The latest funding deals and a few trends we're tracking. Ideas on what else would be helpful?
REPORT
Seedlings, it’s your lucky day. We feature on our report this week those companies just starting out who are raising initial seed capital.
SF Bay Area InsurTech startup Angle Health has an eye towards small-group health insurance for those lean-mean business machines. Next up, Cambrian Asset Management explodes onto the wealth management scene with the promise of uncorrelated riches investing in digital assets. Pulling it together for real estate owners is Chicago-based IoT SaaS platform Cohesion – also a Chicago’s 50 Startups to Watch. With a flourish, Flourish Savings blends financial literacy and game elements to encourage super financial habits.
FLX Distribution, hailing from the greater NYC area, is on a mission to transform asset management distribution for wealth management and financial advisors. Decentralized crypto derivatives exchange Injective Protocol, incubated by exchange giant Binance, is looking to fully launch in Q3 of 2020. Back in the Bay is Meemo, an AI-powered social finance app with a heavy dose of empathy. Teller Finance, which offers risk-assessed loans by connecting to your bank, is about to kick off. Last, but certainly not least, is Trusty.care, which is taking aim at improving Medicare through AI.
Q3 FinTech Deals
Q3 Capital Raised (M)
Q3 Acquisitions
YTD FinTech Deals
YTD Capital Raised (M)
YTD Acquisitions
US FINTECH ECOSYSTEM IN 2020
LEADING SECTORS BY STATE
CALIFORNIA
- Payments/Billing (15.06%)
- InsurTech (10.81%)
- Blockchain/Crypto (10.62%)
NEW YORK
- Wealth Management (12.54%)
- InsurTech (11.11%)
- Capital Markets (10.04%)
MASSACHUSETTS
- InsurTech (22.73%)
- Personal Finance (12.12%)
- Capital Markets (12.12%)
InsurTech is on fire in every major FinTech ecosystem in the US.
Much of the Blockchain funding going in to valley. In percentage of the overall ecosystem it's double that of the east-coast.
InsurTech represents a staggering 22% of the Massachusetts ecosystem.
Payments dominate on the west coast (honorable mention to Atlanta)
While Capital Markets is in the top 3 of both NY and MA, but remains surprisingly strong on the west coast.
HOW TRENDS ARE EVOLVING [YTD 2020 vs 2019]
| 2019 | YTD 2020 | Variation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mortgage/Real estate | 6.06% (66) | 11.25% (45) | 5.19% ▲ |
| Personal Finance | 8.91% (97) | 10.50% (42) | 1.59% ▲ |
| Digital Banking | 9.18% (100) | 5.00% (20) | -4.18% ▼ |
| Lending | 7.53% (82) | 4.25% (17) | -3.28% ▼ |
| Business Intelligence | 6.34% (69) | 3.25% (13) | -3.09% ▼ |
A surge in Mortgage and Real Estate startups in 2020. If the trend continues we'll see twice as many deals in the sector this year.
Personal finance companies have tailwinds in 2020. Too soon to say if the pandemic is responsible for the influx in venture-backed personal finance companies.
2019 was almost too hot for challenger banks. Things naturally had to cool off. Flash frozen may be the term.
No surprise with default rates accelerating that lending will be ice cold for the rest of 2020.
Business intelligence popped in 2019 as the realization that SMBs are underserved gained attention.
RECENT DEALS
Period: 07/21/2020 - 08/01/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Headquarters | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Crunchbase. Data is current as of August 1, 2020 | ||||||
| True Link Financial | Series B | $35,000,000 | Wealth Management | Khosla Ventures | San Francisco, California, United States | July 28, 2020 |
| Cambrian Asset Management | Seed | $4,200,000 | Wealth Management | Dennis Phelps | Mill Valley, California, United States | July 23, 2020 |
| Sidecar Health | Venture - Series Unknown | $20,000,000 | InsurTech | Cathay Innovation | El Segundo, California, United States | July 23, 2020 |
| Branch Financial | Series A | $24,000,000 | InsurTech | Greycroft | Columbus, Ohio, United States | July 22, 2020 |
| The Helper Bees | Series A | $6,000,000 | InsurTech | Silverton Partners | Austin, Texas, United States | July 22, 2020 |
| Zuul | Venture - Series Unknown | $9,000,000 | Wealth Management | -- | New York, New York, United States | July 22, 2020 |
| Episode Six | Series A | $7,000,000 | Payments/Billing | HSBC | Austin, Texas, United States | July 22, 2020 |
| Ava Labs | Initial Coin Offering | $42,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | Brooklyn, New York, United States | July 22, 2020 |
| Hatchback Cottages | Series B | -- | Mortgage/Real estate | -- | Seattle, Washington, United States | July 22, 2020 |
| Hippo Insurance | Series E | $150,000,000 | InsurTech | -- | Palo Alto, California, United States | July 21, 2020 |
| Meemo | Seed | $10,000,000 | Personal Finance | Greycroft | San Francisco, California, United States | July 21, 2020 |
| Angle Health | Seed | $4,000,000 | InsurTech | Blumberg Capital | San Francisco, California, United States | July 21, 2020 |
| Jirav | Series A | $8,300,000 | Core Technology | Information Venture Partners | San Francisco, California, United States | July 21, 2020 |
| Flourish Savings | Seed | $100,000 | Capital Markets | -- | Berkeley, California, United States | July 21, 2020 |
| Propel(X) | Convertible Note | $5,500,000 | Capital Markets | Franklin Templeton Investments | San Francisco, California, United States | July 20, 2020 |
| FLX Distribution | Seed | $2,500,000 | Wealth Management | RiverNorth Capital Management | New York, New York, United States | July 20, 2020 |
| Hummingbird | Series A | $8,200,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Flourish Ventures | San Francisco, California, United States | July 16, 2020 |
