Participated · Series C · Feb 2019

Ceros provides a no-code platform for creating interactive "digital experiences" — graphics and websites — used by clients including NBC, United Airlines, Snap, McKinsey, IBM, Condé Nast, JP Morgan, Red Bull and Pinterest. The company recently launched MarkUp, a design collaboration tool for live websites, and says it will build more products to help brands craft experiences more rapidly. Ceros raised a $100 million investment led by Sumeru Equity Partners; the company had previously raised $33.5 million in total funding, according to Crunchbase. CEO Simon Berg said the firm avoided layoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic and saw increased platform activity and returning customers. Leadership and investors plan to use the new capital for additional product development, targeted acquisitions, and continued international growth. Ceros offers a SaaS platform for creating animated, interactive content and web experiences aimed at prioritizing design and creative freedom over traditional content marketing. The product targets marketers and publishers who want richly designed graphics and pages rather than blog posts or SEO-driven white papers. The company says it now works with more than 400 customers, including brands and publishers such as United Airlines, Red Bull, Condé Nast, Vice, the Baltimore Ravens and the Detroit Lions. Ceros emphasizes capital efficiency and a focus on putting the creative and design piece first while complying with the technical constraints of the web. Management and investors have indicated the company may pursue opportunistic acquisitions to enhance the core product and deepen penetration in key markets. The articles do not disclose revenue or profitability figures. Ceros offers a cloud-based interactive design studio that allows marketers and designers to build and publish rich, interactive content without developer resources. The platform includes real-time collaboration tools and granular analytics to measure viewer interactions. It has seen increased traction across verticals, powering campaigns for brands such as General Electric, LinkedIn, Red Bull, and United Airlines, as well as publishers and sports teams. Ceros emphasizes ease of use so marketing teams can scale engaging content without high development costs. The company plans to use new funding to further product development, expand the platform’s reach, and rapidly scale sales, marketing, and client services. Founded in 2013, Ceros has offices in New York and London and is backed by multiple VC investors. Ceros offers a platform that lets designers and marketers build and publish interactive content experiences without involving developers. The product includes a collaborative digital canvas, real-time preview, push-button publishing, and real-time analytics with contextual engagement metrics. Content created with Ceros is sharable, embeddable in social sites, and designed to work across devices. Customers include ShopBazaar, Mini, Stella McCartney, Frette, Moncler, Urban Outfitters, Tourneau, Peugeot, Habitat, Monsoon and Virgin Atlantic. Launched in January 2013 and based in New York, Ceros aims to accelerate content production and optimize engagement through analytics. The company has secured venture funding to support product development and sales and marketing expansion.

Participated · Equity · Oct 2018

ConveyIQ provides an integrated communications suite, scheduling and digital interviewing platform designed to automate recruiting operations end-to-end. The company serves over 140 enterprise customers and has integration partnerships with HR incumbents including IBM/Kenexa, Oracle/Taleo, Greenhouse and iCIMS. Led by founder and CEO Danielle Weinblatt and newly added COO Larry Murff, ConveyIQ combines candidate engagement and hiring workflow automation. The company intends to use new funds to accelerate sales and marketing, expand its product offerings and grow its partner ecosystem. The product focuses on helping enterprises engage candidates, attract talent and hire faster. The business is headquartered in New York City.

Participated · Series C · Aug 2017

Vyze provides a cloud-based multi-lender platform that lets retailers offer customers multiple credit options—including branded store credit cards, installment loans, and lease-to-own—through a single integration. The company is live in more than 2,000 stores across the U.S., as well as on leading eCommerce sites and call centers. Over the past 12 months Vyze more than doubled its retail client base and increased finance volume through its platform by 700%. Vyze says its platform boosts consumer approval rates to upwards of 80%, addressing high rejection rates seen in traditional retail financing. The company plans to use new capital to accelerate growth, fuel product innovation, and expand its lender partnerships. Vyze positions itself as an optimization layer between retailers and a broad lending supply to reduce abandoned sales and increase conversion. Vyze is an Austin, Texas-based technology provider of financing solutions at the point of sale. Led by CEO Keith Nealon, the company provides cloud-based financial technology combining lending supply, technology, and support to allow enterprises to deliver satisfying financing experiences for their customers, wherever and whenever they shop. Vyze's platform is positioned to integrate lending supply and technology to enable point-of-sale financing across channels. The company raised an additional $13m in Series B funding in this round. The round was led by Austin Ventures and StarVest Partners, bringing Vyze's total funding to $35m to date. Vyze intends to use the new funds to add a Tier 1 data center and to further invest in its sales and marketing efforts. NewComLink builds a technology platform for retail credit that improves consumers' access to financing at the point of need and brings new efficiencies to financing. Co-founded in 2008 by Suneet Paul and Jim White, the company has filed numerous patents, signed key customers, and developed an extensive partner network. The firm reports having signed dozens of retailers and lenders as it positions itself as an alternative to legacy payment and lending solutions. NewComLink is based in Austin, Texas and is privately held with venture capital funding from Austin Ventures and StarVest Partners. The company announced a $10 million Series B to support aggressive growth as retailers and lenders continue to embrace its platform. Leadership points to the founders' experience scaling finance businesses as underpinning the company's go-to-market strategy.

