B2B FinTechs Find Funding To Ease Firms’ Digital Transformations

Much of the $117 million raised by B2B FinTechs from venture capitalists this week targets money management services for businesses, including invoice financing, lending and banking. But cybersecurity and workflow process optimization also saw significant commitments, reflecting a growing need for corporates to work with trusted FinTechs as they progress in their own digital transformation journeys. PYMNTS breaks down the latest investment rounds, plus a recent acquisition, below.

Figopara

Turkey’s FinTech community may not always garner much attention, but this week, the market highlighted its strength with startup Figopara, which announced a $1 million funding round provided by World Bank’s International Finance Corporation and angel investor Revo Capital. Figopara connects small and medium-sized businesses to invoice financing provided by a range of lenders and banks, including ING Turkey, Akbank and others. Reports in Crowdfund Insider did not indicate how Figopara plans to deploy the capital.

Hub Security

Israel’s Hub Security announced $5 million in Series A funding for its cybersecurity solutions targeting FinTech, blockchain and data storage companies. AXA Ventures led the round, while OurCrowd participated. Hub Security said it plans to deploy the investment to strengthen its technology and enhance its product offering for FinTechs with a focus on corporate banking, cross-border payments and credit. Through a mix of hardware and software, the startup offers “enterprise-grade security” to financial service providers that are increasingly migrating to the cloud and facing a growing threat of cyberattacks.

Validus

Singapore small business financing platform Validus announced an additional $14 million within its ongoing Series B+ funding round, which has amassed $20 million in committed capital, the company said in a press release. Vertex Growth Fund and Kuok Group’s Orion Fund co-led the round, which will enable Validus to focus on technology and innovation investment. The company is focusing on Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia, with plans to expand into Thailand in the fourth quarter as it works to connect small and medium-sized businesses with growth financing and cash flow management solutions.

Modulr

Securing more than $23 million in new funding, commercial and wholesale transaction banking technology startup Modulr plans to expand beyond the U.K. and into Europe. Investors at Highland Europe led the round, which also saw participation from Frog Capital and Blenheim Chalcot. The non-bank company, which enables commercial payments processing capabilities, plans to use the funding to focus on product development, with plans to introduce card issuing services and European payment capabilities as it expands across borders.

FortressIQ

A $30 million Series B fundraise will enable FortressIQ, a California-based technology firm, to accelerate its support of enterprise clients’ digitization journeys. Investors at Microsoft’s venture fund M12 and Tiger Global Management led the round, which also saw participation from Boldstart Ventures, Comcast Ventures, Eniac Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners. FortressIQ enables enterprises to optimize back-office workflows through data management and to map their processes to pinpoint potential bottlenecks and areas of friction. In its announcement, FortressIQ said the investment will strengthen its existing partnership with Microsoft.

SirionLabs

Washington State-based SirionLabs announced a Series C investment round to the tune of $44 million this week led by Tiger Global and Avatar Growth Capital. The company targets businesses with artificial intelligence (AI) technology that can automatically analyze their existing vendor and business partner contracts to identify leakage and un-optimized agreements. The company plans to use the funding to further strengthen its real-time contract lifecycle management (CLM) offering as it targets friction experienced by businesses struggling to manage multiple existing subscriptions, which can lead to wasted spend or sub-par performance among suppliers.

ANNA

U.K.-based small business banking and accounting firm ANNA announced that ABHH Group has invested $21 million in the company as it focuses on taking its first steps beyond the U.K. market and into Europe, with the ABHH Group now a majority shareholder in the firm. As it expands across borders, ANNA plans to wield Amsterdam Trade Bank infrastructure. In a blog post, ANNA noted that the fundraising effort began before the pandemic and that the company has not been negatively impacted. It has, however, seen a 15-30 percent decrease in transaction volume on its platform, though ANNA said it remains confident that volumes will recover.