Debit card payments processor completes the latest funding round that will be used to meet the customer demand around the globe.
The UK-based online payment services provider, GoCardless, has closed a $13 million financing round, led by Notion Capital. Among other companies that invested in the round are Passion Capital, Accel Partners, and Balderton Capital.
GoCardless allows businesses to accept direct debit payments online using the company’s technology. With more than 16,000 clients, the startup processes over £1 billion in transactions each year.
The company will use the funds to increase its global footprint and serve the needs of new customers. “Our vision is to create the first global bank-to-bank payment network and we are really excited to have hit £1 billion in annual payments for our merchants. While our early years focused on helping UK SMEs get access to Direct Debit, our recent growth has been driven by increasing demand from larger corporates and new markets like France and Germany,” Hiroki Takeuchi, CEO of GoCardless, told Business Insider.
“This investment from Notion puts us in a great position to build on our traction across Europe to create an increasingly global footprint. We will use this scale to bring further benefits to our UK merchants and to continue to ramp up in continental Europe,” he added.
During its previous funding round in January 2014, the company received $7 million from a range of investors, including Accel, Passion Capital, and Balderton Capital.
The overall global fintech investment has significantly increased over the last years. In 2015, venture capital-backed fintech companies attracted record $13.8 billion of investment. According to a report, prepared by KPMG International and CB Insights, the number of deals reached 653, rising from 586 in 2014. The largest number of deals was recorded in North America and Asia. The funding in the US reached $7.4 billion, while in Asia there have been 130 deals worth $4.5 billion.
Currently, the globe’s leading banks, such as Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, are showing the growing interest in fintech companies.
In March, the startup incubator Plug and Play has launched a fintech program that was supported by such banks as Deutsche Bank, Santander, BNP Paribas, Banco Original and others. The initiative was started to provide assistance for new companies, including those based on the bockchain technology.
The emergence of new technologies, however, is putting at risk the businesses of traditional financial service providers. The recent PwC report showed that CEOs and top managers believe 23% of their business could be at risk in view of the growing FinTech. Meantime, fintech startups believe they could gain 33% of the officials’ business.
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