Participated · Series B · Apr 2016

UrbanBound offers a SaaS-based relocation management platform that helps companies administer, track and optimize relocation benefits, forecast and contain relocation costs, and build smart policies. The platform emphasizes a customized employee experience and connecting people at the right time. The company serves a range of customers from technology startups to the Fortune 500. Led by CEO and co-founder Michael Krasman, UrbanBound plans to accelerate product development, broaden sales efforts and grow its team in a new Chicago office. The company currently employs over 40 people and intends to use the new funding to continue expanding its client base. UrbanBound offers a web-based, end-to-end relocation platform that allows newly hired and transferring employees to self-administer their entire move. The platform provides city education, move planning and organization tools, and connections to vetted service providers that offer discounts. UrbanBound emphasizes a comprehensive relocation experience delivered through software to corporate customers. Co-founded by Michael Krasman and Jeff Ellman, the company serves enterprise clients including Groupon, Razorfish, Plante Moran and CH Robinson. The company plans to use new funding for hiring and continued platform innovation. No revenue or user metrics were disclosed in the article.

Participated · Series E · Apr 2016

Transactis offers cloud-based, white-labeled SaaS products for bill presentment, payments and document management, including BillerIQ for electronic bill presentment and payments and DocumentIQ for digital document management and storage. The company sells exclusively through resellers such as financial institutions, technology companies, printers and business process outsourcers, providing white-label solutions plus sales, marketing, technical and operational support. Transactis reports having reached more than 100 million households and businesses in North America. It intends to use the new capital to continue expanding operations. The company has now raised $70M in total funding to date. Transactis is a NYC-based provider of electronic bill presentment and payment solutions. It offers BillerIQ, a cloud-based electronic bill presentment and payment platform delivered as a service, enabling businesses to deliver electronic bills, invoices and documents and accept payments online, by phone and via mobile device. The platform is used across industries including property management, healthcare, insurance, the public sector, utilities and financial services. Transactis sells exclusively through a network of resellers, primarily banks and BPO organizations. The company recently closed an $11M Series D and plans to use the funds to expand sales, marketing and client services and to accelerate product development. To date the company has raised $40M in total and is led by CEO & Chairman Joe Proto. Transactis is a NYC-based provider of electronic billing and payment solutions. Led by CEO and Chairman Joe Proto, the company offers a platform-as-a-service technology to securely process eBills and ePayments for banks and corporations. It serves businesses of all sizes with its BillerIQ solution. The company closed an $8.2M Series C financing to support growth. Transactis intends to use the capital to enhance product features and functionality, invest in sales and marketing support, and add new channels for growth. Transactis provides electronic billing, payment, and marketing SaaS products, including BillMail and BillerExpress, and after acquiring OfferIQ also offers OfferIQ and LoyaltyIQ virtual couponing and loyalty solutions. The company works with banks and their merchants to convert paper-based billing, payment, and coupon transactions into electronic interactions. Founded in 2001 and based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Transactis targets small and medium-sized businesses with affordable invoice distribution and payment collection. Customers include Chase Paymentech, PNC, Wells Fargo, Elevon, and TD Bank. The new capital will be used to drive adoption of its SaaS platforms. Leadership includes CEO Joe Proto and executives Paul Harkins and Scott Cruikshank. Transactis offers Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP) solutions that enable secure electronic bill delivery and integrated payment processing. Its core product helps banks and payment processors replace paper bills and payments for small and middle‑market clients. The company emphasizes flexible, integrated payment processing to support client workflows. Management includes Chairman and CEO Joe Proto, who was among the participants in the recent financing. Transactis received a $2.5M capital infusion to provide additional working capital. The funding is intended to support the company’s growing relationships with major banks and payment processors and to accelerate deployment of its EBPP services.