Spare Shark Tank Update – Shark Tank Season 10
D’Ontra Hughes Pitches Spare, a Virtual ATM App, on Shark Tank Season 10. After the pitch, the company secured a deal with Mark. Spare is still in business and growing!
D’Ontra Hughes wants a Shark to help him kill ATM machines with Spare, his app that’s a virtual ATM, in Shark Tank Season 10 Episode 20. Hughes founded Spare in 2013, and it’s one of only a few Apple “whitelisted” mobile banking apps out there. It uses the app as a virtual ATM, allowing participating merchants to ditch ATMs and their processing fees. Spare actually pays merchants to dispense cash to customers, too.
Check out other Shark Tank Season 10 Episodes.
About Spare
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Business Name | Spare |
| Founder | D’Ontra Hughes |
| Industry | Financial Technology |
| Product | Virtual ATM app |
| Deal Status | Deal secured with Mark Cuban |
| Investment Asked | $500,000 for 3.5% equity |
| Deal Outcome | $500,000 for 12% equity + 2% advisory shares |
| Valuation | $14.3 million |
With the Spare app, customers can request cash from a participating merchant. They upload funds to the app from a bank account, PayPal, or other account, select the amount they want to withdraw, and then request the cash from a nearby participating merchant.
The merchant wins because they get foot traffic, reduce ATM fees, and get paid by Spare to dispense cash. Less cash on hand means fewer trips to the bank for the merchant, too.
There are three competing apps that do the same thing as Spare, but they’re all overseas. D’Ontra hopes to be first to market in the USA. So far, the company has raised $347,000 in three rounds of funding – all of them convertible notes. It’s unclear how many merchants signed on to date, but the company is looking for part-time employees to refer merchants. So far, it’s only available on Apple devices, but Android can’t be far behind.
Hughes likely wants a Shark to help with merchant acquisition, as the more merchants that offer the service, the more valuable the app becomes. Will a Shark want to invest in this ATM-killing technology?
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Posts about Spare on Shark Tank Blog
Spare Shark Tank Recap
D’Ontra enters seeking $500,000 for 3.5% of his business. The valuation causes the Sharks to audibly gasp. As D’Ontra explains the business model, he’s peppered with questions about the logistics of expansion.
Did Spare Get a Deal on Shark Tank?
The Sharks think merchants won’t want to keep much cash on hand for the app’s customers.
The Sharks drop out one by one, but Mark stays in. He offers $500,000 for 12% plus 2% advisory shares, and D’Ontra accepts.
Spare Shark Tank Update
The Shark Tank Blog constantly provides updates and follow-ups about entrepreneurs who have appeared on the Shark Tank TV show. As of July 2019, four months after the original air date, this deal hasn’t closed. It’s not listed on Mark’s website as one of his Shark Tank companies, and the app still hasn’t expanded beyond the City of Los Angeles. It looks like this deal with Mark is dead.
As of June 2021, the deal with Mark had never closed. D’Ontra continues to grow the business and has partnerships with Master Card, LiteLink Technologies Inc., and others. The Litelink deal, struck in June 2019, allows uBuck customers to use the Spare network.
As of June 2023, the company is still in business and has an annual revenue of $4 million. As of September 2023, the net worth of Spare is $22.1 million.
Where Can You Download the Spare App?
Spare app can be downloaded from their official website. It can also be downloaded from the Google or Apple App stores. Check out their social media pages for more recent updates: Facebook and Twitter.
Quick Summary
- D’Ontra Hughes seeks $500,000 for 3.5% equity in Spare, an app designed to act as a virtual ATM, allowing customers to withdraw cash from participating merchants instead of traditional ATMs.
- Mark Cuban offers $500,000 for 12% equity plus 2% advisory shares, which D’Ontra accepts, though the deal ultimately did not close.
- Despite the deal falling through, Spare continues to grow, forming partnerships with major companies and achieving $4 million in annual revenue as of June 2023.
Interested in knowing more about the products from this episode? Check out the updates of other businesses that participated alongside Spare on Shark Tank Season 10 Episode 20.
