UK-based challenger bank Monzo is set to extend its Series G funding round by raising an additional investment of £50m ($68m) this week.

Currently, the digital bank is in the final stages to close its late-stage funding round extension.

The equity investment came from its existing shareholders and one new investor, a California-based firm called Octahedron Capital.

The latest extension comes after Monzo first closed a £60m ($76m) funding round in June 2020, as it grappled with challenges brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

This round was sealed at a valuation of £1.25bn ($1.6bn), a 40% discount against its previously announced valuation of £2bn ($2.5bn).

The latest investment values the challenger bank at the same amount as before.

It brings the total amount raised by the company since the start of the pandemic to £175m ($240m).

Initially, Monzo’s Series G funding round was backed by new investors Reference Capital and Vanderbilt University.

The digital lender raised another £60m ($82m) in December last year, and this round was led by new backers Novator, Kaiser, and TED Global.

These investors joined the existing investors Y Combinator, General Catalyst, Accel, Stripe, Thrive Capital, Orange Ventures, Goodwater Capital, Michael Moritz, and Passion Capital.

Monzo’s latest new investor Octahedron Capital was founded in April last year.

The venture capital (VC) startup previously invested in artificial intelligence (AI) startup Databricks and Indian enterprise platform Udaan.

Founded in 2015, Monzo competes with the likes of Revolut, Starling Bank, and N26 in Europe’s banking and money management space.

Currently, it has onboarded four million customers.

Last year in June, before its Series G funding round, the British lender slashed up to 120 jobs as the Covid-19 pandemic hurt its business.

The layoffs accounted for 8% of its total workforce, mainly affecting the head office staff and operations teams.