The latest funding deals and a few trends we're tracking. Ideas on what else would be helpful?
VENTURE FUNDING IN 2020
Q1 FinTech Deals
Q1 Capital Raised (M)
Q2 FinTech Deals
Q2 Capital Raised (M)
Q3 FinTech Deals
Q3 Capital Raised (M)
Q4 FinTech Deals
Q4 Capital Raised (M)
2020 FinTech Deals
2020 Capital Raised (M)
2019 FinTech Deals
2019 Capital Raised (M)
US FINTECH ECOSYSTEM IN 2020
LEADING SECTORS BY STATE
CALIFORNIA
- Payments/Billing (15.54%)
- InsurTech (10.26%)
- Capital Markets (9.53%)
NEW YORK
- Wealth Management (12.44%)
- Capital Markets (11.14%)
- InsurTech (9.84%)
MASSACHUSETTS
- InsurTech (21.69%)
- Personal Finance (12.05%)
- Business Intelligence (9.64%)
HOW TRENDS ARE EVOLVING [2020 vs 2019]
2019 | 2020 | Variation | |
---|---|---|---|
Mortgage/Real estate | 6.06% (66) | 7.53% (66) | 1.47% ▲ |
Payments/Billing | 12.58% (137) | 14.14% (124) | 1.56% ▲ |
Wealth Management | 7.35% (80) | 8.78% (77) | 1.43% ▲ |
Business Intelligence | 6.34% (69) | 4.68% (41) | -1.66% ▼ |
Blockchain/Crypto | 8.82% (96) | 7.18% (63) | -1.63% ▼ |
Digital Banking | 9.18% (100) | 7.53% (66) | -1.66% ▼ |
RECENT DEALS
Period: 03/18/2021 - 03/31/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Headquarters | Announced | Hiring? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of March 31, 2021 | |||||||
Coalition | Series D | $175,000,000 | InsurTech | Index Ventures | San Francisco, California, United States | March 17, 2021 | Job Openings |
DepositLink | Seed | $3,500,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | March 17, 2021 | |
FiVerity, Inc. | Seed | $2,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Mendoza Ventures | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | March 17, 2021 | |
Republic | Series A | $36,000,000 | Capital Markets | Galaxy Interactive | New York, New York, United States | March 17, 2021 | |
Asteya | Series A | $10,000,000 | InsurTech | Northstar Ventures | Miami, Florida, United States | March 18, 2021 | |
Gravie | Series D | $28,000,000 | InsurTech | AXA Venture Partners | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States | March 18, 2021 | |
Connext | Seed | $2,200,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Polychain | San Francisco, California, United States | March 19, 2021 | |
Snapsheet | Series E | $30,000,000 | InsurTech | Pivot Investment Partners | Chicago, Illinois, United States | March 21, 2021 | Job Openings |
Afriex | Seed | $1,200,000 | Payments/Billing | Launch Africa | Oakland, California, United States | March 22, 2021 | |
My Susu Inc | Pre-Seed | -- | Personal Finance | -- | Johnston, Rhode Island, United States | March 22, 2021 | |
Counterpart | Series A | $10,000,000 | InsurTech | Valor Equity Partners | Los Angeles, California, United States | March 23, 2021 | |
LenderClose | Series B | $10,000,000 | Lending | Next Level Ventures | West Des Moines, Iowa, United States | March 23, 2021 | Job Openings |
Surround Insurance | Seed | $2,600,000 | InsurTech | Cameron Ventures | Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States | March 23, 2021 | |
Trace | Seed | $8,300,000 | Business Intelligence | Uncork Capital | San Francisco, California, United States | March 23, 2021 | |
Covalent | Venture - Series Unknown | $2,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Hashed | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada | March 24, 2021 | |
Incode Technologies | Series A | $25,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | 3L Capital | San Francisco, California, United States | March 24, 2021 | |
Machnet | Seed | $300,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | Santa Clara, California, United States | March 24, 2021 | |
Sardine | Seed | $4,600,000 | Cyber/Fraud | XYZ Venture Capital | San Francisco, California, United States | March 24, 2021 | |
Avanti Financial Group | Series A | $37,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Coinbase Ventures | Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States | March 25, 2021 | |
Ease | Series C | $41,000,000 | InsurTech | Spectrum Equity | San Francisco, California, United States | March 25, 2021 | |
EnrichHER | Seed | $700,000 | Lending | Fearless Fund | Atlanta, Georgia, United States | March 25, 2021 | |
Greenwood Bank | Series A | $40,000,000 | Digital Banking | Truist Ventures | Atlanta, Georgia, United States | March 25, 2021 | |
Lukka | Series D | $53,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | S&P Global | New York, New York, United States | March 25, 2021 | |
Maxwell Financial Labs | Series B | $16,300,000 | Lending | Fin Venture Capital | Denver, Colorado, United States | March 25, 2021 | Job Openings |
Pie Insurance | Series C | $118,000,000 | InsurTech | Acrew Capital | Washington, District of Columbia, United States | March 25, 2021 | Job Openings |
Chainalysis | Series D | $100,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Paradigm | New York, New York, United States | March 26, 2021 | Job Openings |
Spl.yt Core Foundation | Venture - Series Unknown | $2,750,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Bitcoin Capital | Santa Monica, California, United States | March 26, 2021 | |
Capitolis | Series C | $90,000,000 | Capital Markets | Andreessen Horowitz | New York, New York, United States | March 30, 2021 | Job Openings |
