Juno

Headquartered in Singapore, Juno is a digital bank, serving cryptocurrency enthusiasts in the US. The company provides a Juno account, which includes a high-yield checking account and a crypto account along with a Mastercard debit card (Juno Card) that allows users to earn, save, and transact in cryptocurrency as well as fiat currency. It also integrates with popular payroll platforms in the US that allow users to receive part of their paychecks in cryptocurrencies or USD or a mix of both.

The checking account is provided free of charge and it is FDIC-insured. The account featured a 2.15% interest rate as of October 2022, with no monthly minimum amount requirements or charge, as well as no overdraft fees. It can be used to make wire transfers, direct deposits, and bill payments along with free access to over 80,000 ATMs at locations such as Walgreens, CVS, and 7-Eleven.

The crypto account is not FDIC-insured, and it is funded by the checking account. It allows users to purchase cryptocurrencies, with any sales of it denominated in USD being directly deposited to the checking account. Crypto assets stored in the account are held by a digital custodial partner of Evolve Bank & Trust. In addition, Juno allows users to withdraw cryptocurrencies to third-party wallets such as MetaMask and Ledger, while also allowing ETH withdrawals to Layer-2 scaling solutions such as Polygon, Optimism, and Arbitrum for free. However, it does charge a 0.5% fee on stablecoin trading and a 1% fee on non-stablecoin trading.

The Juno Card is offered at two tiers: 1) Metal program with a yearly maximum cashback of USD 300 and 2) Basic program with a yearly maximum cashback of USD 25. It can be used to make everyday transactions in both fiat and stable crypto currency–USDC.

The company also launched its own digital token–JCOIN (ERC20 token)–as part of its optional loyalty program. Customers can earn JCOINs if they opt to receive their paycheck or spend in cryptocurrency, and it can be withdrawn after a 15-day holding period or used to boost the interest rate (up to 3%) of the checking account or redeem as gift cards.

In addition, Juno offers fintech infrastructure services via APIs that enable companies to offer their customers the option to purchase cryptocurrencies via debit cards, credit cards, CashApp, and Venmo.

Key customers and partnerships

The company offers banking services and the Juno debit card in partnership with Evolve Bank and Trust. As of October 2022, it was reported to have more than 75,000 customers and have processed USD 1 billion in annualized transaction volumes.

Funding and financials

Juno raised USD 18 million in Series A funding round in October 2022, led by ParaFi Capital’s Growth Fund, with participation from notable crypto-industry figures such as Surojit Chatterjee (Coinbase) and Sriram Krishnan (Andreessen Horowitz). It had planned to utilize the funds to expand its operations and products.