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Major Industrial Expansion: Georgia-Pacific’s Englehart Mill Set for $191M Overhaul
Georgia-Pacific has officially announced a significant capital investment in its Englehart OSB (Oriented Strand Board) mill, located in Ontario, marking a major step in the facility’s ongoing growth and modernization. The company plans to invest approximately $140 million USD, equivalent to around $191 million CAD, to upgrade the mill’s infrastructure. This investment will be directed toward developing a state-of-the-art log processing system and constructing an expanded finished goods warehouse to improve overall operational efficiency. This development aligns with Georgia-Pacific’s broader commitment to enhancing productivity and meeting the evolving needs of its customers.
The announcement comes at a momentous occasion as the Englehart OSB mill celebrates its fifteenth year as a member of the Georgia-Pacific network, even though the site itself dates back to 1983, when its first board was produced. Celebrating both its heritage and future, the mill now stands on the brink of significant transformation.
David Neal, senior vice president of Georgia-Pacific’s Building Products business, highlighted the company’s forward-thinking strategy during the formal groundbreaking ceremony. He highlighted that the investment not only underscores Georgia-Pacific’s dedication to serving its customers more effectively but also enhances the mill’s operational capabilities to support greater productivity well into the future. Neal acknowledged the local workforce, noting that ongoing operations at the facility will continue uninterrupted during the construction and implementation phases, allowing the company to maintain its service to current markets.
John Beers, president of Structural Panels at Georgia-Pacific, further reinforced this message by noting that improvements to the mill’s log processing system and warehouse symbolize the company’s commitment to continuous improvement and reinvestment in both the facility and the surrounding communities. According to Beers, these upgrades reflect the company’s focus on maintaining competitiveness while ensuring the mill operates as an environmentally responsible facility equipped to meet modern industry standards.
The upgrades are significant, as the log processing system plays a critical role in OSB production. This system is responsible for handling raw wood materials, sorting and debarking logs, and preparing them by cutting them into strands before they are dried and pressed into boards. As engineering and design work continues, Georgia-Pacific expects the upgrade to be completed by the second quarter of 2027, making the Englehart mill a modern facility ready to meet the company’s expansion plans.
Lloyds Banking Group Eyes £120m Deal to Acquire Digital Wallet Firm Curve
Lloyds Banking Group is now in the advanced stages of talks to acquire Curve, a well-known financial technology company. The deal, according to sources cited by Sky News, could close as soon as September 2025. The estimated value of the transaction stands at around £120 million. Curve is a strategic addition that Lloyds believes would let it play a bigger part in the expanding payments infrastructure market.
Founded in 2016 by Shachar Bialick, a former Israeli special forces soldier, Curve has quickly built a name for itself in digital payments. It competes directly with Apple Pay by offering a digital wallet service that allows users to combine multiple bank cards into a single, secure platform. Curve customers can avoid foreign exchange fees and collect rewards, which adds further appeal to the service. The company serves over six million customers and handles billions in payments every year across the UK and the European Economic Area.
For Lloyds, this acquisition holds strategic significance. The European Union currently pressures Apple to open its payment services to other platforms. This regulatory shift could allow Lloyds to benefit from acquiring Curve, offering its customers a direct alternative to Apple Pay and reducing reliance on Apple’s payment fees. In the framework of its larger fintech investment strategy, Lloyds also considers Curve to be a financially stable asset.
Although Curve’s valuation reached £133 million in its 2023 Series C funding round, the potential acquisition price falls slightly below that. Despite this, Curve remains valuable. Since its inception, the company has raised more than £200 million from investors like Britannia, IDC Ventures, Cercano Management, and Outward VC. Yet, last year, Curve faced some operational challenges. It reduced its workforce and paused expansion plans in the US market.
Lloyds Banking Group, led by chief executive Charlie Nunn, considers technology expansion a core part of its strategy. The group already holds stakes in multiple fintech firms. By acquiring Curve, Lloyds aims to strengthen its payments infrastructure and offer a competitive digital wallet alternative. The acquisition supports its long-term plan to build more efficient, cost-effective digital payment solutions for its customers.