Ethic | Series B | $29,000,000 | Wealth Management | Oak HC/FT | New York, New York, United States | March 30, 2021 | Job Openings |
HighRadius | Series C | $300,000,000 | Payments/Billing | D1 Capital Partners | Houston, Texas, United States | March 30, 2021 | Job Openings |
PREVIOUS REPORTS


MARCH 17TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 03/4/2021 - 03/17/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of March 17, 2021 | ||||||
BlockChyp | Series A | $2,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | March 1, 2021 | |
Finny | Pre-Seed | -- | Personal Finance | -- | March 1, 2021 | |
Hardbacon | Equity Crowdfunding | $1,166,400 | Personal Finance | -- | March 1, 2021 | |
MyMarkit | Seed | -- | Blockchain/Crypto | Halogen Ventures | March 1, 2021 | |
Unchained Capital | Seed | $5,500,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | NYDIG | March 1, 2021 | |
PayGround | Seed | $3,500,000 | Payments/Billing | Triventures | March 2, 2021 | |
Stoovo | Seed | -- | Personal Finance | Watertower Ventures | March 2, 2021 | |
FutureFuel.io | Series A | $10,000,000 | Lending | UBS | March 3, 2021 | |
Flywire | Series F | $60,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Whale Rock Capital Management | March 4, 2021 | |
Fundraise Up | Series A | $11,994,393 | Capital Markets | -- | March 4, 2021 | |
leysi | Pre-Seed | $100,000 | Personal Finance | -- | March 4, 2021 | |
Stockal | Seed | $1,000,000 | Wealth Management | ScaleX Partners | March 4, 2021 | |
CoinSmart | Seed | CAD 4,500,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | March 5, 2021 | |
ComFreight | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,500,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | March 5, 2021 | |
Eco | Series A | $26,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | a16z crypto | March 5, 2021 | |
Flourish Savings | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,500,000 | Personal Finance | Canary | March 5, 2021 | |
Transactly | Convertible Note | $3,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | -- | March 5, 2021 | |
AeroPay | Venture - Series Unknown | $5,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Chicago Ventures | March 8, 2021 | |
AgentSync | Series A | $25,000,000 | InsurTech | Craft Ventures | March 8, 2021 | |
Flowcast | Venture - Series Unknown | $3,000,000 | Lending | ING Ventures | March 8, 2021 | |
InterPrice Technologies | Seed | $2,500,000 | Business Intelligence | Bowery Capital | March 8, 2021 | |
MainStreet | Series A | $60,000,000 | RegTech | SignalFire | March 8, 2021 | |
NYDIG | Venture - Series Unknown | $200,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | FS Investments | March 8, 2021 | |
Cedar | Series D | $200,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Tiger Global Management | March 9, 2021 | |
Cube | Series A | $10,000,000 | Business Intelligence | Mayfield Fund | March 9, 2021 | |
Flutterwave | Series C | $170,000,000 | Core Technology | Tiger Global Management | March 9, 2021 | |
M1 Finance | Series D | $75,000,000 | Digital Banking | Coatue | March 9, 2021 | |
MobileCoin | Series A | $11,350,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | General Catalyst | March 9, 2021 | |
Pipe | Series A | $50,000,000 | Capital Markets | Next47 | March 9, 2021 | |
Wrapbook | Series A | $27,000,000 | InsurTech | Andreessen Horowitz | March 9, 2021 | |
Zeni | Series A | $11,500,000 | Business Intelligence | Saama Capital | March 9, 2021 | |
Cheese | Seed | $3,600,000 | Digital Banking | Amplify.LA | March 10, 2021 | |
Corvus Insurance | Series C | $100,000,000 | InsurTech | Insight Partners | March 10, 2021 | |
AcreTrader | Series A | $12,000,000 | Wealth Management | Jump Capital | March 11, 2021 | |
Alt | Series A | $31,000,000 | Wealth Management | Seven Seven Six | March 11, 2021 | |
Autobooks | Series B | $25,000,000 | Payments/Billing | MissionOG | March 11, 2021 | |
BlockFi | Series D | $350,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Bain Capital Ventures | March 11, 2021 | |
Cowbell Cyber | Series A | $20,300,000 | InsurTech | Brewer Lane Ventures | March 11, 2021 | |
Hi Marley | Series B | $25,000,000 | InsurTech | Emergence | March 11, 2021 | |
KOHO Financial | Series C | CAD 50,000,000 | Digital Banking | TTV Capital | March 11, 2021 | |
Occupier | Seed | $5,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Alate Partners | March 11, 2021 | |
River Financial | Series A | $12,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Goldcrest Capital | March 11, 2021 | |
GloveBox | Seed | $3,000,000 | InsurTech | Prelude Fund | March 12, 2021 | |
JetClosing | Series B | $11,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | -- | March 12, 2021 | |
Stripe | Series H | $600,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Sequoia Capital | March 14, 2021 | |
Trust Stamp | Series A | $1,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | -- | March 15, 2021 | |
upSWOT | Seed | $4,300,000 | Digital Banking | -- | March 15, 2021 |


MARCH 3RD REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Our latest funding report includes 30+ FinTech deals, but we also want to take a peek at deals not yet on your radar. Venture funding may be a leading indicator of future partnerships or hiring, but it’s a lagging indicator of sub-sectors and trends.
