Banking-as-a-Service Tops This Week’s B2B VC Roundup

With nearly $90 million in new funding landing at B2B FinTechs this week, investors showed off a diverse range of focuses, from procure-to-pay to small business payments. But it was a Banking-as-a-Service company that led the roundup this time, with one startup looking to expand into Credit Cards-as-a-Service with its latest investment.

Paid

The $2.8 million in new funding for U.K.-based Paid will go toward enhancing the company’s eProcurement solution for both buyers and suppliers. The company announced its launch this week and revealed the new funding from Crane Venture Partners, with Seedcamp, Techstars and angel investors also participating, according to EU-Startups reports. With a focus on addressing friction from supply chain disruptions, Paid connects buyers and suppliers while offering supply chain financing to get vendors paid more quickly while still allowing buyers to take time to pay. The company also streamlines supplier onboarding, contract management and other workflows within the procure-to-pay space.

Osome

Singapore-based Osome announced $3 million in new funding this week as an extension of its seed round, with XA Network and AltaIR Capital providing the latest investment, TechCrunch reported. Osome connects small and medium-sized businesses to a digital business assistant app to automate accounting, payroll and tax compliance workflows. As the company gears up to commence a Series A funding round next year, Osome will use the latest funding to explore global expansion into Australia after previous growth in the U.K. and Hong Kong.

Statrys

Digital small business payment services provider Statrys, based in Hong Kong, announced $5 million in fresh funding. The company secured the funding from an unnamed angel investor, reports said. Statrys offers banking and foreign exchange payments solutions for SMBs and startups that operate across borders, connecting them with solutions like payment cards and cross-border payment capabilities. The firm said it will use the new investment to accelerate product development with a focus on local currency accounts, accounting software, payment cards and integration capabilities, while it is also looking to expand geographically across Southeast Asia.

Kuda

While Nigeria’s mobile-first challenger bank Kuda initially only serviced consumers, a $10 million investment round will help the company expand into small business banking services, according to reports. The company’s seed funding is the largest-ever seen in the country and was led by Target Global. Entrée Capital and SBI Investment also participated, alongside other FinTech founders and angel investors. Kuda secured its own microfinance banking license in the country, allowing it to handle payments, issue debit cards via a partnership with Mastercard, and facilitate bank transfers without relying on a third-party banking provider. The new funding will also go towards the launch of a lending service, reports said.

inRiver

Lugard Road Capital led a $32 million funding round for product information management company inRiver, reports recently revealed. The company helps B2B businesses manage product information on their sales channels in support of commerce digitization. In addition to Lugard Road, investors included Verdane, Industrifonden, Zobito and RoosGruppen, with inRiver noting that it will use the new investment to fuel growth to meet customer demand, invest in product development and expand globally.

Railsbank

In the largest investment round for a B2B FinTech this week, Banking-as-a-Service company Railsbank revealed a $37 million investment provided by MiddleGame Ventures and Ventura Capital as co-leaders of the round. Other investors also included Anthos Capital, Global Brain, Clocktower Technology Ventures, Moneta VC, Mitsui Fodusan and Firestartr, according to a press release. Railsbank will wield the new funding to expand globally and introduce a Credit Cards-as-a-Service offering for its enterprise customers that look to implement their own banking and other financial services to customers.