Fintech funding round-up: 5 February 2018
The first fintech funding round-up of February features Ohpen, Penta and Behalf.
Cloud-based core banking provider Ohpen has closed a €25 million Series C investment round with private equity firm Amerborgh. Ohpen will use these funds for growth and expand into a third country. It’s currently operating in the Netherlands and UK – and says it is reviewing potential countries with “five promising candidates”: Germany, France, Canada, Australia and the US. Ohpen will announce its final decision in the first half of 2018.
Michel Vrolijk, MD Amerborgh Nederland, says the “execution power of the Ohpen team is unparalleled” and “launching the third country is crucial for Ohpen’s strategy”. In 2017 Ohpen says it more than doubled in staff and revenue, including deals with Aegon Bank and de Volksbank. In July 2017, it confirmed a previous investment round of €15 million to support its expansion to the UK. The Series C round brings its total investment in the past six months to €40 million.
Berlin: home of Penta
Berlin-based challenger bank Penta has raised a €2.2 million seed round one month after launching in Germany. The start-up is also announcing the end of its waitlist, which allows German businesses to open a business bank account with Penta today (5 February). The investment round was led by Inception Capital, a fintech-focused VC based in the UK.
The funding will be used for hiring, to build out its service and to launch its marketplace of third party products like automated accounting, FX, and multiple Mastercards with limits and permissions. Penta’s CEO and co-founder Lav Odorovic says: “Start-up founders and business owners waste so much time and money dealing with annoying admin tasks. That’s why we’re offering the tools that can help you get business banking done in a fraction of the time.”
Over in New York, Behalf, a provider of working capital solutions for SMEs, has secured $150 million in debt financing led by a private investment fund managed by Soros Fund Management. Viola Credit also participated.
Behalf is operating within the B2B lending space, and it partners with sellers to offer their customers financing at the point of sale. There aren’t a lot of details but Benjy Feinberg, founder and CEO of Behalf, says the funding allows it to expand its e-commerce B2B financing platform. In 2017, Behalf announced its partnership with FinWise Bank, a Utah-chartered bank. Behalf was founded in 2012, and also has an office in Tel Aviv.