The venture capital machine Techstars recently invested in a staggering 120 startups, of which 18 are working in FinTech.
Demo day is a lagging indicator. Get 'em while they're hot
On a mission to solve the 1.6 trillion dollar student debt crisis, refinancing student loans with debt-free income share agreements.Sub-sector: Lending HQ: Tampa, FL, USA |
Digital Experience Platform for Banks and Financial Institutions to fast track their digital journeys.Sub-sector: Core Technology HQ: Dublin, CA, USA |
InsureTech platform offering a SaaS medical claim management and financing platform all in one.Sub-sector: InsurTech HQ: Dubai, UAE |
Digital Financial Services For International Students.Sub-sector: Lending HQ: Hyderabad, India |
Replaces conventional card payment terminals.Sub-sector: Payments HQ: London, UK |
Neobank for the global diaspora.Sub-sector: Digital Banking HQ: London, England, GB |
Enables organizations to quickly verify and pay out funds to people in financial hardship.Sub-sector: Personal Finance HQ: London, England, GB |
Building relationships powered by equity investments.Sub-sector: Personal Finance/Capital Markets Venn HQ: Chicago, IL, USA |
Go beyond the paycheck for your team, with the best financial support available.Sub-sector: Personal Finance HQ: London, England, GB |
Building better financial and career services for people in healthcare, starting with income share agreements for student financing.Sub-sector: Personal Finance/Capital Markets Venn HQ: Oklahoma City, OK, USA |
A data platform that enables financial advisors and asset managers to understand non-financial values of their clients, and align assets accordingly.Sub-sector: Wealth Management HQ: Los Angeles, CA, USA |
A flexible data & analytics platform that automates the development, deployment, and support of enterprise DS and ML applications.Sub-sector: Core Technologies HQ: Old Tappan, NJ, USA |
A CRM and fundraising platform for non-profits so that they can run their operations more effectively.Sub-sector: Payments HQ: Richmond, VA, USA |
A platform for enterprise product teams to explore, test, procure, and integrate 3rd party AI algorithms.Sub-sector: Capital Markets HQ: New York, NY, USA |
Machine learning to produce the next generation of financial data for the bond market.Sub-sector: Capital Markets HQ: Toronto, ON, CA |
A tax preparation software and practice management platform for CPA firms that utilizes AI to create tax returns and accurate, real-time estimates.Sub-sector: Business Intelligence HQ: Rapid City, SD, USA |
A platform for corporations to do Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting, data management and analytics.Sub-sector: Business Intelligence HQ: London, England, GB |
A financial wellness app that creates personalized payment plans for individuals who want to free themselves of credit card debt.Sub-sector: Personal Finance HQ: Brooklyn, USA |
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 02/17/2021 - 03/03/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of March 3, 2021 | ||||||
Finaloop | Pre-Seed | -- | Core Technology | Axon Ventures | February 15, 2021 | |
XCLAIM | Seed | $6,600,000 | Lending | -- | February 15, 2021 | |
Citadel - Payroll APIs | Seed | $3,500,000 | Core Technology | Abstract Ventures | February 16, 2021 | |
Pawlicy Advisor | Series A | $6,500,000 | InsurTech | Rho Capital Partners | February 16, 2021 | |
Rheaply | Series A | $8,000,000 | Business Intelligence | High Alpha | February 16, 2021 | |
Titan | Series A | $12,500,000 | Wealth Management | General Catalyst | February 16, 2021 | |
Kalshi | Series A | $30,000,000 | Capital Markets | Sequoia Capital | February 17, 2021 | |
Gravy | Series A | $4,500,000 | Payments/Billing | Arlington Family Offices | February 17, 2021 | |
Paerpay | Pre-Seed | -- | Payments/Billing | Chingona Ventures | February 17, 2021 | |
Carefull | Seed | $3,200,000 | Personal Finance | Bessemer Venture Partners | February 17, 2021 | |
