The Venture Codex

Participated · Equity · Aug 2023

Tradeshift operates a platform for building B2B payments, supply‑chain procurement and B2B marketplace services and says its business network has more than 1 million users, including customers such as Danone and the U.K.’s NHS. The company plans to invest the new capital to scale its business network and add more SaaS, B2B marketplace and embedded financial services, and it is also considering acquisitions. Tradeshift, originally founded in Denmark and now headquartered in San Francisco, has faced slower trade and logistics activity post‑COVID and reported growth running about four points below the expected range; Q2 showed tentative signs of recovery in the U.S. while Europe and China disappointed. The company has cited working capital and liquidity — not demand — as key current constraints. Recent historical financings include a $200M Series F in March 2021 at a $2.7B post‑money valuation, a $170M debt round in late 2021, and secondary and additional undisclosed rounds in 2022. Tradeshift provides a combined enterprise SaaS, marketplace and fintech product suite that helps buyers and suppliers digitize invoice processing, automate accounts payable workflows and scale commerce across supply chains. The company has built a large global trade network in the cloud and embeds financial services into its product to free up working capital for suppliers. Tradeshift has launched products including Tradeshift Go (card/charge volumes) and Tradeshift Cash (a factoring product to help suppliers access cash). It says cumulative transaction value processed across its network has passed $1 trillion, having doubled in two years, and Tradeshift Go charge volumes were predicted to exceed $2.5 billion in 2021 (a 600% year‑on‑year rise). The company intends to use new capital to optimize growth and its balance sheet and continue scaling the business. Investors previously in the company include American Express Ventures, HSBC, Goldman Sachs and Wipro Digital. Tradeshift builds supply-chain payments, ePayables and marketplace software, including products such as Tradeshift Pay and Tradeshift Go. The company positions itself as a networked business and is focused on monetizing trade finance across a user base of over two million suppliers. Tradeshift reported more than two years of strong quarterly revenue growth and said 2019 was its best year, with over 60% revenue growth, more than 250 deals closed, an average deal size that doubled, and over 40% of cumulative transaction volume occurring in the past year. The new capital is intended to accelerate growth across core product lines and put the company on a direct path to profitability in the near future. Management said it will cut costs, including reducing headcount in expensive San Francisco offices and reallocating resources to lower-cost locations, while prioritizing costs and margins. The company first appeared in 2008 and is delaying a planned IPO to "get its house in order" amid a cooling IPO market. Tradeshift operates a supply-chain payments and marketplaces platform designed to digitize trade and supply chains. The company has recently added blockchain capabilities to its product suite. Leadership says the investment will enable continued rapid growth and consolidation of its market position as B2B online transactions increase. Tradeshift positions itself as a leader in supply chain commerce by helping corporations take greater control of their supply chains. The company has raised more than $400 million to date and says its valuation has passed $1.1 billion. Mikkel Hippe Brun, Tradeshift’s GM of China and co-founder, will join the company’s board; Gray Swan, a new venture company established by Tradeshift’s founders, participated in the round. Tradeshift is a business commerce and supply-chain finance platform led by CEO and Chairman Christian Lanng. The company connects 800,000 companies across 190 countries, including customers such as DHL, Zurich Insurance Group and the National Health Service. It operates a B2B marketplace and provides supply-chain finance capabilities for corporate customers. Tradeshift intends to use new investment to broaden its capabilities, accelerate development of its platform, and grow the ecosystem around its marketplace. The company is headquartered in San Francisco and has offices in Copenhagen, New York, London, Paris, Suzhou, Tokyo, Munich and Sydney. The article notes the amount of the investment was not disclosed.