| cohesion | Seed | $6,500,000 | Core Technology | Hyde Park Angels | Chicago, Illinois, United States | July 16, 2020 |
| Teller Finance | Seed | $1,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Framework Ventures | San Francisco, California, United States | July 16, 2020 |
| Trusty.care | Seed | $1,500,000 | InsurTech | -- | New York, New York, United States | July 31, 2020 |
| Circle | Venture - Series Unknown | $25,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Digital Currency Group | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | July 30, 2020 |
| JetClosing | Series B | $9,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | T. Rowe Price | Seattle, Washington, United States | July 30, 2020 |
| Acrisure | Venture - Series Unknown | -- | InsurTech | Tulco | Caledonia, Michigan, United States | July 29, 2020 |
| Guideline | Series D | $80,000,000 | RegTech | Greyhound Capital | San Mateo, California, United States | July 29, 2020 |
| Covr Financial Technologies | Series B | $7,500,000 | InsurTech | -- | Hartford, Connecticut, United States | July 29, 2020 |
| Remitly | Series F | $85,000,000 | Payments/Billing | PayU | Seattle, Washington, United States | July 29, 2020 |
| Injective Protocol | Seed | $2,600,000 | Capital Markets | Pantera Capital | New York, New York, United States | July 29, 2020 |
| Clearinghouse Community Development Financial Institution | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,100,000 | Lending | Comerica Incorporated | Lake Forest, California, United States | July 28, 2020 |
| Wingocard | Seed | $2,000,000 | Personal Finance | Diagram Ventures | Montreal, Quebec, Canada | July 28, 2020 |
PREVIOUS REPORTS
JULY 20TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
“In the next five years, fintech will drive some of the biggest VC exits” reads a recent VentureBeat titled The Enormous Opportunity in FinTech. Who do you think will be the next big exit? On to this week’s highlights.
Bond. James Bond. Suave, just like SF-based Bond Financial Technologies. The company raked in a $32M Series A with some big-name backers: Coatue, Goldman Sachs, Mastercard, and Capital B. Bond is building out some serious platform tech to “deliver the infrastructure banks and brands need to innovate with speed, safety and scale”. NYC-based Privacy.com is on a mission to counter data breaches that thieve credit card numbers. Users can create virtual credit cards with purchase limits. $10.2M in Series A funding will help the company “hire and ramp up product development at a much faster pace”.
Digital banking gets another boost with Senso.ai – try that five times fast. This YYZ-based AI brain bank helps financial institutions turbo-charge client retention. Their $3M seed will help the startup expand “into credit cards and other products”. Another Canadian seed-stage startup on our list this week is Oliver POS. This nocturnal startup landed C$3.2M to continue building its point-of-sale (POS) system for the open-source e-commerce platform WooCommerce.
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 07/03/2020 - 07/20/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Crunchbase. Data is current as of July 20, 2020 | ||||||
| Bolt | Series C | $50,000,000 | Payments/Billing | WestCap | July 16, 2020 | |
| Bond Financial Technologies, Inc. | Series A | $32,000,000 | Core Technology | Coatue Management | July 15, 2020 | |
| Privacy.com | Series A | $10,200,000 | Payments/Billing | Teamworthy Ventures | July 15, 2020 | |
| Willful | Seed | $800,000 | Wealth Management | Tactico | July 15, 2020 | |
| Bbot | Seed | $3,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Craft Ventures | July 14, 2020 | |
| Snowball Money | Equity Crowdfunding | $600,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | July 14, 2020 | |
| AriNasDa Realty Co. | Pre-Seed | -- | Mortgage/Real estate | -- | July 14, 2020 | |
| Taulia | Venture - Series Unknown | $60,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Ping An Global Voyager Fund | July 10, 2020 | |
| Senso.ai | Seed | $3,000,000 | Digital Banking | BreakawayGrowth Fund | July 9, 2020 | |
| Icon Savings Plan | Seed | $3,200,000 | Wealth Management | Tom Blaisdell | July 9, 2020 | |
| Growers Edge | Series B | $40,000,000 | Business Intelligence | S2G Ventures | July 8, 2020 | |
| Nomad Homes | Seed | $4,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Comcast Ventures | July 8, 2020 | |
| Verikai | Series A | $6,000,000 | InsurTech | ManchesterStory Group | July 8, 2020 | |
| SwipeSum | Angel | $1,100,000 | Payments/Billing | Cequel III | July 8, 2020 | |
| Docoh | Seed | CA$345,000 | Capital Markets | -- | July 8, 2020 | |
| Volos | Convertible Note | $1,275,000 | Capital Markets | -- | July 8, 2020 | |
| Apiture | Venture - Series Unknown | $20,000,000 | Core Technology | Pinnacle Financial Partners | July 7, 2020 | |
| Chainalysis | Series B | $13,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Ribbit Capital | July 7, 2020 | |
| Grow Credit | Seed | $2,250,000 | Lending | Mucker Capital | July 7, 2020 | |
| Foxquilt | Seed | CA$3,500,000 | InsurTech | Extreme Venture Partners | July 7, 2020 | |
| Oliver POS | -- | CA$3,200,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | July 7, 2020 | |
| Flinks | Series A | CA$11,000,000 | Core Technology | NAventures | July 6, 2020 | |
| Occupier | Seed | -- | Mortgage/Real estate | REACH | July 1, 2020 | |
JUNE 19TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Disruptors to maximum – FinTech is back in business and ready to transform the galaxy. Read on as we alight on a few of the 20 firms expanding horizons.