Public.com | Series D | $220,000,000 | Wealth Management | Greycroft | February 17, 2021 | |
Quadency | Seed | $100,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Dash Investment Foundation | February 18, 2021 | |
KindHealth | Venture - Series Unknown | $4,000,000 | InsurTech | -- | February 18, 2021 | |
Promise | Series A | $20,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Kapor Capital | February 18, 2021 | |
Allocations | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,000,000 | Capital Markets | Helios Capital | February 19, 2021 | |
Circulo Health | Series A | $50,000,000 | InsurTech | Drive Capital | February 19, 2021 | |
Yuansfer | Seed | $3,000,000 | Payments/Billing | 37 Angels | February 19, 2021 | |
Banks Best Rates | Seed | $155,000 | Personal Finance | Dave Goodman | February 20, 2021 | |
EquityBee | Series A | $20,000,000 | Capital Markets | Group 11 | February 22, 2021 | |
Flueid | Series A | -- | InsurTech | Aquiline Technology Growth | February 22, 2021 | |
Borrowell | Series C | CAD25,000,000 | Lending | BDC Capital | February 22, 2021 | |
Koffie Labs | Seed | $3,000,000 | InsurTech | Lerer Hippeau | February 23, 2021 | |
BeSmartee | Venture - Series Unknown | -- | Lending | M33 Growth | February 23, 2021 | |
Wisetack | Venture - Series Unknown | $19,000,000 | Lending | Bain Capital Ventures | February 23, 2021 | |
Episode Six | Series B | $30,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Anthos Capital | February 23, 2021 | |
FundGuard | Series A | $12,000,000 | Wealth Management | Blumberg Capital | February 23, 2021 | |
PureStream Trading Technologies | Series A | $14,000,000 | Capital Markets | Nasdaq Ventures | February 24, 2021 | |
EarnUp | Series B | $25,000,000 | Lending | Bain Capital Ventures | February 24, 2021 | |
Anchorage | Series C | $80,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | GIC | February 25, 2021 | |
Stori Card | Series B | $32,500,000 | Digital Banking | Lightspeed Venture Partners | February 25, 2021 | |
First Boulevard | Seed | $5,000,000 | Digital Banking | Anthemis Group | February 26, 2021 | |
Axonius | Series D | $100,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Stripes | March 1, 2021 | |
QUASH.AI | Seed | -- | Lending | -- | March 1, 2021 |


FEBRUARY 17TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
We begin our weekly roundup with a first-in-FinTech experience sure to wow! you out of those COVID blues: pick six lucky numbers and you could win millions.
Alas, this is not an advertisement for your local lotto but a VC-backed FinTech adventure called Millions.app. The age of lotto FinTech has dawned with this stealthy startup “gamifying altruism through social media” having just landed $3M in seed funding. The Empire brain trust continues to tussle with the exact classification of this scheme: Is it wealth? Is it personal finance? Or is it just some combination of gaming or gambling? If it is the latter, the now disingenuously named Robinhood trading app may well be a gaming company. ($GME to the moon.)
On to the recent funding rounds. Our lucky numbers selection this week is Cincinnati-based Coterie Insurance. The team has another $11.5M to continue to tackle commercial insurance with an API-based approach. Later stage deals and pouring one out for our Cap Mkts homies, NYC-based Axoni, landed $31M in funding from big-name capital behemoths such as Citi, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan. While your crypto-investments skyrocket, these folks are using the underlying distributed ledger technology (DLT) to reimagine financial market infrastructure. Personally, I’ve been somewhat surprised by the balance-sheet strategy here. Last up, wealth management firm Human Interest and its $55M Series C. The firm is headquartered in San Francisco and works tirelessly to help SMBs with 401(k)s and other employee retirement investments.
