Greenlight Financial Technology, a startup that operates a money management platform for children, launched its India operations on Wednesday. The Atlanta-headquartered company is set to invest over Rs 100 crore over two years to establish and expand its India operations, according to media reports.

The company has opened a 45-person R&D centre in Bengaluru, with 100 more set to join over the next 12 months. Sunil Shirguppi has joined as senior vice president (SVP) and country head to lead the company’s operations here. Shirguppi was previously managing director at Goldman Sachs, leading the investment banking company’s fraud engineering practice.

The Greenlight India Development Centre, a statement said, will focus on accelerating product innovation to better serve the company’s growing customer base of more than 6 million parents and kids, and advance its mission to improve financial literacy for the next generation.

Greenlight offers a banking app for families in the United States, that teaches kids and teens how to earn, save, spend wisely, invest, and more. Parents send money, automate allowances, assign tasks, and set spending controls through Greenlight.

Venture capital-backed startups in the fintech-for-kids space in India include Fampay, Junio, Walrus, YPay, Yodaa, and Pencilton. Greenlight has no plans to set up any business in the country, beyond product development.

A key hub for Greenlight’s software development activities, the India Development Centre will leverage artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other cutting-edge technologies to enhance existing product features and develop new capabilities, the company said in a statement.

Greenlight’s main business is its debit card for kids and teens linked to an app that parents and kids can manage on their smartphones. In January, the company laid off 104 employees, about 21 per cent of its headcount then, to rein in expenses amid a slowdown in the economy.

Founded in 2014, Greenlight has raised more than USD 550 million from investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, and is currently valued at USD 2.3 billion. It also provides B2B services to the likes of JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley such as helping integrate its services within their banking ecosystems, among others. Greenlight booked over USD 100 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) in 2021.