Top FinTech funding rounds in the Americas: March 2021

By Pavithra R

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an acceleration in digital trends. FinTechs are becoming mainstream with more investment made than ever before. Below is a list of funding announcements that were made in March.

BlockFi

BlockFi, building a bridge between traditional finance and blockchain technology to bring financial empowerment to clients globally, has announced the completion of its $350mn Series D funding round led by new investors, including Bain Capital Ventures, partners of DST Global, Pomp Investments, and Tiger Global. The investment round follows 2 prior rounds totalling $100M within the last 2 years.

The new finance brings the FinTech to a valuation of $3bn and will enable further accelerate expansion into new markets, innovation in the product suite, and provide capital for select acquisition opportunities. These activities will augment the current core product offering, which includes:

1. earning yield on digital assets at attractive rates;
2. buying and selling digital assets directly on BlockFi (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Link, PaxG, and multiple stablecoins); and
3. originating US dollar loans secured by the value of digital assets on the platform. 

Flutterwave

Flutterwave, on a mission to build payments infrastructure to connect Africa to the global economy, has announced securing USD $170 mn from a leading group of international investors as part of a successful Series C round.

The investment round was led by growth-equity firms Avenir Growth Capital and Tiger Global Management LLC with participation from new and existing investors. The fundraising comes at a time when the Pandemic has accelerated the shift to digital payments in Africa, which has contributed to the company’s exceptional revenue growth of 226% CAGR from 2018-2020.

The FinTech is planning to use the funds to allow the company execute an ambitious growth strategy to become a leading global payments company, empowering SMEs and multinational brands by connecting the highly fragmented African digital payments landscape. The company is planning to invest the new capital in accelerating customer acquisition in existing and international markets, as well as develop complementary and innovative products such as its newly launched Flutterwave Mobile, an app to help accelerate e-commerce growth as a result of the success of the Flutterwave Stores.

Jumio

Jumio, an AI-powered online identity verification and authentication services company, has announced securing a $150 mn Series B funding from Great Hill Partners, a private equity firm that invests in high-growth, disruptive companies.

Jumio will use the investment to accelerate its global lead in the digital identity space by devoting additional resources to automate its identity verification solutions, expand the breadth of the Jumio KYX Platform and grow its suite of AML compliance services. With this investment, Great Hill Partners’ Nick Cayer and Matt Vettel will join Centana Growth Partners and Millennium Technology Value Partners on Jumio’s Board of Directors. 

The funding follows a landmark year for Jumio. In 2020, the company achieved record revenues, volumes and automation breakthroughs. The company brings its pioneering document-centric identity approach to leading blue-chip companies across the telehealth, financial services, online gaming and social media spaces. The firm supports financial services brands like Monzo, HSBC, Bank ABC and more.

Clari

Clari, a leader in transforming revenue operations to be more connected, efficient and predictable, has announced securing $150mn in Series E investment round, bringing the company’s total valuation to $1.6bn.

The FinTech is planning to use the proceeds of the funding round to accelerate product development, expand ecosystem partnerships and drive global expansion. The finance round follows the company’s $60 mn Series D funding in October 2019, bringing the company’s total funding to date to $285 mn.

Clari, over the course of 2020, added blue-chip customers, processed and analyzed over 1 tn revenue data points, and delivered multiple innovations through it’s unique Revenue Operations Platform. Usage of Clari doubled as revenue teams transitioning to a virtual selling environment leveraged the company to quickly pivot their strategies and drive new growth initiatives.

Salary Finance

Salary Finance, a provider of financial education and salary-linked benefits for employees, has announced a new round of funding of $150 mn from Community Investment Management (CIM), an institutional impact investment firm. 

Founded in 2015, Salary Finance is an organization that partners with employers to offer financial wellness solutions that help employees be financially healthier and happier.  The company is planning to use the finance to help fund low-cost loans for working Americans struggling with financial stress.