British payments technology start-up GoCardless has become the nation’s latest ‘unicorn’ after achieving a billion-dollar valuation while securing a blockbuster funding round.
GoCardless, which has benefited from a surge in digital payments during the pandemic, is understood to have raised $95m (£71m), meaning the company will be worth more than $1bn on a fully diluted basis, including share options. The funding round is due to formally close this week. Stripping out those share options, its valuation stands at $950m.
The company has been holding talks over raising capital over recent months, as revealed by the Telegraph and coming in the wake of a surge in demand during the pandemic. It had been weighing up a Series F funding round of between $80m and $100m, with the expected round set to be at the top end.
GoCardless had entered into talks after investors expressed interest, given the huge shift to online payments.
GoCardless’s systems let customers set up direct debit to businesses using their bank account details rather than credit cards or having to pay through bank transfers. Prior to Covid-19, it had already been seeing robust demand, with the number of payments it processed up 91pc over the course of 2019.
However, the pandemic has brought about a boom in digital purchases, with online sales accounting for more than a third of all retail in May this year, compared to 19pc a year earlier — which has caused a surge in demand for GoCardless.
GoCardless declined to comment.
News the company is on the verge of closing its latest round comes amid a fintech frenzy, which has resulted in Starling Bank hunting for £200m in capital. Monzo recently raised another £60m.
Last week, the billionaire co-founder of payments titan Stripe told the Telegraph that he was "“very bullish” about the prospects for UK fintech firms, adding that London even outstrips the US in terms of the market’s sophistication.
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