We begin with Boston-based towerIQ, a SaaS startup targeting insurance market transparency. The team locked in $4.5M from, arguably, the best-named VC firms: General Catalyst, Hyperplane VC, and Recharge Capital, among others. Next, we have wealth management firm UNest, which uses a mobile app to democratize the management of college savings plans for kiddos – now on Android and iOS. Our science friends in the audience will enjoy this reference: Planck. The company was awarded $16M Series B to help “underwrite any business”.
Knock, knock. Who’s there? EasyKnock and a $20M Series B. Tech makes it easy to sell your home and/or lease it back to yourself. Next, an upgrade. Not a joke upgrade (or actually...) but a $40M Series D from SF-based neobank Upgrade. Over to cyber/fraud seed startup Unum ID “sharifying” ID with a virtual ID card and $2M to do it – brought to you by VC firm (Don) Draper Associates. Last up, personal finance Pando and $8.5M. Pool your resources to minimize the risk of high-volatility careers.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
Deciens Capital
Lead Investor
Anthos Capital
Lead Investor
Polychain
RECENT DEALS
Period: 06/04/2020 - 06/18/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Crunchbase. Data is current as of June 18, 2020 | ||||||
| Botkeeper | Series B | $25,000,000 | Core Technology | High Alpha | June 18, 2020 | |
| River Financial | Seed | $5,700,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Polychain | June 17, 2020 | |
| Upgrade | Series D | $40,000,000 | Digital Banking | Santander InnoVentures | June 17, 2020 | |
| Unum ID | Seed | $2,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Draper Associates | June 17, 2020 | |
| EasyKnock | Series B | $20,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Blumberg Capital | June 16, 2020 | |
| Chipper Cash | Series A | $13,800,000 | Money Transfer/Remittances | Deciens Capital | June 16, 2020 | |
| Brightside | Series A | $35,100,000 | Personal Finance | Andreessen Horowitz | June 16, 2020 | |
| UNest | Series A | $9,000,000 | Wealth Management | Anthos Capital | June 16, 2020 | |
| Dovly | Seed | $2,000,000 | Personal Finance | NFX | June 16, 2020 | |
| Genie | Pre-Seed | $250,000 | Personal Finance | -- | June 12, 2020 | |
| Haus | Series A | $15,750,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | BlueRun Ventures | June 11, 2020 | |
| Origin | Venture - Series Unknown | $12,000,000 | InsurTech | Felicis Ventures | June 11, 2020 | |
| Planck | Series B | $16,000,000 | InsurTech | Team8 Capital | June 10, 2020 | |
| M1 Finance | Series B | $33,000,000 | Wealth Management | Left Lane Capital | June 9, 2020 | |
| NYMBUS | Venture - Series Unknown | $12,000,000 | Core Technology | Insight Partners | June 9, 2020 | |
| Pando | Series A | $8,500,000 | Personal Finance | Core Innovation Capital | June 9, 2020 | |
| Xomi, Inc. (d/b/a Chargeback) | Series A | $6,600,000 | Cyber/Fraud | FINTOP Capital | June 8, 2020 | |
| Wahed Invest | Venture - Series Unknown | $25,000,000 | Wealth Management | Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Ventures | June 8, 2020 | |
| towerIQ | Series A | $4,500,000 | Capital Markets | General Catalyst | June 8, 2020 | |
| taxProper | Seed | $2,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Khosla Ventures | June 6, 2020 | |
JUN 5TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
While they weren’t signed with a handshake, a number of interesting seed-stage companies secured new capital this week starting off a handful of Techstars-accelerated new entrants.
Propagate Ventures, landed a $1.5M seed to bring investment to agroforestry. They are followed by Curu, scoring $3M to help credit applicants avoided the dreaded “your credit application has been rejected”.