Led · Series C · Nov 2021

MFS Africa, founded in 2009 by Dare Okoudjou, operates a pan‑African payments gateway that merges fragmented payment schemes to enable peer-to-peer and business transactions across borders. The platform supports a broad range of financial services including bank accounts, prepaid cards and virtual debit cards. It connects more than 320 million mobile money wallets across 35+ African countries and 700 corridors. The company has pursued inorganic growth via acquisitions such as Beyonic and the pending acquisition of Baxi, which provides access to over 90,000 agents in Nigeria. MFS plans to double down on regional expansion, open more offices across the continent and in the U.S. and China, and is working on interoperability between African and Chinese payment networks starting from Nigeria. It has moved its headquarters from Mauritius to London and intends to strengthen GRC, treasury and liquidity pools, hire more talent and continue investing in other African tech startups. MFS Africa is a Johannesburg-based mobile payments services provider founded in 2009 by Dare Okoudjou. The company has grown its network into a full‑range provider for digital payments across Africa, aiming to open financial services to those excluded from traditional banking. Its core product is mobile payments and digital-payments infrastructure that connects financial services players across the continent. The firm said the new investment will help better connect MFS Africa with opportunities and financial services players in Asia and boost cross‑border trade. Partners such as Equator Capital Partners and FSD Africa are expected to deepen links to global and regional financial institutions and support regulator and policymaker engagement. MFS Africa frames its work around a mission of financial inclusion for underserved customers. MFS Africa operates a digital payments network that provides a single access point for global organizations to reach and transact with millions of African consumers and businesses across networks, borders and currencies. Led by founder and CEO Dare Okoudjou, the company connects over 170 million mobile wallets through 100+ partners, including Airtel, Ecobank, MTN, Orange and Vodafone across 55 markets. The company has offices in Port Louis (Mauritius), Accra (Ghana), Douala (Cameroon), Lagos (Nigeria), London (United Kingdom) and Johannesburg (South Africa). MFS Africa raised $4.5m in a Series B round led by LUN Partners Group, with participation from Goodwell Investments and several angel investors. It intends to use the funds to accelerate the expansion of its network in Africa. As part of the deal, MFS Africa will work with LUN Partners Group, its portfolio companies, and investor base to boost financial inclusion in countries targeted by China’s ‘Belt and Road’ initiative.

Participated · Equity · May 2021

Forge Global operates a private securities marketplace that connects investors and shareholders to provide liquidity solutions and secondary trading for private companies. Since inception the firm has completed more than $9B in transactions across nearly 400 private companies and reported three consecutive record-breaking quarters, including Q1 2021 when it completed 1,400 transactions totaling more than $730M of volume. After merging with SharesPost in 2020, Forge received FINRA approval to operate as a single broker dealer with SharesPost, strengthening its transactional capabilities. In February 2021 the company launched Forge Company Solutions, a suite for company-sponsored liquidity programs including executive liquidity, employee liquidity, tender offers and direct listings. Forge says it will use new funding to expand service offerings in the U.S. and beyond and to continue developing products and services for the private market. Founded in 2014, Forge is backed by a mix of Silicon Valley investors and global institutions including Deutsche Börse, Temasek, Wells Fargo, BNP Paribas and others. Forge Global is a trading, settlement and custody marketplace for pre-IPO securities that enables employees and investors in private companies to liquidate portions of their shares and gives investors access to late-stage private firms. Founded in 2014 as Equidate, Forge's platform lists companies such as Spotify, Lyft, and 23andMe and is backed by investors including Tim Draper, Peter Thiel, FT Partners and Munich Re. Since inception the company has completed nearly $2 billion in transaction volume. Forge is collaborating with BNP Paribas to develop and distribute a structured equity product linked to a diversified basket of private shares, leveraging Forge's technology, data, and relationships across unicorn firms. The partnership includes an equity investment from BNP Paribas and an observer seat on Forge's board for Angel Rodriguez-Issa. Forge says the initiative will launch a $1 billion series of investment products to provide institutional and high-net-worth clients exposure to pre-IPO companies. Forge Global operates a marketplace for pre-IPO securities, allowing shareholders and investors in privately held innovation firms to liquidate portions of their shares. The platform provides access to top private companies such as Spotify, Lyft and 23andMe prior to their IPOs. Led by CEO Kelly Rodriques and established in 2014, the company has facilitated over $1 billion in transaction volume across US and international companies. Forge has launched the Forge Tech30 Capped Index and the EQUIAM Private Tech30 Fund to provide diversified exposure to large private tech companies. The company says it will expand the range of services offered to companies, investors and strategic partners to broaden access to the private markets. Equidate operates an online secondary marketplace that makes privately held company shares available to accredited and institutional buyers, typically requiring $20,000–$50,000 minimum investments. The platform charges roughly a 5% commission on each transaction and employs 26 people. Equidate has played a material role in pre-IPO liquidity, handling about 40% of Spotify’s secondary trades ahead of its direct listing. The company says it is on track to transact $1 billion worth of shares this year. It has engaged with a number of high-profile private companies, including Didi, Meituan Dianping, Tencent’s music service and Xiaomi. As companies stay private longer, Equidate is positioned to support interval liquidity programs and broader secondary-market demand. Equidate operates a web-based marketplace for pre-IPO company shares that connects accredited investors with opportunities to invest in fast-growing private companies. The platform also provides a channel for employees of startups to liquidate equity. Access to the marketplace is restricted to accredited investors with a net worth over $1 million or annual income above $200,000. The company is led by CEO Sohail Prasad and recently appointed Head of Strategic Operations John‑Paul Teutonico. Teutonico previously served as Chief Administrative Officer at SecondMarket. Equidate raised a seed funding round of undisclosed amount backed by several angel and institutional backers.