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 02/03/2021 - 02/17/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of February 17, 2021 | ||||||
Axoni | Series B | $31,000,000 | Capital Markets | Deutsche Bank | February 1, 2021 | |
Buy It Mobility | Venture - Series Unknown | $3,873,066 | Payments/Billing | -- | February 1, 2021 | |
Cultivo | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,358,984 | Wealth Management | -- | February 1, 2021 | |
Quantifind | Venture - Series Unknown | $22,000,000 | RegTech | In-Q-Tel | February 1, 2021 | |
Millions | Seed | $3,000,000 | Personal Finance | 8VC | February 2, 2021 | |
Routefusion | Seed | $3,600,000 | Payments/Billing | Silverton Partners | February 2, 2021 | |
TrustLayer | Seed | $6,600,000 | InsurTech | Abstract Ventures | February 2, 2021 | |
Kountable Inc. | Series A | -- | Other | Lateral Capital | February 2, 2021 | |
Narmi | Series A | $20,400,000 | Core Technology | New Enterprise Associates | February 2, 2021 | |
Valon Technologies | Series A | $50,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Andreessen Horowitz | February 2, 2021 | |
Dealer Policy | Series B | $30,000,000 | InsurTech | 3L Capital | February 2, 2021 | |
Clarity AI | Venture - Series Unknown | $24,000,004 | Wealth Management | -- | February 2, 2021 | |
Casa | Seed | $4,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Avon Ventures | February 3, 2021 | |
Crush Capital | Seed | $3,250,000 | Wealth Management | Arlan Hamilton | February 3, 2021 | |
Rarible | Seed | $1,750,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | 1kx | February 3, 2021 | |
Rightfoot | Seed | $5,000,000 | Personal Finance | Bain Capital Ventures | February 3, 2021 | |
Opyn | Series A | $6,700,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Paradigm | February 3, 2021 | |
LeaseLock | Series B | $52,000,000 | InsurTech | Westerly Winds | February 3, 2021 | |
Stash | Series G | $125,000,000 | Wealth Management | Eldridge | February 3, 2021 | |
Eusoh | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,300,000 | InsurTech | -- | February 3, 2021 | |
CredCompare | Seed | -- | Lending | ATOORO FUND | February 4, 2021 | |
Vested Finance | Seed | $3,600,000 | Wealth Management | Venture Catalysts | February 4, 2021 | |
Built Technologies | Series C | $88,000,000 | Lending | Addition | February 4, 2021 | |
ShelterZoom | Venture - Series Unknown | $4,580,244 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | February 4, 2021 | |
Coterie Insurance | Series A | $11,500,000 | InsurTech | Intact Ventures | February 5, 2021 | |
Ledn | Seed | $2,700,000 | Wealth Management | Global Founders Capital | February 8, 2021 | |
Zeta | Pre-Seed | $1,500,000 | Digital Banking | Deciens Capital | February 9, 2021 | |
Symend | Series B | CAD54,000,000 | Personal Finance | Inovia Capital | February 9, 2021 | |
Equal Ventures | Venture - Series Unknown | $15,000,000 | InsurTech | -- | February 9, 2021 | |
Fair Fintech | Venture - Series Unknown | $20,000,000 | Digital Banking | -- | February 9, 2021 | |
Mesh Payments | Venture - Series Unknown | $13,000,000 | Payments/Billing | TLV Partners | February 9, 2021 | |
Level | Pre-Seed | $1,500,000 | Lending | NextView Ventures | February 10, 2021 | |
Marble | Seed | $2,500,000 | InsurTech | Fintech Ventures Fund | February 10, 2021 | |
TomoCredit | Seed | $7,000,000 | Lending | BAM Ventures | February 10, 2021 | |
SoLo Funds | Series A | $10,000,000 | Lending | ACME Capital | February 10, 2021 | |
NYMBUS | Series C | $53,000,000 | Core Technology | Insight Partners | February 10, 2021 | |
Celo | Venture - Series Unknown | $20,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Andreessen Horowitz | February 10, 2021 | |
Fraction | Venture - Series Unknown | CAD289,000,000 | Lending | Impression Ventures | February 10, 2021 | |
Purpose Financial | Venture - Series Unknown | $53,500,000 | Wealth Management | Allianz X | February 10, 2021 | |
PayZen | Seed | $5,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Picus Capital | February 11, 2021 | |
Capitalize | Series A | $12,500,000 | Personal Finance | Canapi Ventures | February 11, 2021 | |
UpEquity | Series A | $7,500,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Next Coast Ventures | February 11, 2021 | |
Human Interest | Series C | $55,000,000 | Wealth Management | Glynn Capital Management | February 11, 2021 | |
CryptiSwap | Pre-Seed | $65,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | February 13, 2021 | |
Briza.io | Series A | $8,000,000 | InsurTech | -- | February 14, 2021 |


FEBRUARY 2ND REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
This week’s magic number is 1.7 – one billion, seven hundred million dollars in total funding flooding into the wide world of FinTech. Lending in Q1 is off to an especially active start. Let’s hit the list to see which startups are making waves.
New York-based startup Instnt, having lost a key vowel, has managed to find that sneaky letter at the end of a Series funding round. The $7M-and-change Series A is powering this core tech/fraud company. Fun fact: In a previous work-life iteration, Instnt CEO and Founder Sunil Madhu was CEO and Founder of an Empire alum and crowd favorite, Socure. Sunil, cheers to you old sport!
Digital Banking is a hot ticket that was given a boost by COVID-19 and the transition to Zoom-life. Yotta Savings is another innovator in the space, offering free savings accounts and other goodies. This startup pulled in a $13m Series A raise just months after closing a Seed round. Lead investor for this most-recent round, Base10 Partners, must have been wowed by Yotta’s Q4 2020 growth numbers. Oh, and before we forget, do take a minute to check out the recent Forbes article on the work these fine folks are doing.
Our secretive seed this week comes in the form of Pontoro, a capital markets FinTech on a mission to transform infrastructure financing. This involves creating “custom portfolios of infrastructure assets within its tokenization platform and facilitate bi-lateral liquidity among participants”. Two interesting developments worth noting. 1) The startup is now Techstars-backed, and 2) They are backed by the Abu Dhabi program, which highlights how FinTech and digitization are growing in the Middle East.