Onto the larger checks. Making waves is Splash Financial with $12.3M aiming to counter the $1.6T tsunami of student loan debt headed our way. Next up is Stackin’ with a $12.6M raise and a dream to make personalized financial education services available to everyone via text – :). B2B payment and credit network Fundbox locked in a $20M round-two Series C. Snagging a $27M slice of the funding pie (and a cool $100M in equity financing on top) is Pie Insurance. This D.C.-based startup provides workers’ comp insurance to small businesses. Last but not least is SF-based mobile banking company Varo Money. The bank-chartered FinTech with a monster $241M raise, funded by a veritable cast of characters: Bono, billionaire movie producer Jeff Skoll, and Progressive Insurance.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
Octopus Ventures
Lead Investor
Vestigo Ventures
Lead Investor
CMFG Ventures
RECENT DEALS
Period: 05/22/2020 - 06/4/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Crunchbase. Data is current as of June 4, 2020 | ||||||
| Curu | Seed | $3,000,000 | Personal Finance | Vestigo Ventures | May 22, 2020 | |
| Fundbox | Series C | $20,000,000 | Payments/Billing | MUFG Innovation Partners | May 26, 2020 | |
| Splash Financial | Series A | $12,300,000 | Personal Finance | CMFG Ventures | May 26, 2020 | |
| Pie Insurance | Series B | $27,000,000 | Insurtech | Aspect Ventures | May 28, 2020 | |
| LaterPay | Venture - Series Unknown | $10,000,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | May 28, 2020 | |
| Stackin' | Series B | $12,600,000 | Personal Finance | Octopus Ventures | May 28, 2020 | |
| Propagate Ventures | Seed | $1,500,000 | Business Intelligence | Neglected Climate Opportunities | May 29, 2020 | |
| Rentberry | Equity Crowdfunding | -- | Mortgage/Real Estate | Bay Wharf Capital | May 29, 2020 | |
| Teiqui | Pre-Seed | -- | Regtech | -- | May 30, 2020 | |
| Spaced Ventures | Pre-Seed | $150,000 | Capital Markets | -- | June 1, 2020 | |
| Ubitquity LLC | Pre-Seed | $50,000 | Mortgage/Real Estate | -- | June 1, 2020 | |
| Nesto | Venture - Series Unknown | $11,500,000 | Mortgage/Real Estate | Diagram Ventures | June 2, 2020 | |
| Numerai | Initial Coin Offering | $3,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | CoinFund | June 3, 2020 | |
| The Small Exchange | Seed | $4,000,000 | Capital Markets | PhillipCapital | June 3, 2020 | |
| Betterview | Series B | $7,500,000 | Core Technology | ManchesterStory Group | June 3, 2020 | |
| Varo Money | Series D | $241,000,000 | Digital Banking | Gallatin Point Capital | June 3, 2020 | |
| Lili | Seed | $10,000,000 | Digital Banking | Group 11 | June 3, 2020 | |
MAY 22ND REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
FinTech funding has roared back to life this week with a slew of funding rounds. To kick off the week we have four late-stage funding raises: Carta, Brex, States Title, and Coalition for a whopping $543M combined. Next up: early-stage.
We begin with a tribute to the 70s supergroup ABBA – two Series As and two Bs. Our first is AI-powered Deep Labs, signing $16M to work some tech magic with “persona-based risk systems”. AI continues its forward march with Symend, who contracted $52M to help at-risk customers keep from defaulting on debt with sweet behavioral analytics. LoanSnap inked $10M, and won the investor lottery: Richard Branson and an ex-NFL quarterback star chipped in. Our final letter is Vise, completing the trifecta with $14.5M underwritten for AI-driven portfolio management.
With our blast from the past completed, on to the rest. The construction industry gets a boost with Briq’s $10M Series A. School fundraising meets FinTech with MemberHub’s, landing $7.5M to turbocharge PTAs. SF-based Stilt had its first seed round, locking in $7.5M to help people with little to no credit history get started. NYC-based Lolli is a rewards app offering shoppers bitcoin for purchases, now backed by Ashton Kutcher and Michelle Phan to the tune of $3M.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
Gunnar Overstrom
Lead Investor
Sequoia Capital
Lead Investor
Blackhorn Ventures
RECENT DEALS
Period: 05/07/2020 - 05/21/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Crunchbase. Data is current as of May 21, 2020 | ||||||
| Coinme | Venture - Series Unknown | $5,500,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Pantera Capital | May 7, 2020 | |
| STILT | Seed | $7,500,000 | Lending | -- | May 7, 2020 | |
| Symend | Series B | $52,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Inovia Capital | May 7, 2020 | |
| MemberHub | Series A | $3,300,000 | Payments/Billing | AIM Group | May 8, 2020 | |
| Carta | Series F | $180,000,000 | Capital Markets | Lightspeed Venture Partners | May 10, 2020 | |
| Hemista | Pre-Seed | $300,000 | Wealth Management | -- | May 10, 2020 | |
| Briq | Series A | $10,000,000 | Business Intelligence | Blackhorn Ventures | May 11, 2020 | |
| Clyde | Series A | $14,000,000 | InsurTech | Spark Capital | May 11, 2020 | |
| Lolli | Seed | $3,000,000 | Personal Finance | Pathfinder | May 11, 2020 | |
| Fenris | Seed | InsurTech | CIT GAP Funds | May 12, 2020 | ||
| Gravy | Convertible Note | $1,400,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | May 12, 2020 | |
| Vise | Series A | $14,500,000 | Wealth Management | Sequoia Capital | May 12, 2020 | |
| Charityvest | Pre-Seed | $1,100,000 | Personal Finance | -- | May 13, 2020 | |
| FalconX | Venture - Series Unknown | $17,000,000 | Wealth Management | -- | May 13, 2020 | |
| LeverageRx | Convertible Note | $625,000 | InsurTech | Invest Nebraska | May 13, 2020 | |
| Deep Labs | Series A | $16,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Gunnar Overstrom, Serendipity Capital, The Gramercy Fund | May 14, 2020 | |
| Homeward | Venture - Series Unknown | $20,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Adams Street Partners | May 14, 2020 | |
| LoanSnap | Series B | $10,000,000 | Lending | MANTIS Venture Capital, True Ventures | May 14, 2020 | |
| Levelfield | Seed | Digital Banking | -- | May 15, 2020 | ||
| Trust Stamp | Series A | $1,248,000 | Core Technology | OnRamp Insurance Accelerator | May 18, 2020 | |
| Brex | Series C | $150,000,000 | Payments/Billing | DST Global | May 19, 2020 | |
| Unifimoney | Pre-Seed | $1,000,000 | Digital Banking | -- | May 19, 2020 | |
| Coalition | Series C | $90,000,000 | InsurTech | Valor Equity Partners | May 20, 2020 | |
| Human Interest | Series C+ | $10,000,000 | Glynn Capital Management | May 20, 2020 | ||
| TokenSoft | Venture - Series Unknown | $4,000,000 | Capital Markets | -- | May 20, 2020 | |
| Deel | Series A | $14,000,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | May 21, 2020 | |
| States Title | Series C | $123,000,000 | InsurTech | Greenspring Associates | May 21, 2020 | |
| Aspiration | Series C | $135000000 | Digital Banking | Alpha Edison | May 21, 2020 | |
| Spruce Holdings | Series B | $29000000 | Real estate | Scale Venture Partners | May 21, 2020 | |
| CLARA analytics | Series B | $25000000 | InsurTech | Aspen Capital Group | May 21, 2020 | |
| All of Us | Seed | $3500000 | Capital Markets | -- | May 21, 2020 | |
| NEER | Pre-Seed | $100000 | Core Technology | gener8tor | May 21, 2020 | |
MAY 8TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
We begin this week with a special Zen moment. Everyone pause, take a deep breath – meow on to the list! Six first-rate FinTech firms confirmed funding for a total just shy of $30M. Here’s a thematic overview: banking automation, ai-investing, insurance, challenger banking, and e-commerce. There’s a little something for everyone.