Eltropy Unlocks New Growth for CFIs Through Secure, Personal Video Banking
Eltropy’s Video Banking solution is transforming how community financial institutions (CFIs) deliver services by enabling secure, face-to-face banking through any digital device. This technology effectively turns smartphones, tablets, and computers into virtual branches, allowing CFIs to offer personal banking experiences remotely while maintaining the human touch that customers expect. The rollout of this platform follows Eltropy’s 2022 acquisition of POPi/o, reinforcing its digital transformation strategy and positioning video banking as a fundamental solution for CFIs seeking to streamline operations, reduce vendor dependencies, and enhance overall customer engagement.
Video Banking addresses the modern challenges that CFIs and their customers face daily. For members and consumers, the technology eliminates the need for physical branch visits, helping those who have relocated, live in underserved areas, or simply prefer digital interactions. It also provides an inclusive service model by connecting customers with interpreters during video sessions, ensuring that language barriers do not limit access to essential financial services. For financial institutions operating with limited resources, video banking represents a practical solution to extend specialised consultations beyond typical branch hours, without the need for expanded staffing across all locations.
Eltropy’s solution meets these evolving needs by offering flexibility in its deployment. Through remote access, CFIs can provide on-demand or scheduled consultations, supporting services such as loan applications, new account setups, document submission, identity verification, and digital signatures from virtually anywhere. At the same time, in-branch video rooms allow CFIs to leverage centralised expertise, bringing specialised services like lending support, investment guidance, and business banking consultations to every branch without needing to hire additional specialists at each location.
Built specifically for the financial sector, Eltropy’s platform integrates identity verification, compliance management, secure communication, document handling, and seamless system integrations. As part of Eltropy’s broader Unified Conversations Platform, Video Banking combines these capabilities with AI-driven automation, workflow management, and analytics. This enables CFIs to strengthen vendor relationships, scale operations using digital assistants and automation, deliver enhanced omnichannel services, and expand their reach without increasing physical infrastructure, all while optimising the member experience.
Yiren Digital’s Hexiang Insurance Brokers Launched Innovative Insurance Products for Low-Altitude Economy
Hexiang Insurance Brokers, the insurance brokerage arm of Yiren Digital, has successfully launched specialized insurance products targeting China’s rapidly expanding low-altitude economy. The company has signed multiple contracts with enterprise aviation operators through innovative insurance solutions developed in partnership with Ping An Insurance and PICC.
This strategic initiative represents a significant step in Hexiang’s expansion into China’s emerging low-altitude economy, positioning the company as a pioneer in providing comprehensive insurance coverage solution for this high-growth sector.
Key Achievements in 2025
- March 2025: In partnership with PICC, Hexiang sold its first low altitude aviation insurance policy to Xinjiang Tianying General Aviation. This policy covers the company’s commercial Robinson R44 helicopters and includes hull all-risks coverage, liability insurance, and errors & omissions extensions – all designed by Hexiang’s specialized insurance team.
- April 2025: Hexiang, in collaboration with Ping An Insurance, signed an insurance contract for Hexiang’s all-scenario helicopter insurance covering an Airbus R66. The product bundles aircraft hull coverage, crew liability, third-party liability, and passenger accident coverage, providing over RMB17 million in protection. The policy specially addresses the needs of low-altitude tourism operators and business commutes.
- June 2025: Hexiang is appointed as a Council Member of the Jiangsu Aviation Industry Association (JAIA), strengthening its position within the aviation industry ecosystem. The collaboration supports Hexiang’s strategy to deliver value-added insurance products that meet the evolving needs of new economy sectors particularly low-altitude aviation economy.
Leveraging JAIA’s aviation ecosystem, Hexiang aims to develop customized risk management products for civil aircraft operators, drone manufacturers, and general aviation companies – reinforcing its commitment to supporting industry growth through insurance innovation.
Low-altitude economy presents a substantial opportunity for insurance sector. Hexiang is strategically positioned to capitalize on this trend through continued product innovation and market expansion. The company plans to further develop its insurance portfolio with specialized offerings for urban air mobility (including eVTOLs and air taxis), commercial drone logistics, and AI-driven flight operations.
Through these strategic initiatives, Hexiang Insurance Brokers continues to demonstrate commitment to supporting China’s low-altitude economy development while establishing itself as the leading insurance provider in this sector.
Vyntra launched by NetGuardians and Intix to boost banking intelligence
NetGuardians, a Swiss FinTech specialising in AI-powered financial crime prevention, and Intix, a Belgian RegTech known for its transaction data visibility and analytics capabilities, have formed a strategic alliance to launch Vyntra, a next-generation financial crime intelligence platform.
