Fintech startup Jeeves raises $180M, quadruples valuation to $2.1B in half a year

Less than seven months after closing on a $#nbsp;57 million Series B, fast-growing fintech Jeeves has raised $#nbsp;180 million in#nbsp;a#nbsp;Series C#nbsp;round that values the company at $#nbsp;2.1 billion.

Financial technology companies raising multiple rounds in#nbsp;a#nbsp;short period of#nbsp;time has become more the norm than an#nbsp;exception as#nbsp;of#nbsp;late. Still, the velocity of#nbsp;Jeeves' growth and increase in#nbsp;valuation is#nbsp;impressive.

When it#nbsp;raised in#nbsp;September, Jeeves#nbsp;— which describes itself as "an all-in-one corporate card and expense management platform for global startups" — was valued at $#nbsp;500 million. This means it#nbsp;has quadrupled in#nbsp;value in#nbsp;just over six months. It’s also notable that Jeeves only publicly launched in#nbsp;March of#nbsp;2021, and officially emerged from stealth last June with $#nbsp;31 million in#nbsp;equity financing and $#nbsp;100 million in#nbsp;debt. In#nbsp;the summer of#nbsp;2020, Jeeves was a#nbsp;participant in#nbsp;Y#nbsp;Combinator’s summer cohort.

Its success is#nbsp;yet another example of#nbsp;how competitive#nbsp;— and lucrative#nbsp;— the corporate card and expense management category has become. For example, Jeeves says that since its Series B#nbsp;was announced in#nbsp;September, it#nbsp;has seen its revenue climb by#nbsp;900% and doubled its client base to#nbsp;more than 3,000 companies. It#nbsp;also has reached about $#nbsp;1.3 billion in#nbsp;annualized gross transaction volume (GTV) with the expectation of#nbsp;reaching $#nbsp;4 billion by#nbsp;year’s end.

"When I#nbsp;made the rough Series C#nbsp;deck in#nbsp;December, I#nbsp;realized we#nbsp;had more than doubled revenue compared to#nbsp;the entire month of#nbsp;November," said Jeeves CEO and founder Dileep Thazhmon. "Then in#nbsp;the first two months of#nbsp;2022, we#nbsp;brought in#nbsp;more revenue than the whole of#nbsp;2021."

Tencent led its latest raise, which also included participation from GIC, Stanford University, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), CRV, Silicon Valley Bank, FT#nbsp;Partners, Clocktower Ventures, Urban Innovation Fund, Haven Ventures, Gaingels, Spike Ventures, the family offices of#nbsp;two FAANG founders, and Carlo Enrico, president of#nbsp;Latin America and the Caribbean for Mastercard. In#nbsp;the last 12 months, the company has raised more than $#nbsp;380 million.

"We ended up#nbsp;with five term sheets, which was a#nbsp;validation during a#nbsp;time when we’re seeing more due diligence than we#nbsp;had previously and a#nbsp;more challenging fundraising environment," Thazhmon told TechCrunch. "The market looked very different in#nbsp;January and February than it#nbsp;did in#nbsp;December."

So#nbsp;just what does Jeeves do#nbsp;exactly? The company says it#nbsp;provides the underwriting, credit in#nbsp;local currency and the payment rails "for any business spend across countries and currencies." It#nbsp;currently has customers across 24 countries in#nbsp;North America, Latin America, the U.K. and Europe that are a#nbsp;combination of#nbsp;high-growth startups, e-commerce companies and SMEs, including Bitso, Kavak and Belvo, among others.

Jeeves was founded in#nbsp;2020 under the premise that startups have traditionally had to#nbsp;rely on#nbsp;financial infrastructure that is#nbsp;local and country-specific. For example, a#nbsp;company with employees in#nbsp;Mexico and Colombia would require multiple vendors to#nbsp;cover its finance function in#nbsp;each country#nbsp;— a#nbsp;corporate card in#nbsp;Mexico and one in#nbsp;Colombia and another vendor for cross-border payments.

The startup claims that by#nbsp;using its proprietary banking-as-a-service infrastructure, any company can spin up#nbsp;their finance function "in minutes" and get access to#nbsp;30 days of#nbsp;credit on#nbsp;a#nbsp;corporate card (with 4% cash back), non card payment rails, as#nbsp;well as#nbsp;cross-border payments. Customers can also pay back in#nbsp;multiple currencies, reducing#nbsp;FX (foreign transaction) fees.

Published by Techcrunch#nbsp;— on#nbsp;March 22, 2022