SF-based API-focused startup Treasury Prime locked away $9M in Series A funding. This cash infusion will enable the company to invest in a go-to-market team who can reach more banks in need of routine task automation. Our international funding round this week goes to Toronto-based Boosted.ai, fusing investment manager and machine. The company downloaded an $8M Series A to distribute its “first-to-market artificial intelligence platform for investment professionals”.
Three seed rounds round out the middle of our pack today. NYC-based tech-driven Covered by Sage confirmed $6M to expand property and casualty insurance operations. San Mateo-based banking and payment services firm Wise landed $5.7M to enlighten the challenger banking world. E-commerce platform Boost garnered $1M to kick off #revolutionary shoppable hashtags. We end with a pre-seed: Vida Life is getting into the game to provide insurance products to the U.S Hispanic community.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
Amias Gerety
Lead Investor
Portag3 Ventures
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 04/24/2020 - 05/07/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Series A | $9,000,000 | Amias Gerety | May 5, 2020 |
|
|
Series A | $8,000,000 | Portag3 Ventures | May 5, 2020 |
|
Seed | $6,000,000 | NFX | Apr 28, 2020 |
|
Seed | $5,700,000 | Base10 Partners | Apr 29, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,000,000 | -- | May 1, 2020 |
|
Pre-Seed | -- | Sagicor | Apr 30, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
APRIL 24TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Despite the one-two punch of COVID-19 and the Q1 investment dip, entrepreneurs and investors continue to rally. Our funding round this week hosts many exemplary startups as hungry as ever. We begin with three Series A funding rounds.
SF-based OpenInvest landed $10.5M for a strategic A1 investing round. This tech-enabled asset management powerhouse garnered two sweet accolades in March: Fast Company’s Most Innovative Company 2020 and Best Retail Investment Platform. Please: a round of applause. SLC-based employee payroll platform Everee ever-delights with a $10M raise. This round follows hot on the heels of a mid-2019 $3.7M seed. DC-based Savi continues to build the path to student loan freedom with a $6M snag. Inc Magazine featured this savvy startup in 44th place on the “50 World-Changing Startups to Watch in 2019”. Watch out.
These soon-to-be spriggy seeds grew a combined $13.9M. AceTrader tops the list bringing real estate crowdfunding to the wide-world of agricultural land ownership. Trovata (not the clothing brand) uses open banking to automate financial data – take me to your banking leader. Atomic Loans knows crypto is still strong, and crypto loans with no intermediaries means bank. Benepass provides benefit cards for SMBs; Set Labs is a crypto-wizard financial platform. Whew!
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
QED Investors
Lead Investor
Nyca Partners
Lead Investor
Origin Ventures
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 04/10/2020 - 04/23/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Series A | $10,400,000 | QED Investors | Apr 16, 2020 |
|
|
Series A | $10,000,000 | Origin Ventures | Apr 16, 2020 |
|
|
Series A | $6,000,000 | Nyca Partners | Apr 14, 2020 |
|
Seed | $5,000,000 | RZC Investments | Apr 10, 2020 |
|
Seed | $4,300,000 | JP Morgan | Apr 21, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,450,000 | Initialized Capital | Apr 14, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,150,000 | -- | Apr 20, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Apr 18, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
APRIL 10TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
FinTech funding in the time of Coronavirus – who will survive and who will thrive?
Chicago-based Arturo departed the nest of parent company American Family Insurance in 2018. It’s mission: combine AI and aerial imagery to scan down and assess commercial property risk. An $8M Series A will power the firm’s expansion into North America and the Asia Pacific. RoadSync, based in Atlanta, picked up $5.7M to truck in more digital payment improvements for the transportation industry.
Six seed rounds round out our week. By order of appearance, we begin with Sila, whose teamwork is making the dream of effortless digital payments work. Shout out to Shamir Karkal, Co-founder, CEO, and close friend of Empire Startups!