The partnership aims to deliver a transformative solution for global financial institutions seeking robust tools for risk mitigation and regulatory compliance in a fast-evolving digital environment, according to FF News.
Vyntra is designed to provide real-time, end-to-end transaction observability that enhances operational resilience, improves compliance, and reduces exposure to financial crime.
NetGuardians brings its advanced artificial intelligence tools to detect and prevent financial crime, while Intix contributes its expertise in transaction data analysis and visibility.
By integrating these strengths, Vyntra enables banks and financial institutions to monitor transactions and payment flows in real time, ensuring anti-money laundering (AML) compliance and instant fraud detection.
The new platform already serves over 130 institutions across more than 60 countries. Its core clientele includes retail banks, private banks, institutional banks, Central Securities Depositories, digital-native banks, and FinTechs. Vyntra’s features include searchable message archives, SLA monitoring, proactive fraud detection, AML monitoring, insider risk detection, and access to shared community intelligence.
This launch comes in response to growing industry demand for a unified solution that ensures transparency, compliance, and security without hindering business operations. Vyntra’s real-time intelligence capabilities aim to redefine how banks and payment service providers detect and respond to financial crime at scale.
The backing of Summa Equity, which supported the merger between NetGuardians and Intix, has been instrumental in Vyntra’s creation.
Vyntra CEO Joël Winteregg said, “Vyntra represents a new chapter—not just for us, but for the financial institutions we serve. Whether it’s monitoring transactions and payment flows, ensuring anti-money laundering (AML) compliance, or detecting fraud as it happens, Vyntra unifies transaction observability and financial crime prevention under one roof. Our mission is simple: to help financial institutions navigate complexity with clarity and protect the integrity of every transaction.”
Summa Equity partner Gisle Glück Evensen said, “The merger of NetGuardians and Intix was designed to support a safer and more transparent financial system. Now, as Vyntra, this vision becomes a reality. We’re proud to support the team as they lead the way in transaction observability and financial crime prevention.”
Vyntra chief strategy officer Raffael Maio added, “Our clients rely on Vyntra to deliver operational resilience, regulatory confidence, and superior customer experiences. This united front directly addresses some of the most urgent challenges in financial services today.”
MGAA and Insurance DataLab team up to boost MGA insights
The Managing General Agents’ Association (MGAA), which represents MGAs in the UK and Gibraltar, has entered a strategic partnership with market intelligence platform Insurance DataLab.
As part of the deal, Insurance DataLab joins the MGAA as a Supplier Member and offers exclusive benefits to MGAA members, including a 10% discount on new annual licences, according to FF News.
The platform provides deep insights into underwriting performance, claims, solvency, and customer satisfaction across insurers, MGAs, and brokers, helping members make smarter, more informed decisions.
Matt Scott, co-founder of Insurance DataLab, said, “MGAs are driving innovation across the insurance market, and we’re proud to partner with the MGAA to give their Members access to data that helps power better decisions. This is about helping MGAs thrive by putting real insight in their hands.”
Dan King, co-founder of Insurance DataLab, said, “We’ve built Insurance DataLab to deliver intelligence that’s not just interesting, but genuinely useful. This partnership with the MGAA allows us to reach more of the market and provide it with the tools it needs to succeed.”
PNC Bank Launches PNC Mobile Accept®, A New Pay-As-You-Go Payment Processing Solution for Micro Businesses
PNC Bank today announced the launch of PNC Mobile Accept®, a fully integrated payment solution that provides its micro business clients with the ability to accept in-person credit and debit card payments directly within the PNC Mobile app.
Designed for businesses processing less than $300,000 in credit and debit card transactions annually, PNC Mobile Accept is a self-service solution that gives business owners fast, secure access to accept funds directly from their phone or tablet with no monthly fee.
“Micro businesses are often left behind by traditional card payment solutions due to high fees, restrictive card programs and approval delays,” said Matt Evans, head of PNC Merchant Services for Small Businesses. “With PNC Mobile Accept, we’re meeting small businesses where they are, delivering enterprise-grade payments capabilities at micro business scale – fast, affordable, and accessible.”
