麻豆社区app

Like so many other international students Ken Lian, a 麻豆社区app Business School grad (Management ’13), came from China to study and see how far a U.S. college education could take him.

The quick answer, back then, was 鈥渙nly so far,鈥� at least when it came to banking.

“After four years, I鈥檇 been paying overdraft, ATM, and international wire fees,鈥� Ken recalls. 鈥淲ithout a Social Security number or credit history, I couldn鈥檛 apply for a credit card with benefits, even though I was spending quite a bit on tuition.鈥� Recognizing that his story was replicated nationwide, Ken was inspired. 鈥淢illions of international students simply don鈥檛 have better options,鈥� he says.

Having earned his stripes in the fintech space, Ken most recently created a platform called , giving voice to his inner entrepreneur while filling a gap in the market 鈥� the first cashback debit card for international students and immigrants in the U.S. 鈥淥ur goal,鈥� he says, 鈥渋s to make banking easier and more rewarding for everyone.鈥� Scheduled to launch in 2020, Cheese raised pre-seed funding from Amplify.LA, OC4 Ventures and Idealab.

As it happens, Cheese isn鈥檛 Ken鈥檚 first rodeo. After graduation, he founded a company engaged in international commodity trading, competing with Fortune 500-level players in the U.S.聽 When the firm hit $10 million in annual trades, he sold it.

From 2015-2016, Ken participated in the startups Chihuo Inc. and Honey, which provided a sort of crash course in technology product development and user growth.聽In 2016, he launched Moolah Science, which offered an app that automatically tracked how much users pay for a purchase and obtained refunds on their behalf if the price dropped within 30 days. The idea attracted Mucker Lab, a leading L.A. incubator, and led to seed funding of $1.5 million from five venture capitalists; that, in turn, enabled Moolah to scale the product to 200,000 users. By 2018, Ken sold Moolah to a Fortune 500 company.

After mulling offers from big brand tech companies following the sale, Ken opted to go it alone.聽 鈥淚 concluded that entrepreneurship was in my DNA, so I had to carry on and try to make a difference,鈥� he says. 鈥淒uring my four years as an undergraduate, traditional banks charged me more than $1,000 in bank fees. It wasn鈥檛 fair or right. Cheese aims to make banking fair and rewarding for the 44 million immigrants 鈥� and 1.5 million international students 鈥� in the United States.鈥�

The founding team is comprised of international students, many of whom experienced unfair banking practices personally. 鈥淲e designed the product along with our users,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e surveyed more than 250,000 people, collecting their needs and feedback to build the product.鈥�

Ken鈥檚 proven ambition doesn鈥檛 end with his entrepreneurial ventures. In 2008, he undertook a 4,600 mile, 100 day cross country bicycle adventure, from Seattle to New York, with another Woodbury alum, Zack Ward. He then published a book in China about his journey in 2011. The book, along with his Dean’s list status, earned him a scholarship from Woodbury.

Ken gives big shout-outs to Woodbury faculty members David Rosen, Will McConnell and Nathan Garrett for their inspiration and encouragement. 鈥淚鈥檓 proud that the Cheese debit card wasn鈥檛 built by a bank, but a tech company,鈥� he says.聽 鈥淲e want to leave the banking world better than we found it.聽鈥