Stepping up next is, Cadence, who was awarded funds to the tune of $4M to unlock alternative high yield investments. Our next two seed rounds have made education a priority. The Wealth Factory is on a +$1M mission to educate future FinTech leaders in the art of money management. Parents can join too! Savology banked $750k to help adults level up their financial planning. In the undeclared territory is investment management firm Wilshire Phoenix and P2P FinTech digital asset network DeFiner.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
Crosslink Capital
Lead Investor
Madrona Venture Group
Lead Investor
Base10 Partners
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 03/27/2020 - 04/09/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series A | $8,000,000 | Crosslink Capital | Apr 7, 2020 |
|
Seed | $7,700,000 | Madrona Venture Group | Apr 8, 2020 |
|
Series A | $5,700,000 | Base10 Partners | Mar 31, 2020 |
|
Seed | $4,000,000 | Revel Partners | Apr 7, 2020 |
|
Seed | $3,800,000 | -- | Apr 9, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,000,000 | -- | Apr 5, 2020 |
|
Seed | $750,000 | -- | Apr 2, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Apr 2, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Apr 1, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
MARCH 27TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
FinTech funding slowed to a trickle this week in the wake of the economic uncertainty roiling the markets. Have no fear: FinTech is here, and here to stay. We all know the bad news so let’s focus on the good!
We begin with two Series A startups: One and Coterie. The SF-based digital bank One banked a $17M Series A. Still in early launch mode, this digital contender is riding the wave of support for online-only banks. API-based commercial insurance provider Coterie inked an $8.5M Series A deal. This InsurTech startup uses APIs to act as an intermediary for providers, customers, and even freelancers.
Three startup companies join us for seed round funding this week: ZeFi, Trimwire, and WealthyPlanet. ZeFi is an Ethereum-powered high-yield savings account for USD and virtual currencies. The company grew out of the 2020 Y Combinator startup field. Trimwire is another 2020 Y Combinator startup that “builds spend management software for startups to maximize their runway”. Both ZeFi and Trimwire landed $150,000 in seed round funding. Last up is Ontario-based WealthyPlanet, offering financial planning for Canadians. The company offers to make you a financial planning rock star for the ultra-low-cost of free. Hurrah!
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
FOUNDATION CAPITAL
Lead Investor
RPM VENTURES
Lead Investor
MERCANTI MANAGEMENT
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 03/13/2020 - 03/26/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series A | $17,000,000 | Foundation Capital | Mar 17, 2020 |
|
Series A | $8,500,000 | RPM Ventures | Mar 20, 2020 |
|
Seed | $150,000 | -- | Mar 16, 2020 |
|
Seed | $150,000 | Y Combinator | Mar 16, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | Mercanti Management | Mar 16, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
MARCH 13TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Our first drop-in this week is the all-in-one spend management platform Airbase. The SF-based company raked in a $23.5M Series A extension, led by private equity firm Bain Capital, and is aiming at a second-year ARR 4x.
Next up is NorthOne, America’s SME challenger bank entering the ring with a $21M Series A – and the crowd chants: Rocky, Rocky, Rocky! Not to be outdone is mobile-banking startup Empower raising $20M. Founded by former Sequoia Capital partner Warren Hogarth, the company boasts 600,000 active users in just over 3 years. Out for the greater good is Welcome Technologies, a fintech platform connecting global immigrants with products and services. This certified B-corporation banked an $8M Series A.
Texas-based crypto-focused Zabo is using its $2.5M Seed to link financial service companies and cryptocurrency wallets. Vancouver-based IOT Pay garnered a $1M Seed round. The company recently helped local Canadian supermarkets offer mobile payment solutions, such as Alipay and WeChat Pay. For those on-the-go, the Xaggo mobile app lets you pay international bills from anywhere in the world. The company recently netted a $240,000 Seed. Last but not least is DeFiner, a decentralized financial institution wishing a farewell to the intermediaries of loans, savings, payments, and other investments.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
BAIN CAPITAL
Lead Investor
BATTERY VENTURES
Lead Investor
DEFY VENTURES
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 02/28/2020 - 03/12/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series A | $23,500,000 | Bain Capital Ventures | Mar 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | $21,000,000 | Battery Ventures | Mar 10, 2020 |
|
Series A | $20,000,000 | Defy Ventures | Mar 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | $8,000,000 | Crosscut Ventures | Mar 3, 2020 |
|
Series A | $8,000,000 | EFM Asset Management | Mar 3, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,500,000 | Moonshots Capital | Mar 5, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,000,000 | CentreGold Capital | Mar 6, 2020 |
|
Seed | $240,000 | SUR LLC | Mar 3, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Mar 1, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
FEBRUARY 28TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
2019 brought in a slew of new FinTech unicorns – 24 to be exact, reports Tech Crunch. Get out your crystal ball to divine which one of the many up-and-coming startups this week will break the bank.
We begin with a Series A $10M two-for-one: Ordway, a billing and revenue automation platform, and Reggora, an all-in-one mortgage lender appraisal platform. Helping to transform and streamline pricing transparency in healthcare is Santa Monica-based Anagram. Formerly Patch, the company recently rearranged into its new name along with a $9M Series A.
Taking a turn towards a few select seed rounds, we have Pipe, Alkymi, and DigitalPay. First: LA-based Pipe offers SaaS companies a pipeline for converting MRR into ARR. Next: NYC-based Alkymi automates email data extraction through machine learning. Last: SF-based DigitalPay (formerly known as Sipree) enables companies to expedite digital payouts to payees.