PNC Mobile Accept enables card payments through manual entry or via a pocket-sized reader that supports tap, dip, or swipe transactions. The solution boasts enhanced features like tax-and-tip functionality, cardholder data encryption, and near real-time transaction tracking, bringing consumer-grade ease to business-grade payments. Additionally, business owners can accept card payments from all credit card providers and access funds from transactions typically within two business days. This solution is ideal for micro businesses that are always on the go, and until now, lacked an easy way to accept card payments.
PNC small business clients with an active PNC business checking account can apply for PNC Mobile Accept in all PNC Bank branches and online. To apply or for more information about PNC Mobile Accept, please visit http://www.pnc.com/en/small-business/payments-and-processing/mobile-accept.
The payment processing services through PNC Mobile Accept are provided by Tempus Technologies, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of PNC Bank, PNC Bank, National Association, is a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC). PNC is one of the largest diversified financial services institutions in the United States, organized around its customers and communities for strong relationships and local delivery of retail and business banking including a full range of lending products; specialized services for corporations and government entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and asset-based lending; wealth management and asset management.
Wealthbox Secures $200 Million Investment from Sixth Street Growth to Accelerate Expansion and Innovation
Wealthbox, the #1-rated CRM software platform for financial advisors, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement for a $200 million strategic majority investment from Sixth Street Growth, the growth investing business of leading global investment firm Sixth Street. The partnership marks a major milestone in Wealthbox’s evolution and positions the company to further scale its operations, accelerate product development, and expand its footprint across the wealth management industry.
The investment from Sixth Street Growth reflects the firm’s strong conviction in Wealthbox’s management team, its modern and intuitive product, and a forward-looking roadmap that includes the development and rollout of innovative AI features designed to drive advisor productivity and firm-wide efficiency. The funding underscores the company’s strong position in the independent advisor market, its expanding opportunity in adjacent wealth-tech categories, and strategic trajectory upmarket to larger RIA firms and enterprise broker-dealers.
“This partnership with Sixth Street is a defining moment for Wealthbox,” said John Rourke, CEO and Co-founder of Wealthbox. “We’ve spent years building a modern, elegant CRM that advisors truly enjoy using. With Sixth Street’s backing, the new funding will allow us to move faster than ever to extend our leadership in the market and deliver even more value to advisory firms of all sizes.”
This investment will enable a new chapter of growth. Wealthbox plans to accelerate product development, expand integrations across the advisor tech stack, and deepen its enterprise capabilities to meet the needs of increasingly complex advisory firms.
“Wealthbox’s platform combines user-friendly simplicity with powerful capabilities, underpinned by a deep commitment to customer satisfaction, and we believe that it offers a valuable, advisor-centric CRM solution for the wealth management channel,” said Michael McGinn, Partner at Sixth Street and Co-Head of Sixth Street Growth. “We are pleased to partner with Wealthbox to support its next phase of innovation.”
As part of the transaction, Michael McGinn, as well as Paul Dodd, Operating Partner, and Alex Goodman, Principal at Sixth Street Growth, will join Wealthbox’s Board of Directors.
Frontier Growth Wealthbox’s existing investor will retain its position in the company by rolling over a substantial portion of its equity into the recapitalization.
Wealthbox will continue to operate under its current leadership team, with management also reinvesting meaningfully, underscoring their long-term commitment to the business and its future trajectory.
Amsterdam-based SMB banking platform Finom lands $105m from General Catalyst
Amsterdam-based Finom, a digital banking platform tailored for small and medium-sized businesses, has reportedly raised $105m in growth funding.
The capital injection, equivalent to €92.7m, comes from General Catalyst’s Customer Value Fund, according to a report from TechCrunch. In a notable move, the round did not involve any equity exchange, making it an unconventional investment structure.
Finom said the funds will be used solely to support growth activities, rather than operational or product development costs.
Founded with a mission to streamline financial services for entrepreneurs, Finom offers an integrated suite that combines banking, accounting, invoicing and financial management in a single mobile-first platform. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the company currently operates in over 10 European countries, including key markets like Germany and France.
Finom intends to deploy the new capital to expand its customer base and geographical footprint across Europe.
The firm currently serves more than 100,000 businesses in Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands and Italy. Finom reports positive unit economics in all markets and has adopted a subscription-based revenue model, alongside income from transaction fees and interest on credit lines from its new lending arm.
