$100m Watershed Series C salvages slow week for FinTech funding

A $100m funding round secured by ESG FinTech Watershed was the highlight of a slow week of FinTech funding round deals.
A $100m funding round secured by ESG FinTech Watershed was the highlight of a slow week of FinTech funding round deals.

The slow week for investment saw only a total of 12 deals finalised, for a relatively paltry sum of $317.3m – a massive drop off from last week’s total of over $1bn.

Watershed’s staggering tranche salvaged this. It was so impactful that it accounted for almost a third of the total investment secured in the space.

The pioneering firm, which operates in the climate economy sector secured the deal in a monumental Series C funding round, which propelled its valuation to an impressive $1.8bn. Greenoaks spearheaded this funding injection, with significant contributions from Kleiner Perkins, Sequoia, and other existing stakeholders.

Across the globe, the USA dominated the funding landscape, securing a lion’s share of the investment, with 9 deals. Meanwhile, Canada, Switzerland, and Chile also joined the funding fray with one deal each.

Interestingly, the UK, a usual FinTech hub, did not register any deals during this period.

The funding landscape was diversely populated with sub-sectors making significant strides. General FinTechs performed well with 3 deals, while InsurTech and RegTech took the lead with 4 deals each. WealthTech secured one substantial deal, contributing to the overall momentum.

Here are this week’s FinTech funding rounds:

ESG FinTech Watershed raises $100m, hitting $1.8bn valuation

Watershed, a pioneering firm in the climate economy sector, has raised a substantial amount of $100m in a Series C funding round.

The Series C round brings Watershed’s valuation to $1.8bn. This significant injection of capital comes courtesy of lead investor Greenoaks, with notable contributions from Kleiner Perkins, Sequoia, and several other existing stakeholders.

NEA spearheads Metronome’s $43m Series B investment round

Metronome, a promising startup in the FinTech sector, has successfully closed a $43m Series B funding round.

The round was led by NEA, with substantial contributions from a16z and General Catalyst. The funding round is a significant milestone for Metronome, as it brings the total capital raised by the company to over $78m.

Oasis Security clinches $40m for cutting-edge non-human identity solutions

Oasis Security, a trailblazer in the Non-human Identity Management (NIM) sector, has successfully secured a substantial $40m in funding.

This significant financial injection was led by the renowned Sequoia Capital, with notable contributions from Accel, Cyberstarts, and Maple Capital. The funding round also saw participation from industry stalwarts like Guy Podjarny, the founder of Snyk, and Michael Fey, the Co-Founder and CEO of Island.

Incognia’s location identity solutions garner $31m fundraise

Incognia, a pioneering force in the realm of location identity solutions, has successfully concluded a $31m Series B financing round.

This significant financial boost was led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with additional backing from FJ Labs and existing investors, including Point72 Ventures, Prosus, and Valor Capital.

This influx of capital marks a pivotal moment for the company, aiming to further its innovative work in digital identity signals and bolster its presence across key global regions such as North America, Europe, and EMEA. Moreover, the funds are earmarked to facilitate Incognia’s foray into new industry verticals, including consumer internet, financial services, and eCommerce.

AVLA secures $25m to enter US market

AVLA, a prominent provider of surety and trade credit solutions, has successfully secured $25m in funding from a host of distinguished investors.

The tranche, which included participation from Creation Investments Capital Management, DEG Invest, and Altra Investments, propel AVLA’s ambitious international growth strategy, with a particular focus on entering the lucrative US market, according to InsurTech Insights.

The company has its sights firmly set on expanding and the capital injection is set to help facilitate that, as the South American firm looks to scale its operations and reinforce its presence among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Latin America and beyond.

Benepass revolutionises employee perks with $20m funding influx

Benepass, a pioneering force in the FinTech realm, has garnered $20m in additional funding.

This strategic investment was spearheaded by Portage and Clocktower Technology Ventures, with notable participation from Workday Ventures and existing backers Threshold Ventures and Gradient Ventures.

Portage’s engagement goes beyond financial input, as Stephanie Choo, Partner at Portage, has been welcomed onto the Benepass Board of Directors, marking a strong vote of confidence in the company’s trajectory.

LightBeam.ai secures $17.8m in Series A to revolutionise zero trust data protection

LightBeam.ai, a trailblazer in zero trust data protection, has raised $17.8m in an oversubscribed Series A funding round.

This notable achievement is led by Vertex Ventures US, with contributions from Dropbox Ventures and existing investors 8VC and Village Global, as well as several angel investors.

Trinity Capital backs Kafene with $15m, fuelling expansion in point-of-sale solutions

Trinity Capital, a notable player in the provision of diversified financial solutions, has invested $15m in growth capital to Kafene.

Kafene, renowned for its transparent lease-to-own (LTO) agreements, has proven its mettle in the retail sector. Since its inception in 2020, the platform has impressively generated over $150m in incremental sales for its retail partners.

This feat is largely attributed to Kafene’s cutting-edge machine learning model, which adeptly leverages over 20,000 data inputs.  

InsurTech innovator CarbonPool secures $12m to fortify carbon credit markets

CarbonPool, a trailblazing company at the intersection of insurance technology and environmental sustainability, has successfully completed a funding round, raising a significant CHF 10.5 million ($12m).

This financial boost was led by an impressive consortium of investors including Heartcore Capital, Vorwerk Ventures, HCS Capital, Revent Ventures, and illustrious former executives from the insurance giant Allianz, Axel Theis and Christof Mascher.

Reken secures $10m in groundbreaking seed funding to combat generative AI threats

Reken, a trailblazing AI & cybersecurity company, has successfully concluded an oversubscribed seed funding round, securing a substantial $10m.

This significant financial endorsement comes from a consortium of prestigious investors including Greycroft and FPV Ventures, with notable contributions from Firebolt Ventures, Fika Ventures, Omega Venture Partners, Homebrew, and JAZZ Venture Partners.

Wisedocs secures $9.5m in Series A to revolutionise InsurTech with AI

Wisedocs, a leading name in the InsurTech sector, has successfully closed an impressive $9.5m in an oversubscribed Series A financing round.

The investment was spearheaded by Information Venture Partners, a prominent early-stage B2B FinTech investment firm. They were joined by Thomson Reuters Ventures and ManchesterStory, marking a significant vote of confidence in Wisedocs’ future.

MIC Global bags $6m in funding round led by Launchpad Capital

Microinsurance provider MIC Global has successfully raised $6 million in a seed funding round, with Launchpad Capital leading the investment. 

The funding round also saw participation from Greenlight Re, Ironsides Partners, and existing investors, according to The Coverager. 

This funding round marks a significant milestone for MIC Global, reinforcing its position as a key player in the microinsurance sector. 

Keep up with all the latest FinTech news here.

Copyright © 2024 FinTech Global

Enjoying the stories?

Subscribe to our daily FinTech newsletter and get the latest industry news & research

Investors

The following investor(s) were tagged in this article.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR