2015 was a record year for payments startups, which thanks to a flurry of $100M+ mega-rounds raised over $3.3B in funding, across 293 deals.
However, the bulk of funding occurred during the first 3 quarters of 2015, and the category saw a dramatic plunge in funding terms in Q4’15 as the mega-deals dried up (even as deals continued trending up).
Q1’16 funding recovered slightly, with payments startups raising roughly $400M of investment across 75 deals.
Investors are pumping money into companies building bitcoin-powered payments startups, mobile commerce, billing services, money-transferring services, point-of-sale solutions, and much more. Using CB Insights data and analytics, we highlight quarterly financing trends as well the most well-funded startups in payments.
Deals and dollars
In Q1’16 payments startups saw a slight drop in deals but an increase in funding after a huge dropoff in dollars in Q4’15.
Some notable deals in Q1’16 include a $76M growth equity round to StoneEagle, a $55M Series A to Blockstream, and a $50M Series E to Aria Systems.
Payments startups reached record levels in funding and deal count in 2015.
Its worth noting the enormous spike in payments funding in Q3’15 is attributable to 3 deals: the $680M corporate minority to One97 Communications, $400M Series A to Ant Financial Services Group, and a $90M Series D to Stripe. Together, these three rounds accounted for 72% of funding in Q3’15.
Following the funding spike, deal volume hit a record high in Q4’15, with 83 deals, mainly going to US-based, UK-based, and India-based payments companies.
Check out the quarterly trends below.
Most well-funded payments startups
India-based One97 Communications is the most well-funded company on our list, and has raised over $1.3B in total funding. One97 Communications has more than triple the total funding of Alibaba-linked Ant Financial Services, which holds the number two spot.
Of note, Powa Technology, which made our list of well-funded companies in 2015, was forced into an asset sale after raising $227M and running into financial difficulties. It is one of 59 entries in our Downround Tracker.
| Rank | Company | Total Funding ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | One97 Communications | $1,310 |
| 2 | Ant Financial Services Group | $400 |
| 3 | Affirm | $325 |
| 4 | Mozido | $314 |
| 5 | Klarna | $289 |
| 6 | Stripe | $280 |
| 7 | Adyen | $266 |
| 8 | Zuora | $243 |
| 9 | WorldRemit | $185 |
| 10 | iZettle | $177 |
Want more information on payments companies? Check out our venture capital database below.
This report was created with data from CB Insights’ emerging technology insights platform, which offers clarity into emerging tech and new business strategies through tools like:
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