M-Via Closes $17 Million Round to Serve the “Unbanked”

Palo Alto-based m-Via has raised $17 million to fund the development of its mobile money services, which allow the “unbanked” to send money using text messages instead of expensive wire transfers. The company, which is also changing its name to Boom Financial, will use the funds to expand in the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean. Digicel Group led the round, with RRE Ventures and MATT.org also participating. The company has raised more than $30 million to date.