This week we conclude with Talage, Aiera, and QRails. InsurTech startup Talage drew in a $5M Series A to “power the digital distribution of commercial property and casualty insurance”. AI-driven Aiera landed a $7M Series A to empower fundamental investing strategies – monitor public earnings calls and more. QRails (who acquired Rete+Pay in 2019) grabbed an $8M Series A to help financial institutions “deploy innovative digital payment solutions.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
CRV
Lead Investor
ACCOMPLICE
Lead Investor
POINT72 VENTURES
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 02/14/2020 - 02/27/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series A | $10,000,000 | CRV | Feb 19, 2020 |
|
Series A | $10,000,000 | Spark Capital | Feb 12, 2020 |
|
Series A | $9,100,000 | -- | Feb 28, 2020 |
|
Series A | $8,600,000 | Accomplice | Feb 14, 2020 |
|
Series A | $8,500,000 | Santander InnoVentures | Feb 19, 2020 |
|
Series A | $8,000,000 | Point72 Ventures | Feb 25, 2020 |
|
|
Series A | $8,000,000 | -- | Mar 3, 2020 |
|
Series A | $7,000,000 | Fin Venture Capital | Feb 12, 2020 |
|
Seed | $6,000,000 | Craft Ventures | Feb 25, 2020 |
|
Series A | $5,000,000 | Merus Capital | Feb 13, 2020 |
|
Seed | $5,000,000 | Canaan Partners | Feb 26, 2020 |
|
Seed | $3,000,000 | -- | Feb 19, 2020 |
|
Seed | CA$3,000,000 | -- | Feb 19, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,000,000 | -- | Feb 25, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,200,000 | Temerity Capital Partners | Feb 12, 2020 |
|
Series A | -- | -- | Feb 25, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Feb 26, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
FEBRUARY 14TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
We’re starting our month of fintech love with Cherre. Founded four years ago, the companies most-recent funding round was led by Intel Capital raising $16M. What is this NYC-based real estate data analytics machine going to do with this cash infusion? Serve up the $50T real estate investing and underwriting market with a cherry on top. Seconds anyone?
Tinkering away in the global financial settlements system is Transparent Systems. A $14M Series A boosts this crypto-settlements solution convinced “money is the slowest technology to evolve”. Also looking for a leg up with a gemini Series A is Boost Insurance – insurtech is making insurance sexy.
Our international mention this week comes in the form of Mexico City-based Stori Card, offering inclusive digital financial services to Latin America after a $10M raise. Next-gen real estate guru Houwzer is growing the D.C. team after its $9.5M Series A. Buzzing around your nearest startup is EquityBee and a $6.6M raise to help founding employees cash in.
Our holiday wouldn’t be complete without an assortment of seed ventures. MoCaFi offers low-cost financial services to underserved communities; Obie streamlines commercial real estate management; Goodcover is slashing insurance costs across the board.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
COATUE
Lead Investor
FUTURE PERFECT
Lead Investor
CARTHONA CAPITAL
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 01/30/2020 - 02/13/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series A | $16,000,000 | Carthona Capital | Feb 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | $14,000,000 | Future Perfect Ventures | Feb 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | $14,000,000 | Coatue Management | Feb 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | $10,000,000 | Bertelsmann Asia | Feb 4, 2020 |
|
Series A | $9,500,000 | Admiral Capital Group | Feb 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | $6,600,000 | AltaIR Capital | Feb 11, 2020 |
|
Seed | $3,500,000 | Capital Access Holdings | Feb 5, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,800,000 | FundersClub | Feb 4, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,000,000 | Fuel Capital | Feb 6, 2020 |
|
Seed | $100,000 | SeedInvest | Feb 4, 2020 |
|
Series A | -- | Global Brain Corporation | Feb 5, 2020 |
|
Series A | -- | Hamilton Lane | Feb 6, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | General Atlantic | Feb 9, 2020 |
|
Pre-Seed | -- | Robert Smithson | Feb 4, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
JANUARY 31ST REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Where we all hope fintech is headed: Visa acquiring Plaid for $5.3B and Stripe over $20B. Buckle up.
On the other side of the fintech funding coin are two Series As. SF-based Aumni cashed in $10M to free VC data and analytics from its human mind confines – more data! Sneaky NYC-based Forwardlane garnered an undisclosed amount to continue doing “mind-boggling” things with AI and wealth management.
63.63% of our list this week are seeds, soon to be saplings. First up, Gentem and its platform to help physicians get instant reimbursements and pay off the mountains of medical school debt. Knox Financial helps customers convert their home into a passive income money machine. Rapidly wants to completely virtualize tax and accounting practices.
Representing our northern neighbor is Montréal-based Lexop. Fintech meets debt collection to “remove friction from collections”. Similarly based is Contxtful technologies, harvesting eyeballs with its receptivity score. Returning home from our Canadian sojourn is U-Nest – the app that lets you bank for your child’s college fund. TomoCredit smashes through the no-credit-history barrier by analyzing alternative data sources. Last but not least, Kurtosys serves up an end-to-end digital platform for financial service organizations.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
SVB FINANCIAL
Lead Investor
SUSA VENTURES
Lead Investor
GREYCROFT
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 01/17/2020 - 01/30/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series F | $240,000,000 | -- | Jan 14, 2020 |
|
Series A | $10,000,000 | SVB Financial Group | Jan 28, 2020 |
|
Seed | $3,700,000 | Susa Ventures | Jan 15, 2020 |
|
Seed | $3,000,000 | Greycroft | Jan 27, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,840,000 | -- | Feb 1, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,800,000 | Anges Quebec | Jan 28, 2020 |
|
Seed | CA$2,000,000 | -- | Jan 29, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,500,000 | -- | Jan 15, 2020 |
|
Pre-Seed | -- | -- | Jan 20, 2020 |
|
Series A | -- | -- | Jan 23, 2020 |
|
Series D | -- | Vistara Capital Partners | Jan 23, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
JANUARY 17TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Welcome to 2020 and a new decade of fantastic fintech funding. First up for the new year is Securrency, pioneer of blockchain-based financial and regulatory market infrastructure. Watch out – the tokenization of the financial world is underway. The firm locked in $17.6M worth of Series A, led by WisdomTree Investments.
