More than $25 million in new funding landed at B2B FinTech startups this week, making it one of the slower VC roundups for the B2B landscape this year. Even so, investors distributed their backings to a wide range of startups, from a company enabling direct integration into digital asset settlement infrastructure to another company safeguarding the enterprise amid cloud and API adoption.
Zero Hash
Though it didn’t reveal how much it raised, Zero Hash, based in Chicago, announced the close of its Series C investment round led by holding company tastytrade. Zero Hash compares itself to a Banking-as-a-Service startup, only instead of linking financial institutions into tech to build their own banking products, Zero Hash connects corporates and financial service providers to digital asset infrastructure to settle funds automatically and compliantly. The company said it would use the investment to expand its product features with a focus on its automated lending infrastructure, and noted it will now include ACH processing in its offering.
Bikayi
As organizations accelerate their sales digitization efforts, B2B eCommerce has jumped to the top of strategic planning initiatives. One India-based B2B eCommerce startup, Bikayi, recently announced it raised $2 million in seed funding from a range of backers, including Mantis, a venture capital firm founded by pop artists the Chainsmokers. According to Economic Times of India reports, this marks Mantis’ first investment in India, while Y Combinator, Pioneer Fund and the founder of Teachable, Ankur Nagpal, also participated. Bikayi told the publication the investment will be used to expand hiring and accelerate product development with a goal of on-boarding 1 million new sellers.
Honcho
Enterprise governance software company Honcho secured $4 million in Series A funding, the Colorado-based startup announced in a press release this week. Honcho’s software helps other businesses ensure their employees remain compliant with business rules regarding communication by identifying potentially inappropriate or incorrect language within communications like emails. Amid the pandemic, the company said it’s even more vital to promote corporate governance while employees work from home. It’s a business model that secured the backing of FINTOP Capital, which led the round, while PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel and Palantir Technologies and Founders Fund also participated. Honcho plans to deploy the investment towards new hires and invest in its product roadmap.
Reachdesk
New York City startup Reachdesk offers B2B businesses a digital platform for corporate gifting and direct mail services. The company has announced a $6 million funding round led by Five Elms Capital, a blog post on the firm’s website revealed, adding that several angel investors also participated. In addition to the ability for B2B companies to send electronic gift cards to their corporate partners for sales and marketing purposes, the platform also supports charitable donations and address confirmation, among other features within its software. Reachdesk said it would use the investment for global growth.
Cloudentity
With $13 million in new funding, Cloudentity, which provides enterprises with application security and identity-aware authorization technologies as they progress with their digital transformations, will be focusing on accelerated growth and go-to-market initiatives. Cloudentity saw the Series A investment led by ForgePoint Capital, while WestWave Capital also participated. In its announcement, the startup noted that as more businesses migrate to the cloud, embrace API integrations, their vulnerabilities for security risks grows larger.
“The company is executing on the promise of scaling API security and control policies to enterprises, which helps protect its customers against the new wave of API threats,” said Sean Cunningham, managing director at ForgePoint Capital, in a statement.
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