already has its main operations in Barcelona with team members in London, Chicago and Beijing.

Corgee will be releasing the free product in a few months, but you can sign up to be among the first to try it via their website: www.corgee.co