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 01/18/2021 - 02/02/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of February 2, 2021 | ||||||
Yuansfer | Seed | -- | Payments/Billing | Moayed Almoayed | January 3, 2021 | |
Ntropy Network | Seed | $3,239,998 | Payments/Billing | -- | January 8, 2021 | |
Pontoro | Seed | Capital Markets | Franklin Templeton Investments | January 8, 2021 | ||
CarrotFi | Seed | $100,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator | January 11, 2021 | |
FeeBelly | Pre-Seed | $200,000 | Personal Finance | -- | January 11, 2021 | |
Imprint | Venture - Series Unknown | $14,000,773 | Payments/Billing | -- | January 11, 2021 | |
PolySign | Venture - Series Unknown | $7,700,000 | Capital Markets | -- | January 11, 2021 | |
Instnt | Series A | $7,024,254 | Core Technology | -- | January 12, 2021 | |
Loop | Seed | $3,250,000 | InsurTech | Freestyle Capital | January 13, 2021 | |
Clarity AI | Venture - Series Unknown | Wealth Management | BlackRock | January 14, 2021 | ||
Home Lending Pal | Seed | $900,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Bluewave Investment Partners | January 15, 2021 | |
Apiture | Venture - Series Unknown | $10,000,000 | Core Technology | Bankers Healthcare Group | January 19, 2021 | |
Arbol | Series A | $7,000,000 | InsurTech | Mubadala Capital | January 19, 2021 | |
Axela Technologies | Series A | $10,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Blueprint Equity | January 19, 2021 | |
Brigit | Series A | $35,000,000 | Personal Finance | Lightspeed Venture Partners | January 19, 2021 | |
Spinwheel | Seed | $3,649,999 | Lending | -- | January 19, 2021 | |
Trovata | Series A | $20,000,000 | Capital Markets | Wells Fargo Strategic Capital, Inc. | January 19, 2021 | |
Flaist | Pre-Seed | Core Technology | Techstars Hub71 | January 20, 2021 | ||
MotoRefi | Series A | $10,000,000 | Lending | Moderne Ventures | January 22, 2021 | |
Parkside | Series A | $24,000,000 | Capital Markets | -- | January 22, 2021 | |
SafetyWing | Series A | $8,000,000 | InsurTech | Creandum | January 22, 2021 | |
CrowdfundNC | Seed | $1,500,000 | Capital Markets | -- | January 25, 2021 | |
Goalsetter | Seed | $3,900,000 | Digital Banking | Astia | January 25, 2021 | |
Melio | Series C | $110,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Coatue | January 25, 2021 | |
Paymerang | Venture - Series Unknown | $10,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Aldrich Capital Partners | January 25, 2021 | |
Print Financial | Seed | $2,000 | Lending | -- | January 25, 2021 | |
Albert | Series C | $100,000,000 | Personal Finance | General Atlantic | January 26, 2021 | |
Bbot | Seed | $4,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Rally Ventures | January 26, 2021 | |
dYdX | Series B | $10,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Defiance Capital | January 26, 2021 | |
Joshu | Seed | $3,700,000 | InsurTech | Blumberg Capital | January 26, 2021 | |
MPOWER Financing | Venture - Series Unknown | $25,000,000 | Lending | Tilden Park Capital Management LP | January 26, 2021 | |
Pilot | Series C | $60,000,000 | Business Intelligence | Sequoia Capital | January 26, 2021 | |
Roostify | Series C | $32,000,000 | Lending | Ten Coves Capital | January 26, 2021 | |
Sidecar Health | Series C | $125,000,000 | InsurTech | Drive Capital | January 26, 2021 | |
Wyre | Venture - Series Unknown | $7,500,000 | Payments/Billing | Stellar Development Foundation | January 26, 2021 | |
Check Technologies | Series B | $35,000,000 | Core Technology | Thrive Capital | January 27, 2021 | |
Doorvest | Seed | $2,500,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Mucker Capital | January 27, 2021 | |
MainStreet | Venture - Series Unknown | RegTech | SignalFire | January 27, 2021 | ||
Milo | Seed | $6,000,000 | Lending | QED Investors | January 27, 2021 | |
Abound | Seed | $6,000,000 | Business Intelligence | Point72 Ventures | January 28, 2021 | |
Aspiration | Venture - Series Unknown | $50,000,000 | Digital Banking | FootPrint Coalition | January 28, 2021 | |
Yotta Savings | Series A | $13,200,000 | Digital Banking | Base10 Partners | January 28, 2021 | |
Robinhood | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,000,000,000 | Wealth Management | Sequoia Capital | January 29, 2021 |


JANUARY 17TH REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
Historically, Q1 is the busiest time of the year for FinTech fundraising. We have a paltry ~30 deals so far this year – did everyone get the memo?
A quick glance at the sub-sectors in our list this week shows two curious outliers: wealth management and personal finance. The Empire Brain Trust isn’t surprised, given firms began to re-evaluate partners in light of the increasing shift-to-digital brought on by pandemic restrictions globally. Consumers followed suit, shifting to digital banks for a host of reasons – rapid access to stimulus funds being one compelling reason.
With the above, we offer one prediction for 2021: partner re-evaluation continues for the foreseeable future and so venture capitalists place bigger bets. Now onto the show.
In light of the rapid rise of Bitcoin over the past month, we begin this week with a nod to crypto- and blockchain-enthusiasts in the crowd. Our list features two venture rounds and one Series A from FinTech startups pioneering the space. Our Series A belongs to LA-based Arca, a financial services firm focusing on crypto-assets and blockchain investments. The $10M Series A was led by venture capital firm RRE Ventures, known for having backed some noteworthy names: Venmo, BuzzFeed, and NerdWallet, to name a few.
Before we leave you, let’s conclude with two select seed rounds. Personal Finance startup Secure landed $3.5M to help employers build out emergency savings accounts (ESAs) for employees. The company is tackling a problem COVID-19 has only made worse: financial stress caused by unexpected expenses. In the real estate space, we have LEX Markets. The company secured $6M aiming to make investing in commercial real estate public through single-asset IPOs.
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 01/04/2021 - 01/17/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of January 17, 2021 | ||||||
BusyKid | Seed | $800,000 | Personal Finance | -- | January 4, 2021 | |
Diligend | Seed | $1,300,000 | Capital Markets | -- | January 4, 2021 | |
Periculum | Pre-Seed | -- | Lending | -- | January 4, 2021 | |
Divvy | Series D | $165,000,000 | Payments/Billing | PayPal Ventures | January 5, 2021 | |
Miventure | Seed | $439,000 | Wealth Management | -- | January 5, 2021 | |
PredictAP | Venture - Series Unknown | $2,765,000 | Payments/Billing | -- | January 5, 2021 | |
SimpleNexus | Series B | $108,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Insight Partners | January 5, 2021 | |
Capitalize | Series A | $12,271,417 | Personal Finance | -- | January 6, 2021 | |
Groundspeed Analytics | Series C | -- | InsurTech | Insight Partners | January 6, 2021 | |
Levo Financial | Pre-Seed | $400,000 | Digital Banking | -- | January 6, 2021 | |
Apollo Insurance | Series A | $13,500,000 | InsurTech | Gravitas Securities | January 7, 2021 | |
Carpay | Series A | $6,500,000 | Lending | Autotech Ventures | January 7, 2021 | |
Predictive Trading Systems | Seed | $333,089 | Capital Markets | -- | January 7, 2021 | |
PrefLogic | Venture - Series Unknown | $1,310,000 | Wealth Management | -- | January 7, 2021 | |
SoFi | Venture - Series Unknown | $369,840,376 | Digital Banking | -- | January 7, 2021 | |
Xiggit | Pre-Seed | $125,000 | Personal Finance | -- | January 9, 2021 | |
Altruist | Venture - Series Unknown | -- | Wealth Management | Venrock | January 11, 2021 | |
Jassby | Venture - Series Unknown | $2,900,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | SeedInvest | January 11, 2021 | |
Brace | Series B | $15,700,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Canvas Ventures | January 12, 2021 | |
dv01 | Series B | $6,000,000 | Capital Markets | Pivot Investment Partners | January 12, 2021 | |
Modern Treasury | Series B | $38,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Altimeter Capital | January 12, 2021 | |
Arca | Series A | $10,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | RRE Ventures | January 13, 2021 | |
Blend | Series G | $300,000,000 | Lending | Coatue | January 13, 2021 | |
LEX Markets | Seed | $6,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Inertia Ventures | January 13, 2021 | |
MX Technologies | Series C | $300,000,000 | Core Technology | TPG | January 13, 2021 | |
Rho Business Banking | Series A | $15,000,000 | Digital Banking | M13 | January 13, 2021 | |
Secure | Seed | $3,500,000 | Personal Finance | SeaChange | January 13, 2021 | |
Bookkeeper360 | Seed | $1,000,000 | Business Intelligence | -- | January 14, 2021 | |
Own Up | Series B | $12,000,000 | Lending | Brand Foundry Ventures | January 14, 2021 | |
Prometheum | Venture - Series Unknown | $15,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | -- | January 14, 2021 | |
X1 Card | Venture - Series Unknown | $12,000,000 | Lending | Spark Capital | January 14, 2021 |


JANUARY 3RD REPORT:TOP FINTECH VENTURE ROUNDS
We made it – 2021 is here. And with this new year comes a rapidly evolving venture funding situation in FinTech. A first major trend is the influx of capital at Series A. Early-stage investment firms, such as QED Investors and Coatue, have both played king-maker in 2020. In Q4 of 2020, QED filled the coffers of Provide with a $34M Series A. That same quarter, Coatue raised a king’s ransom for both Ramp ($34M) and Gorillas ($44M) Series A funding rounds.
