[Funding alert] Berlin-based finmid Secures €35 Million in Equity Funding
Apr 17, 2024 | By Team SR
Finmid, an innovation in financial infrastructure that enables B2B platforms to provide customised finance support to their small and medium-sized clientele, has come out of stealth to obtain €35 million in equity capital from Blossom Capital, Earlybird VC, and Max Tayenthal, the founder of N26.
Along with the money, finmid also reports that it has teamed up with Wolt, a well-known European digital business for its local commerce platform.
Europe's SMBs are struggling to close a €400 billion funding deficit. Even though they employ more than 90 million people and contribute about 60% of the continent's gross value added, smaller businesses are still often ignored by banks and other service providers.
Finmid provides a more specialised and efficient digital-first service that a new generation of entrepreneurs has grown to anticipate, challenging banks' one-size-fits-all strategy.
Finmid makes it possible for hundreds of expanding companies to get funding without requiring them to submit to complicated procedures, fill out numerous forms, or have low acceptance rates. Through the B2B platforms they utilise on a daily basis, they can directly access monies in less than a day.
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Real-time data and in-depth industry knowledge—something that challenger and mainstream banks lack—are the foundation for decisions. The market benefits from the creation of new revenue sources and a long-term strategy for client retention.
Max Schertel, Co-Founder of finmid, said: “For hundreds of years, banks served as outposts where local businesses could get bespoke banking solutions. In the last few decades of consolidation, banking has become distant and impersonal, leaving small and medium-sized businesses behind. At finmid, we bring business financing back to where businesses are run. With just a few lines of code, finmid enables any B2B software platform to offer financing to their customers, building on existing relationships to fuel their business growth.”
Alexander Talkanitsa, Co-Founder of finmid added: “Traditional banking will no longer be the primary source for business financing. Banks still have the largest pool of capital but struggle to deploy it efficiently. It’s time for a new way of banking. We believe B2B software platforms are the future distribution channel for financial services due to their relationships with thousands of businesses. Moreover, these platforms have access to real-time data, enabling streamlined user interactions. By leveraging the extensive reach, data insights, and relationships these platforms maintain, alongside financial capital, we’re looking at a modern way of business financing.”
Ophelia Brown, Founder and Managing Partner of Blossom Capital, commented: “For B2B software platforms to stay competitive, they need to be leveraging financial services to better serve and retain their customers, and increase their margins. The most innovative and forward-thinking businesses in Europe understand the importance of this and are increasingly turning to finmid as the best partner to achieve these ambitions. It’s a huge opportunity that finmid’s founders have the track record and credibility to deliver and we’re excited to join Max, Alex and their team on their mission.”
Vincent Ho-Tin-Noe, CPO at Wolt, added: “We’re constantly looking for ways to support our merchant partners and help them succeed. Together with finmid, we’re able to provide easy and flexible access to additional financing – helping our partner develop their businesses, or have a safety net during tough times. The feedback we have received has been extremely encouraging, and we’re excited to see what kind of value we can create with the program moving forward.”
About Finmid
Finmid, which was founded in 2021 by Max Schertel and Alexander Talkanitsa, two former N26 workers, is revolutionising small business banking by empowering B2B software providers to provide financing options to their clients in a fast and risk-free manner. Finmid partners may provide their SMBs with an expanding array of capital and payment solutions that they require to grow with just a few lines of code.