This release from The Fintech Times reviews the latest funding round for Veem, a 2014 startup, based in San Francisco, that specializes in cross-border transactions for SMEs. This particular round was led by Truist Ventures (the new name after the BB&T/SunTrust merger) and comes in the COVID environment, where various dire predictions have been coming out about VC investments drying up for awhile.
‘Veem, the fast-growing global payments network built for businesses, recently announced the closing of a $31 million capital raise, led by Truist Ventures, the corporate venture capital division of Truist Financial Corporation — the 6th largest commercial bank in the U.S. This investment will go towards the development of a robust channel partner program that will widen Veem’s geographic footprint as well as further improving and expanding its product suite and capabilities….This funding round builds on Veem’s already expansive global investor base, with participants from the United States, China, Japan, Australia, Malaysia, Canada, and the Middle East. Veem is supported by forward-looking banks and major venture capital firms who share Veem’s commitment to better enabling global commerce participation for small- to midsize businesses.’
We have not received a briefing but it seems that the cross-border payments are done on multiple rails, including blockchain with bitcoin transfers and FX. We don’t know how the decisions are made as to which payment rails are chosen under what circumstances, but we assume most of the bitcoin choices are lower value due to the FX fluctuations.
What we do know is that cross border and fintech innovation go hand in hand these days, which we have been discussing often. It has been an area of high interest and obviously continues to attract investments.
‘“Our leadership in Veem’s Series C marks our first investment as Truist Ventures; we can’t imagine a better company to hit this milestone with. Veem’s management team is an inspiring group of innovators and visionaries that are solving a critical pain point for small- and medium-sized businesses,” said Vanessa Vreeland, head of Truist Ventures. “We’re excited about this investment and the future opportunities it may bring. Veem’s strategic approach and commitment to constant improvement align well with how Truist sees the role of technology in shaping the client experience. Their proprietary multi-rail technology enables connections between businesses and their vendors, suppliers and contractors through a service that is easy to use and more cost effective than legacy cross-border B2B payment options—capabilities that our clients need.”
Overview by Steve Murphy, Director, Commercial and Enterprise Payments Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group