Zibo, which works to provide streamlined and accessible financial services for landlords, has raised $10.5 million in a seed round led by Canaan Partners, according to a press release.
QED Investors, Khosla Ventures and SVB Capital also participated in the round, the release stated.
The company has initiated its own banking and payments program to move landlords beyond antiquated platforms using spreadsheets and more manual tools, according to the release. The Zibo tools are meant to help save time and implement new tools like Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)-insured business checking accounts, automated rent collection, online bill pay and expense management to help streamline tax preparation.
Zibo CEO and Co-Founder Chris Hsu said he originally entered the business in order to provide income for his family. But as he continued, he began to see the lack of resources in tech for landlords, the release stated.
“I know firsthand that being a landlord is not easy, especially when, like many landlords, you’re balancing it with a full-time job,” said Hsu, according to the release. “Zibo is bridging the gap in financial services today to empower landlords with a modern, transparent way of doing business, while enabling renters to pay the way they want.”
According to the release, tenants will see benefits as well, with a survey of over 100,000 renters by the National Multifamily Housing Council finding that around 85 percent of renters would prefer a digital option to pay rent. Right now, less than 20 percent of U.S. tenants do so, according to the release.
Trends in home buying have been driven by health lately, according to a PYMNTS report, with 40.2 percent of people choosing to shop digitally due to fears of contracting the virus. In addition, 71.7 percent of customers said they are concerned that they will get their loved ones sick if they go outside too much to do things like home-shopping.
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