New week – new closed funding rounds! This week’s funding highlights cover personal finance, AI software, data, security, and many more! Take a look at some major investments of this week.
Secure access tech dev Netskope scores $401m (Global Fintech)
Netskope, a secure access service edge (SASE) provider, has closed an oversubscribed investment round on $401m. The convertible note investment round was led by funds managed by Morgan Stanley Tactical Value. Additional support came from Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, and CPP Investments. With the funds, the company plans to extend its technology and platform, as well as bolster the expansion of its strategic go-to-market activities. The company also hopes it can increase its market reach, which it claims is on track to be a $36bn market opportunity by 2025. Netskope reached a $7.5bn valuation in 2021, following the close of a $300m investment. The capital was supplied by ICONIQ Growth. Read more
Akulaku secures $200m from Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (Fintech Futures)
Indonesian digital finance platform Akulaku has raised $200 million from Japan’s largest bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG). The funding will be used to support Akulaku’s anticipated growth as it looks to provide banking services across Southeast Asia’s underbanked populations. Property management company Doorstead bags $21.5m Series BProperty management company Doorstead bags $21.5m Series BThe $200 million investment follows Akulaku’s $100 million investment secured from Thailand’s Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) in February last year. As well as the investment, MUFG companies will work with Akulaku to develop technology and products and provide financing and distribution. Read more
KreditBee extends Series D funding round with additional $100m (Fintech Futures)
Indian fintech platform KreditBee has bagged an additional $100 million from Advent International in its extended Series D funding round. The news follows KreditBee’s $80 million fundraise as part of its Series D round last month, which saw participation from existing investors Premji Invest, Motilal Oswal Alternates, NewQuest Capital Partners, and Mirae Asset Ventures, as well as new investor MUFG Bank. The lender says it will use the fresh funds to scale its existing business and diversify its product offerings to include digitally-enabled financial products. KreditBee was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Bengaluru, India. It offers “instant” personal loans to professionals of up to INR 400,000 (approximately $5,000), with the goal of solving the financial inclusion gap across the country. Read more
SME insurtech Superscript lands £45m Series B (Fintech Futures)
UK SME insurtech Superscript has secured a £45 million ($54m) Series B funding round. The round, led by existing investor BHL UK, owner of Comparethemarket, saw participation from new investor The Hartford and existing investors including Concentric. The funding will be used to develop Superscript’s underwriting and broking capabilities, which are supported by machine learning capabilities, as well as to expand its range of insurance products and services for international distribution. There will also be a focus on building upon existing embedded partnership capabilities, the firm says. Read more
Australian fintech Grapple secures $35m in funding (Fintech Futures)
Australian fintech and SME financier Grapple has landed $35 million in a warehouse debt facility from Sydney-based financier Global Credit Investments (GCI). The funding will enable Grapple to continue scaling and maintain its current growth trajectory, it says. Founded in 2018 and based in Sydney, Grapple is a non-bank business funding provider offering financing and B2B payment solutions to ease cashflow for SMEs. It claims to have processed more than 100,000 invoices to the value of $75 million for over 1,500 Australian SMEs to date. Grapple’s founder and CEO, Stephen Dawson, says the company has experienced a “breakout year” as businesses seek alternative financing solutions from non–bank lenders. “The current conditions, with falling property prices and rising interest rates, are making it harder for SMEs to secure business funding from banks and large financiers,” Dawson says. Read more
Property management company Doorstead bags $21.5m Series B (Global Fintech)
Doorstead, a property management service the protects homeowners who rent out their properties, has raised $21.5m in Series B funding. Avanta Ventures, Madrona, MetaProp, and M13 participated in the round, which brings the company’s total funding to $37m. Doorstead also acquired Knox Financial’s Massachusetts portfolio, which the company said will allow it to expand its services to homeowners and renters on the East Coast, US. Founded in April 2019 by co-founders Ryan Waliany and Jennifer Bronzo, Doorstead provides uprfront rental guarantees and a property management service to homeowners that offers homeowners an upfront vacancy period and a guaranteed minimum monthly rent before a tenant is placed. Read more
Penta co-founder raises €3 million for Swiss banking startup (Finextra)
Relio, a Swiss SME banking startup founded by Lav Odorovic, the co-founder of German digital bank Penta, has raised €3 million. Relio is launching a digital payment account for business customers founded on a platform built to overcome the regulatory and compliance barriers that hamper similar ventures. With the financing round complete, the startup will advance the development of the tech stack and work on obtaining a Finma Fintech license. The venture is backed by SIX Fintech Ventures, High-Tech Gründerfonds, as well as TX Ventures as a new lead investor. The investor base also includes F10, Elsa Invest, daFUND, QBIT Capital and several business angels. Read more
Financial literacy FinTech Prograd secures $2.5m (Global Fintech)
Prograd, which is aimed at helping young people boost financial literacy, has reportedly collected $2.5m in its seed funding round. Contributions to the round came from Deloitte Ventures, Techstars, ZAKA Ventures, AGAM, Trouva founder Mandeep Singh, and other new and existing angel investors, according to a report from Financial IT. With the funds, Prograd hopes to expand its marketing and development capabilities, bolster its digital footprint, release and app and improve its algorithms. Founded by Ethan Fraenkel and Marco Logiudice, Prograd aims to help Gen Z set up financial goals and access tools to improve their financial literacy. Read more
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