Our next big spender is Locale with an $11M Series A. Billed as an upscale short- and long-term accommodations for the discerning traveler. Get your home-away-from-home on, resort-style pool included. A unique stand out from the group is TypingDNA, which uses AI and biometrics to recognize people by how they type. This NYC-based big brother just cashed in $7M in Series A from Gradient Ventures.
We don’t have much space left, so a quick seed lightning round: Edquity is a special financial planning app for students; Collbox somehow blends ethical cloud-based debt collection; Dottid promises seamless SaaS leasing options for commercial real estate; Balance is the digital Fort Knox for the crypto world; Fundraise Up supercharges online donations with human-centered brilliance.
We’ll end with our solo pre-seed, Savvy. NYC folks are about to get faster, smarter, better tenant screening with this new-comer.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
WISDOMTREE
Lead Investor
GRADIENT VENTURES
Lead Investor
AMPLO
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 01/03/2020 - 01/16/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series C | $50,000,000 | OMERS Ventures | Jan 3, 2020 |
|
Series D | $50,000,000 | SVB Capital | Jan 8, 2020 |
|
Series C | $27,000,000 | Cox Enterprises | Jan 9, 2020 |
|
Series A | $17,600,000 | WisdomTree | Jan 8, 2020 |
|
Series A | $11,000,000 | Amplo | Jan 13, 2020 |
|
Series A | $7,000,000 | Gradient Ventures | Jan 4, 2020 |
|
Series A | $5,400,000 | Switch Ventures | Jan 8, 2020 |
|
Seed | $4,000,000 | First Round Capital | Jan 7, 2020 |
|
Seed | $3,850,000 | -- | Jan 13, 2020 |
|
Seed | $2,400,000 | ECMC Foundation | Jan 6, 2020 |
|
Pre-Seed | $1,600,000 | Amnis Ventures | Jan 7, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,250,000 | Splash Capital | Jan 9, 2020 |
|
|
Seed | CA$1,500,000 | Fonds Innovexport | Jan 20, 2020 |
|
Seed | $1,000,000 | Bala Investments | Jan 2, 2020 |
|
Pre-Seed | $150,000 | Antler | Jan 3, 2020 |
|
Seed | $30,000 | -- | Jan 9, 2020 |
|
Seed | $30,000 | -- | Jan 9, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Jan 6, 2020 |
|
|
Seed | -- | -- | Jan 1, 2020 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Jan 2, 2020 |
Source: Crunchbase
JANUARY 3RD REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
2019 had one last hurrah with a fintech funding round bonanza. Our list this week tops out at 13 companies you won’t want to miss. First up is Huckleberry, taking in $18M of Series A from Tribe Capital. The company offers easy online insurance for small businesses, which means that Huckleberry can say Doc’s famous line: “I’m your huckleberry.”
Next, we have Modern Treasury, a recent Y Combinator graduate, automating the business cycle of money movement with some modern tech wizardry. They banked a $10M Series A to continue scaling the business. Keep an eye on Trust & Will, an online estate planning venture underwritten to the tune of $6M in Series A funding. The firm has snappy marketing efforts led by a young whippersnapper you won’t forget. Slinking around at the bottom of our list is insurech firm REIN, committed to building digital insurance products.
For our seeds this week, cross-border payment startup Chipper Cash garnered its second funding of 2019. Leaping into the fray is Leapfin, a unified data platform for actionable (and delectable) financials. Last – and also lurking at the bottom – is Tassat, a blockchain-based powerup for frictionless asset transfer and crypto derivatives.
IN THE NEWS...
Lead Investor
TETRAGON
Lead Investor
BENCHMARK
Lead Investor
BOWERY CAPITAL
ALL RECENT FUNDING ROUNDS
Period: 12/13/2019 - 01/02/2020
| Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Lead Investor | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Series D | $635,000,000 | New Enterprise Associates | Dec 17, 2019 |
|
Series C | $200,000,000 | Tetragon Financial Group | Dec 20, 2019 |
|
Series C | $30,000,000 | Horizons Ventures | Dec 20, 2019 |
|
Series C | $22,000,000 | -- | Dec 18, 2019 |
|
Series A | $18,000,000 | Tribe Capital | Dec 18, 2019 |
|
Series A | $10,000,000 | Benchmark | Dec 19, 2019 |
|
Seed | $6,000,000 | Deciens Capital | Dec 16, 2019 |
|
Series A | $6,000,000 | Link Ventures | Dec 17, 2019 |
|
Seed | $4,500,000 | Bowery Capital | Dec 20, 2019 |
|
Seed | $4,200,000 | Bienville Capital | Dec 20, 2019 |
|
Seed | $3,400,000 | Vestigo Ventures | Dec 17, 2019 |
|
Series A | -- | Volvo Financial Services | Dec 21, 2019 |
|
Seed | -- | -- | Dec 16, 2019 |
Source: Crunchbase