Turris and Loro Insurtech join forces to simplify insurance compliance
Turris, a provider of compliance and payment automation solutions for the insurance sector, has partnered with Loro Insurtech to deliver a unified solution aimed at modernising how insurers and MGAs handle compliance and broker onboarding.
The partnership accelerates broker and agent onboarding, streamlines quoting and binding, and automates compliance checks and filings—boosting efficiency and reducing risk.
Turris automates back-office tasks like license verification and regulatory reporting. Loro offers a digital platform for MGAs, carriers, and agents to manage quote-to-bind workflows.
The joint solution is live for both customer bases, with rollout support available. Key benefits include faster market access and real-time compliance automation.
Together, Turris and Loro aim to let insurance pros focus on growth while back-end operations run automatically.
Loro CEO and co-founder Peter Tilbrook said, “The Loro partnership with Turris showcases two key things modern MGAs and insurers should be aspiring to achieve: speed to market and real-time, painless compliance. By integrating with Turris’s operations automation platform, we’re adding a critical layer of verification that protects our clients while streamlining back-office operations.”
Turris CEO and co-founder Douglas Ver Mulm said, “Our partnership with Loro represents a significant leap forward in partner onboarding and compliance automation. Real-time license verification for every policy sold is eliminating compliance risks and driving down operational costs.”
He added, “The solution is already solving additional challenges for joint clients, including E&S policy stamping by automatically sharing state-specific agent licensing data.”
Canadian mortgage tech firm Pineapple Financial raises $1.5m in public offering
Pineapple Financial, a Canadian mortgage technology and brokerage company, has announced the pricing of a $1.5m public offering.
The Toronto-based firm provides digital solutions aimed at transforming the mortgage experience for brokers, lenders, and clients.
The company’s public offering includes 10 million units, with each unit comprising one common share and one warrant to purchase an additional common share. The units were priced at $0.15 each.
- Boral Capital is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the transaction. Legal counsel for the offering was provided by Sichenzia Ross Ference Carmel LLP for the company, and Lucosky Brookman LLP for D. Boral Capital.
Pineapple Financial is known for offering a suite of technology solutions that streamline the mortgage process. Its tools cover marketing automation, analytics, and client engagement, helping professionals in the mortgage ecosystem deliver enhanced experiences.
FinTech unicorns Qonto and Mollie team up to tackle Europe’s £275bn late payment crisis
Two FinTech unicorns, Qonto, a leading European business finance platform for SMEs and freelancers, and Mollie, a financial service provider, have entered into a strategic partnership to deliver integrated financial services and tackle the region’s £275bn late payment challenge.
The partnership aims to simplify fragmented financial infrastructure by bringing together banking and payments into a single platform.
By doing so, Qonto and Mollie seek to alleviate cash flow issues and reduce the time businesses wait to get paid an issue that affects nearly half of European businesses, according to the European Commission’s 2024 Annual Report.
Qonto is a business finance solution designed for SMEs and freelancers across Europe. It offers a full suite of digital banking services including invoicing, cards, team expense management, and local IBANs all accessible through a streamlined, user-friendly platform.
Mollie is a FinTech provider specialising in payments, enabling merchants to accept a variety of payment methods with speed and transparency.
Its infrastructure is built for scalability and ease of use, supporting fast settlements and a wide array of payment options without hidden fees.
The collaboration launches in two parts. Firstly, Qonto customers in France, Germany, and the Netherlands now have access to ‘Payment Links’ powered by Mollie Connect.
This feature allows businesses to generate secure payment links, send them to clients, monitor payment status, and receive funds directly into their Qonto accounts. Benefits include seamless integration with invoicing, real-time tracking, automatic reconciliation, transparent pricing, and support for multiple payment methods.
Secondly, Mollie is integrating Qonto Embed, a white-label banking product, to offer banking services directly from its platform.
Mollie customers in France and soon in Germany will be able to open business accounts with features such as 24-hour terminal settlements, real-time financial insights, and support for cards, SEPA, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and more.
Qonto Embed enables sub-account creation, spending controls, and starts at competitive pricing from €9 per month.
The partnership allows both firms to strengthen their positions in Europe’s FinTech ecosystem by offering SMEs a consolidated, efficient, and scalable financial experience.
