And then there’s the question of your credit score which affects your ability to take out a loan, like a mortgage. With the risk of turning this into a long-winded story about the importance of good credit, which I’m sure you already know as a savvy startup, the confusion some people may have experienced in knowing what’s the best credit card provider to go with, is where Yonder enters, stage right.

Alongside offering a lifestyle rewards card targeting the younger generations and incentivising responsible credit habits, the company is looking to change perceptions around credit.

Looking to improve trust in credit

The company came out of a “shared personal experience,” Tim Chong, Co-Founder and CEO told me. “It came from mine and Theso’s [Theso Jivajirajah, one of Yonder’s three Co-Founders. Harry Jell is the other] shared personal experience of trying to find a decent credit card as Australians when we moved to London – no one wanted to lend to us, despite good careers and excellent credit reports back home.”

“We set out as a rewards credit card that used Open Banking as part of its sign-up process, allowing us to lend to customers who had a thin or non-existent UK credit file,” Chong continued. “But Yonder’s evolved to solve far more of the pain points created by other products – like rewards that feel stuffy and irrelevant, the clunky process of trying to spend points and getting trapped in spirals of debt.”

The poignant experience which would lead to Yonder’s establishment and these pain points are indicative of a wider issue around credit and credit cards in the UK, according to Chong. “Credit cards have historically encouraged unhealthy money habits that can be really damaging, and it’s created a lot of fear,” he said. “I like to compare credit to fire. Used badly it can be really damaging, but used well it can transform your environment.”

The rewards in question include dining and drinking, theatre, fitness classes, and travel experiences. “Our rewards change each month,” Chong explained, keeping it fresh, “and include dining and drinking hotspots, theatre shows, fitness classes, online brands like car hire and now travel experiences like flights and weekend getaways.”

If the rewards sound dreamy, they’re done through the careful selection and cultivation of partnerships Chong feels are “Yonder-worthy,” i.e. aligning with its image, or as he put it: “great places you’d want to take a date [on]”. “[We] start to build relationships with these brands to see if they’d be interested in featuring on Yonder,” he explained, listing some of the partners: Mexican restaurant El Pastor, food and drink store DELLI, and eSIM provider Airalo.

The company is targeting Gen Z and millennial consumers in “rebuilding the relationship they have with credit.”

“A huge part of our product is focused on helping our members to develop responsible habits, as well as ironing out the industry jargon to make things easier to understand,” said Chong. I find myself mentally drawing up a checklist of reasons why I haven’t got a credit card – confusing industry jargon, check.

Setting Yonder apart

“The essence of Yonder centres on rewards that are carefully curated, designed to be a friend in your pocket,” Chong explained. “We want to rebuild the relationship people have with credit, so we’ve consciously made every part a more ‘beautiful’ experience.

“Redeeming points is also unique – members just pay as usual and choose in the app whether to earn or pay with points, which means no coupons, codes, pre-bookings or activations. Your date wouldn’t know you’d just paid for dinner with your points!”

Chong’s answer to the growth of the company and ensuring its continued growth is probably an answer all good startups founders give: “The Yonder team has been the number one investment for me and is the reason why we’ve managed to grow as we have,” he said, “the right team means you can work ten times faster in an environment that’s ten times more fun.”

“But listening to our customers has also been key,” he continued. “We’re in touch regularly with our founding members who give us feedback on ideas and plans, and their opinions and wish-lists for Yonder have helped shape how the product is evolving today.” Importantly, he stressed, “You can never please everyone, but customer feedback and opinions will always play an important role in how Yonder grows.”

What's next?

Arguably one of the big ticket questions for startups who are bringing something new to the sector: what’s in store for them?

Data provided by its existing customers have shown Yonder that they love to spend abroad, said Chong. “Our next step is to become much more of a companion on holiday – we already offer no foreign exchange fees and worldwide family travel insurance, but there’s so much more we want to do for travellers when they arrive at their destination.

“The plan is to expand internationally to offer experiences in cities abroad too. Ultimately, we want to become the number one companion for travel, exploring and socialising.” It’s a big goal, for sure, but there’s no reason for Yonder not to aim for the stars (or, in this case, a classy restaurant by the riverside that’s perfect for a date).