Willa, which helps freelancers get paid on time, has netted $18m in its Series A round, which will help it expand its invite-only beta.
FinTech Collective served as the lead investors, with commitments also coming from Entrée Capital and EQT Ventures.
Funds from the round will be used to allow more to join its invite-beta of 150,000 freelancers in the US. This capital will also help the company increase its user base and meet the growing waitlist.
In the future, the company is looking to release a debit card and financial wellness services.
Willa’s mobile app helps freelancers to get paid without extra paperwork. It claims freelancers receive their money within 30 seconds and their clients can pay later on their own terms, whether it is in 30, 60 or 90 days’ time.
Willa CEO Kristofer Sommestad said, “Many freelancing tools have seen the light of day, but none solve their biggest problems. As a result, they have no choice but to spend a full day each week on paperwork and still end up being paid late and lose their creativity.
“Our team has spent the last two decades building world-class consumer experiences across music apps, mobile games, and marketplaces. Willa is a beautiful user experience built on a simple premise: Finance doesn’t have to be about anxiety, spreadsheets, templates or vendor forms.”
Echoing this sentiment, FinTech Collective co-founder and managing partner Gareth Jones said, “At FinTech Collective we back creators with a hunger to reimagine the way money flows through the world. The Willa team is doing exactly this.
“They’ve built an exceptional product that their users love in a very short amount of time and we’re extremely excited to be a part of the journey ahead and have Willa reshape the future of work.”
This Series A comes a year after Willa raised $3m in its seed round from EQT Ventures and angel backers.
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