“This partnership with Mollie marks a milestone in our mission to simplify finance management for European businesses,” says Qonto CEO and Co-Founder Alexandre Prot. “By combining our expertise in business banking and finance management with Mollie’s advanced payment capabilities, we’re addressing the unique needs of European businesses, from accepting card payments to managing their finances seamlessly in one single place. Our collaboration is more than just a strategic partnership. Together, we’re uniting our strengths to build fintech champions that can compete on a global level.”
“This partnership is a game-changer for SMEs seeking fast, seamless, and fully integrated financial services. By combining banking and payments in a single platform, we empower businesses to streamline financial management, boost efficiency, and free up capacity for strategic growth,” says Mollie CEO Koen Köppen.
PayPoint partners with Uber and Deliveroo to expand digital voucher services
PayPoint, a UK-based payments and commerce specialist, has partnered with Uber and Deliveroo to expand its digital voucher service for retail partners.
The partnerships have been formed in response to the rising popularity of digital vouchers. PayPoint has observed that more consumers are seeking local, convenient stores to act as one-stop-shops for errands, parcel services and gifting solutions, according to FF News.
Particularly during difficult economic times, digital vouchers have become a preferred option for money management and gifting. In 2024 alone, 93% of PayPoint’s retailers processed digital voucher transactions in-store, underlining their increasing importance.
PayPoint enables retail partners to maximise spontaneous purchases and attract new customers by offering a wider range of digital gift card services. Its platform allows secure, seamless transactions for digital vouchers, further supporting retailers’ ability to serve evolving consumer needs.
Uber provides digital vouchers for customers to top-up their Uber wallets, enabling them to book rides or order meals through Uber Eats. Deliveroo offers digital vouchers allowing consumers to top up their Deliveroo accounts, providing convenient access to quick and reliable meal deliveries from local restaurants and grocers.
The new partnerships allow customers to purchase digital vouchers for Uber, Uber Eats and Deliveroo through the PayPoint retail network, choosing any amount between £15 and £150. These vouchers can be used either for personal use or as gifts for family and friends, offering a flexible and accessible way to manage payments and gifting needs.
Additional information highlights that these new digital voucher services not only increase the product range for PayPoint retailers but also offer customers more ways to interact with trusted brands locally. Customers benefit from fast and easy credit top-ups, while retailers enjoy increased footfall and transaction volumes, strengthening their role within the community.
PayPoint retail proposition and partnerships director Antony Sappor said, “We are delighted to be announcing the partnerships with such major brands and welcome Uber and Deliveroo to our PayPoint network. With growing demand for digital vouchers, as both a money management and secure payment method, as well as a thoughtful gift, we’re excited to provide customers with access to these services through our extensive network of retailers.”
“The expansion enhances our voucher offering, adding value for our retailers. Partnering with such well-known names on expanding our voucher services will ultimately draw more customers into their stores.”
Philippine FinTech LenderLink lands $1.25m to revolutionise real-time credit data
LenderLink, a pioneering FinTech based in the Philippines focused on improving credit data infrastructure, has successfully closed its first external funding round.
The company secured $1.25m in an oversubscribed pre-seed round, with investments from Kaya Founders, Iterative, Founders Launchpad, and local business angels including Manila Business Angels.
LenderLink is developing the first high-tech, real-time credit bureau in the Philippines. Its mission is to modernise the country’s consumer lending market by enabling lenders to access and report credit risk data instantly. Through its API-first platform, the firm aims to lower borrowing costs by tackling high default rates and advancing financial inclusion.
The newly raised funds will be used to enhance LenderLink’s technology, expand its market presence, and establish partnerships with key lenders and financial institutions. These efforts are intended to help reshape the Philippine lending landscape, offering better credit risk assessment tools for lenders and fairer access to credit for consumers.
Already integrating over 25 million records across five ecosystems, LenderLink is building an exclusive network where early adopters benefit from improved lending terms and access to high-quality real-time credit data.
LenderLink CEO Christo Georgiev said, “We’ve spent years in fintech and observed that one of the biggest barriers to affordable lending in emerging markets is the lack of real-time credit data infrastructure.
“With this funding, we are addressing this foundational problem by bringing credit into the tech age, leveraging AI, data science, and automation to empower lenders while enabling consumers to rehabilitate their credit profiles faster and more safely.”