Participated · Series C · Feb 2021

RecargaPay is a Brazil-based fintech launched in 2010 by Rodrigo Teijeiro that enables users to top off prepaid cell phones online and offers a broader suite of payments and financial services. The company converted its website into an app in 2014 and now operates solely in Brazil after exiting other markets. Core offerings include mobile top-ups, gift cards, microloans, public-transport card refills, bill payments and a subscription program called Prime+. RecargaPay charges a monthly fee of 19.99 reals and passes along a 4% cashback on top-ups; the company is EBITDA positive according to its CEO. It has raised just over $100 million to date and plans to use the new funding to expand financial services for small businesses and consumers and further develop Prime+. RecargaPay positions itself within the same ecosystem as larger digital banks like Nubank rather than as a direct competitor. RecargaPay is a Brazilian mobile payments platform and digital wallet provider that offers payment, wallet and anti-fraud technology to simplify daily transactions. Its product suite includes mobile top-ups, transport cards, bill payments, gift cards and other payments, and its apps rank among the top financial‑services apps on Google Play and the App Store. The company emphasizes seamless user experiences and anti‑fraud capabilities. RecargaPay has 85 employees based mainly in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, with additional offices in Buenos Aires and Miami. It was founded by Rodrigo Teijeiro, Alvaro Teijeiro and Gustavo Victorica. The company says it will use the new funding to grow its team and build new technology products.

Led · Series A · Aug 2019

The CareVoice is an embedded health company that develops an operating system (CareVoiceOS) and integrations to help insurers deliver digital health, fitness and wellness services. Started in Shanghai a decade ago, the company now has a footprint across 15 countries and operates with a team of around 40 employees. Its platform can make a first version live in as little as three months, and it powers products such as MetLife’s 360Health app with features including face-scanning illness detection and access to nearby checkup centers, plus prevention across physical, mental and cognitive wellness. The company reached cash-flow neutral from Q3 2022, doubled its revenues in 2023, and is headed toward revenues of about $10 million this year from a mix of recurring licensing payments and one-off implementation fees. The CareVoice plans to use the new funding to expand partnerships with insurers across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas and to invest in the next generation of CareVoiceOS. The startup positions itself as a faster, managed alternative to custom IT/consulting builds that can take years and cost several million dollars. The CareVoice offers CareVoiceOS, a plug-and-play, API-based healthcare operating system that lets insurers orchestrate health ecosystems and deploy bespoke customer journeys across multiple front-end channels. The platform (version 2.0) enables insurers to combine health services with insurance products under their own brand and to engage customers on any channel. The company has been expanding partnerships with major insurers including Generali, Cigna and Prudential Financial, and plans to roll out in 10 markets across Asia, Europe and Latin America within 6–9 months. CareVoice reports that revenue tripled over the prior 12 months and that it achieved positive EBITDA in Q1 2021. Operating scale includes 4 million serviceable members and 200,000 yearly paid members, with paid membership growing 400% in the past six months. Teams are based in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and Paris as the company accelerates international expansion. Founded in 2014, The CareVoice began as an app for patient reviews before shifting to a SaaS flagship product that makes healthcare and insurance products more accessible on mobile. Its core offering is an end-to-end platform—CareVoiceOS—that aims to integrate with insurers' existing systems rather than only serving as a sales tool. The company is used by 15 insurance providers in China and Hong Kong, including Ping An and AXA. It has launched StartupCare to let startups provide health benefits to founders and employees and is developing 10 new insurance products tailored to segmented consumer groups with health-insurance partners. The CareVoice is focused on improving enrollment, customer experience and claims processing. It plans to grow its business in Hong Kong and expand into other Asian markets. The CareVoice is a Shanghai-based healthtech platform that helps consumers find health and wellness providers and access insurance benefits. Operational since 2014, it was founded by Sebastien Gaudin and later joined by cofounders Jan Velich and Neil Liang after a pivot into health insurtech. The company said it enables customers to take advantage of insurance benefits and improve health through transparent, personalized services. Recent commercial traction includes customers such as AXA, Ping An and Chubb and an onboarding rate for newly-insured members that increased tenfold to over 50%. The CareVoice raised roughly $2 million in early growth capital to fund its insurance business lines and accelerate technology development. It plans to use the financing to consolidate its leadership in China’s major cities and to expand into Southeast Asia.