ICYMI funding round-up: SurePay, Capitalise, FV Bank & more
At FinTech Futures, we know that it can be easy to let funding announcements slip you by in this fast-paced industry. That’s why we put together our weekly ‘In Case You Missed It’ (ICYMI) funding round-up for you to get the latest funding news.
Confirmation of Payee (CoP) fintech SurePay has raised €12.2 million in a round led by Connected Capital.
Iris Capital also participated, and joins existing major investor Rabo Frontier Ventures in backing the firm.
The funding will support the hiring of new business development teams in Germany and the UK.
SurePay adds it will also scale the technology platform and further develop new solutions for customers.
The firm has carried out 4 billion payment checks since its launch in 2016, and claims its solutions reduce misdirected payments by 67%.
Capitalise CEO Paul Surtees and CPO Ollie Maitland
UK-based credit and risk platform Capitalise has raised £10 million from Experian, QED Investors, Gauss Ventures and more.
Capitalise uses in-house technology and data analytics to identify financing options for UK businesses. The firm claims to have more than 80 institutional and fintech lenders on board.
The new investment will support the launch of Capital Reports, an entirely new, integrated risk management service that “takes up where traditional credit reports leave off”.
“Managing credit risk is central to lender activity but SME owners typically overlook it,” says co-founder Ollie Maitland.
“Capital Reports will make an unprecedented and timely contribution to SMEs’ ability to survive.”
Puerto Rican challenger FV Bank has raised $8 million in a Series A round led by BnkToTheFuture.
The round raises 2018-founded FV Bank’s post-money valuation to $48.9 million.
The bank offers an online-only banking platform which promises access to cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, and fintech solutions.
It is the first bank in Puerto Rico with an Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions (OCIF) digital asset custody license.
The cash will go towards the launch of a new digital asset custody division and the development of a debit card offering.
“The demand for banking services in the fintech and digital asset industries currently far outweighs the supply,” says CEO Miles Paschini.
Romanian fintech Bankata.ro has raised €180,000 in funding to further develop its account and services aggregation app.
The investment was led by Sparking Capital, with participation from a collection of private investors.
Bankata currently includes information and analysis on credit cards, investment accounts, personal loans, and mortgages. It plans to add digital banks and international payment platforms.
“Bankata.ro was designed to offer a dynamic interaction based on the particularities of consumers,” says COO Andrei Perianu.
“The information analysed is constantly updated and impartially compared by our team. The funding from this round is mainly directed towards IT development and marketing efforts.”
Falfurrias Capital Partners (FCP), a Charlotte-based private equity firm, has invested an undisclosed sum in Chargeback Gurus (CBG).
CBG claims to serve 3,000 merchants across 25 industries, and has recovered more than $1.5 billion in lost revenue with its systems.
Founded by Srii Srinivasan and Suresh Dakshina and headquartered in Texas, the firm says it can prevent up to 70% of all chargebacks.
“We identified CBG’s data-intensive expertise as the ideal platform to build upon our fraud and credit risk analytics,” says Joe Price of Falfurrias Capital Partners.
A OneBanks pop-up bank branch
Multinational corporation Glory Group has invested an undisclosed sum in OneBanks, a provider of pop-up bank branches and related services.
Glory is set to become a cornerstone investor in the firm, and a leader in its ongoing Series A investment round.
OneBanks has previously secured capital from backers including Rupert Pennant-Rea, former deputy governor of the Bank of England, and Baroness Bottomley, the former Conservative cabinet minister.
The firm aims to fill the gap it says has been left behind by traditional banks closing their local branches.
“We see a huge opportunity for us as an independent player enabling an efficient service model which will allow banks to offer better basic banking facilities,” says Duncan Cockburn, founder and CEO at OneBanks.
“Access to cash and the need for human interaction are still highly valued by many in our communities.”