Kaya Founders general partner Ray Alimurung said, “What sets LenderLink apart isn’t just the technology it’s the caliber of the founding team and the clarity of their vision. Founders Christo Georgiev, Dimitar Manolov, Dimo Hristov, and Petya Dimitrova bring to the table deep domain expertise in fintech, credit assessment, and data science. Their years of industry experience has helped to inform their insight that lenders can only make optimal lending decisions through real-time credit intelligence.”
Clean energy FinTech Crux raises $50m to expand capital markets platform
Crux, a capital markets technology company focused on clean energy and manufacturing, has raised $50m in a Series B funding round.
The investment was led by Lowercarbon Capital, with participation from new investors Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, and OMERS Ventures. The round also saw continued backing from existing investors including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Ardent Venture Partners, CIV, New System Ventures, and The Three Cairns Group, alongside Acrew Capital and Giant Ventures.
Having launched in 2023, Crux operates a platform that facilitates financing solutions for the clean economy. It enables developers, manufacturers, investors, and lenders to navigate capital formation through features such as tax credit transfers and debt product marketplaces. The platform has attracted more than 630 participants and helped close over 70 tax credit transactions across sectors including battery storage, geothermal, and solar energy.
The newly secured funding will help Crux scale its software platform, expand its team, and deepen the functionality of its financial ecosystem.
Crux also plans to explore growth through both new technologies and potential acquisitions.
Crux CEO and co-founder Alfred Johnson said, “Last year, we announced that investors with over 100 GW of pipeline had invested in Crux. We’ve been proud to partner with these strategic investors to execute deals and improve our offering. Today, we are adding insurance and pension investors with hundreds of billions of assets under management. We look forward to partnering with our new investors Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures, OMERS Ventures, and MassMutual Ventures as we grow the platform and deploy billions into energy and manufacturing infrastructure.”
1Fort Raises $7.5M to Automate Business Insurance with AI
1Fort, the AI platform for business insurance, today announced it has raised $7.5 million in an oversubscribed funding round led by Bonfire Ventures. The round also included Draper Associates (Tim Draper); Karim Atiyeh, the founder of Ramp; and participation from all existing VCs: Village Global, Operator Partners, 8-Bit Capital, Character VC and Company Ventures. This latest round brings the 1Fort total funding to $10 million.
Insurance brokers and agents face manual, time-consuming processes when serving businesses. Yet 70% of businesses still rely on them for coverage, according to the Hiscox. Despite this reliance, 75% remain underinsured—leaving nearly 24 million businesses exposed as risks grow in severity and frequency with advancing technologies, such as cyber attacks and supply chain disruptions.
1Fort solves these challenges by empowering brokers to bind more top-tier insurance policies for businesses faster using AI. The platform leverages AI to automate various broker workflows, including autofilling insurance applications, retrieving quotes from carriers; comparing coverages; and integrating payment and financing options. Brokers who use 1Fort save on average up to two hours per submission and increase their bind rate by up to 20 percent. Brokers also better retain clients with 1Fort’s complementary risk management software, which businesses manage their policies and proactively prevent claims or losses.
1Fort grew revenue nearly 200% month-over-month in 2024, and has already partnered with over a dozen leading brokerages and A-rated carriers, including Arch, Tokio Marine HCC and Markel. The funding will allow 1Fort to continue to improve the broker experience through AI innovations and talent acquisition and further expand partnerships with carriers and brokers.
“Our mission is to help every business obtain the financial protection they need to keep up with today’s fast-moving risks, and empowering insurance brokers with AI to automate their antiquated workflows is the way to achieving it,” said Anthony Marshi, 1Fort Co-Founder and CEO. “This investment will allow us to grow even faster by doubling down on our AI features and strengthening our broker and carrier partnerships. We’re grateful for our investors who share our vision in transforming business insurance.”
“1Fort has been a great resource for our team, allowing us to move even faster and deliver great products for our clients,” said Travis Hedge, Co-Founder of Vouch, a leading VC-backed broker for startups from idea to IPO.
“Building AI-powered, service-as-software solutions to modernize legacy workflows in the insurance vertical is one of today’s most exciting opportunities,” said Jim Andelman, Bonfire Ventures Co-Founder and Managing Director. “1Fort has already built impressive momentum and is poised to revolutionize this trillion-dollar market.”