Today in B2B: Bazaar Raises $70M in Country’s Second-Largest Funding Round; 40% of B2B Payments Made By Paper Check

Today in B2B payments, Coupa stock falls 25% after a disappointing quarterly earnings report. Plus, buy now, pay later Playter raises $1.7 million in seed funding to sustain its growth.

Coupa Stock Falls 25% After Earnings Report

Business spend management platform Coupa Software shares plummeted 25% in early trading Tuesday (March 15) after the company’s quarterly earnings report and weak management guidance for this fiscal year, according to an Investors Business Daily report.

The San Mateo, California-based company reported its fourth-quarter earnings late Monday (March 14), leading to a 25% drop in early trading Tuesday (March 15). Coupa said its earnings, on an adjusted basis, rose 12% to 19 cents per share, while revenue jumped 18% to $193.3 million.

Last year at this time, Coupa reported earnings of 17 cents a share on sales of $163.5 million.

B2B BNPL Platform Playter Raises $1.7M

U.K. growth platform Playter, which offers buy now, pay later (BNPL) invoicing to startups, has raised $1.7 million in seed funding, according to a blog post Tuesday (March 15), saying it would use the money to sustain its growth over the next few months.

Playter said it has grown more than 1,000% in size and revenue in the past few months. The company said it reduces small- to medium-sized businesses’ (SMBs) burn rates and lets them control payment terms. It also lets startups use BNPL for online purchases and service expenses to free up capital.

B2B Payments: 40% Are Made With Paper Checks

Some experts estimate that 40% of all B2B payments in the U.S. are still made by check, meaning they play a critical role for a large share of businesses, as reported in “The Treasurer’s Guide To AR Payment Optimization,” a PYMNTS and CheckAlt collaboration.

More than four out of every five (81%) of businesses pay other firms via paper checks, making it the most common B2B payment method, even amid companies’ pandemic-driven digitization efforts.

Many companies’ traditional AR and AP processes are designed to accommodate all aspects of paper check payments, making it difficult for some to shift entirely to digital B2B payments.

Bazaar Raises $70M in Pakistan’s Second-Largest Funding Round

Pakistan-based B2B eCommerce startup Bazaar Technologies has raised $70 million in what was the country’s second-largest funding round on record, according to published reports Tuesday (March 15).

The company, which operates in 21 cities across Pakistan, provides small merchants in more than 500 towns with services including procurement, fulfillment, operating software, digital lending and supply chain products. It is on track to become the country’s biggest tech-backed last-mile delivery provider by the end of 2022.