This brings up a second point. Series A funding rounds averaged $8.6M in 2020 nationally. Our question: Can businesses move fast enough to catch up to the valuations from these funding rounds? As Series A funding rounds continue to grow, a chasm is created between Series A and seed rounds. We may need to consider a new round name. Seed extensions doesn’t sound quite right. Maybe, seed-plus? Food for thought.
In the spirit of a dawning new year, we are focusing on those just-blossoming companies at the seed stage. Our list this week comes packed with eight seedlings, of which we’ve selected three.
The FinTech lending startup TradeUp out of Y Combinator in Q1 of 2020. Three quarters later the company announced a $4M-and-change seed round. The company is following the path-of-most-disruption in the student loan market, and offers income share agreements (ISAs) to those training for a new career. Umba, a digital bank made for Africa, landed a recent $2M seed round. The bank operates in Kenya and Nigeria, and will likely capitalize on the worldwide growth of digital banking. Business intelligence startup XILO raised $2M+ in December 2020, having had two pre-seed rounds earlier in the year. This startup makes a sales and quoting platform for insurance agencies.
IN THE NEWS...
RECENT DEALS
Period: 12/17/2020 - 01/03/2021
Name | Funding Type | Money Raised | Vertical | Lead Investor | Announced | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources: Crunchbase, Empire Startups. Data is current as of January 3, 2021 | ||||||
NetGiver | Seed | $1,500,000 | Personal Finance | -- | December 14, 2020 | |
Self Financial | Series D | $40,000,000 | Lending | Meritech Capital Partners | December 15, 2020 | |
Vise | Series B | $45,000,000 | Wealth Management | Sequoia Capital | December 15, 2020 | |
Provide | Series A | $34,000,000 | Digital Banking | QED Investors | December 15, 2020 | |
Conio | Series B | $14,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Banca Generali | December 15, 2020 | |
Paxos | Series C | $142,000,000 | Blockchain/Crypto | Declaration Partners | December 16, 2020 | |
Bestow | Series C | $70,000,000 | InsurTech | Valar Ventures | December 16, 2020 | |
Neo Financial | Series A | $25,000,000 | Digital Banking | Valar Ventures | December 16, 2020 | |
Paywoke | Pre-Seed | -- | Core Technology | -- | December 16, 2020 | |
Oscar Health | Venture - Series Unknown | $140,000,000 | InsurTech | Tiger Global Management | December 17, 2020 | |
Ramp | Series A | $30,000,000 | Payments/Billing | Coatue | December 17, 2020 | |
FalconX | Venture - Series Unknown | -- | Blockchain/Crypto | American Express Ventures | December 17, 2020 | |
Umba | Seed | $2,000,000 | Digital Banking | Act Venture Capital | December 17, 2020 | |
Openly | Series B | $40,000,000 | InsurTech | Advance Venture Partners | December 17, 2020 | |
Neat Capital | Series C | $20,499,999 | Mortgage/Real estate | -- | December 17, 2020 | |
TAP Network | Series A | $4,000,000 | Core Technology | Access Industries | December 18, 2020 | |
Avenue 8 | Seed | $4,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Craft Ventures | December 18, 2020 | |
Foresight Risk and Insurance Services | Series A | $20,500,000 | InsurTech | Brick & Mortar Ventures | December 18, 2020 | |
Very Good Security | Series C | $60,000,000 | Cyber/Fraud | Vertex Ventures | December 18, 2020 | |
XILO | Seed | $2,040,000 | Business Intelligence | New Stack Ventures | December 18, 2020 | |
TradeUp | Seed | $4,011,495 | Lending | -- | December 18, 2020 | |
MIAX New Jersey | Funding Round | $94,924,228 | Capital Markets | -- | December 18, 2020 | |
Positivly | Seed | $2,500,000 | Wealth Management | The Tifin Group | December 20, 2020 | |
Bolt | Series C | $75,000,000 | Payments/Billing | General Atlantic | December 21, 2020 | |
Qualia | Series D | $65,000,000 | Mortgage/Real estate | Tiger Global Management | December 21, 2020 | |
Perch Credit | Seed | $2,500,000 | Lending | Citigroup | December 21, 2020 | |
Oxygen | Series A | $17,000,000 | Digital Banking | Runa Capital | December 21, 2020 | |
LifeRaft | Seed | $3,500,000 | InsurTech | XYZ Venture Capital | December 22, 2020 | |
Flowcast | Convertible Note | $3,000,000 | Lending | Katalyst.Ventures | December 22, 2020 | |
Finix Payments | Series B | -- | Payments/Billing | -- | December 23, 2020 | |
Qoins | Seed | -- | Personal Finance | Partnership Capital Ventures | December 30, 2020 | |
Periculum | Pre-Seed | -- | Lending | -- | January 4, 2021 |