London, UK, 21 July 2021: Yapily, the leading open banking infrastructure provider, today announces the first closing of its $51m Series B funding round (second closing subject to regulatory approvals), taking its total investment to date to $69m. The company will use the funding to expand across Europe, extending open banking to cover 95% of the continent by the end of the year; and will continue to invest in its market-leading infrastructure to pave the way for open finance, creating financial inclusion for all.
The investment is led by Sapphire Ventures, a leading venture capital firm that partners with visionary teams and venture funds to build companies of consequence. Primarily investing in Series B through IPO technology companies, Sapphire supports the growth of the API infrastructure category. Existing investors Lakestar, HV Capital and Latitude have also participated in the round.
During Covid-19, Yapily has experienced 3.5x customer growth as global commerce rapidly shifted towards online shopping. With bank transfers estimated to account for 8% of global e-commerce payments in 2020 according to Worldpay’s 2021 Global Payments Report, account-to-account payments have entered the mainstream; creating the perfect opportunity for open banking to become the go-to infrastructure underpinning digital payments globally.
Yapily will use the funding to enter new markets including France and Spain, while continuing to invest in existing markets (UK, Italy and Germany) where it has already established a strong presence with a rapidly increasing customer base. In 2022, Yapily will expand to markets beyond Europe as open finance regulation is implemented globally and consumers begin to benefit from an open financial ecosystem. The company will also continue to invest heavily in its product and people, with a focus on significantly growing the size of its engineering capabilities over the next 12 months.
Stefano Vaccino, CEO and Founder of Yapily said, “We are delighted with this strategic investment, demonstrating Yapily’s position at the heart of disrupting global financial infrastructure. As we got to know Sapphire Ventures, it was clear that they are hugely supportive of our strategic approach and share our vision of open finance. Open Banking infrastructure is fundamental to how data and payments move between organisations worldwide, and it will shift the power to consumers for years to come. We are only starting to scratch the surface of what’s possible.”
“Europe is leading the world in open finance, and consumers and businesses will start to see more innovation from industries such as mortgages, pensions and insurance, with easier access to financial data and payments infrastructure. With more frameworks coming into effect around the globe, the time is right to double down on our growth plans by entering regulatory-led markets and enabling companies to build better and fairer financial products and services.”
Andreas Weiskam, Partner and Co-founder of Sapphire Ventures said, “We have been following open finance and the tremendous opportunity it presents in Europe and beyond for some time. FinTech is evolving from a vertical to a horizontal sector as companies in many verticals are moving to embed financial services into their offerings. This is a trend we believe is here to stay and relies on the development of a robust financial infrastructure layer.
“The decision to invest in Yapily was clear: an infrastructure-first approach to deliver better and fairer financial services for everyone. Europe is a fast mover in embracing an open and API-centric model, and Yapily is at the epicentre of financial innovation to push the regulatory boundary and shape the future of the open economy.”
Harnessing Yapily’s infrastructure, innovative companies are embedding the power of open finance into their products and services. This includes improving customers’ payment experiences while saving money on payment fees; securely accessing balances, identity and transaction data; and streamlining account and digital wallet top ups with instant payments.
Yapily is trusted to deliver faster, affordable and personalised products and services by innovative brands including Intuit QuickBooks, GoCardless, American Express, BUX, Volt, Moneyfarm and Vivid Money. As the invisible backbone for open banking, Yapily covers more than 90% of accounts in major European countries with deep open banking knowledge and expertise.
About Yapily
Yapily is an Open Banking infrastructure provider, allowing companies to seamlessly access financial data and initiate payments. Designed and built for Open Finance, Yapily enables better and fairer financial products for everyone.
The company has raised $68M in funding to date, and provides infrastructure for industry leaders including American Express, Intuit Quickbooks, Moneyfarm, Volt, Vivid and BUX. Headquartered in London, UK, Yapily employs over 90 people and continues to scale rapidly.
About Sapphire Ventures
Sapphire Ventures is a leading venture capital firm that partners with visionary teams and venture funds to build companies of consequence. For nearly two decades, Sapphire has been investing capital, resources and expertise in innovative startups and technology-focused venture funds around the world. With more than $6.8B in AUM across Sapphire Ventures, Sapphire Partners and Sapphire Sport, and with team members in Austin, London, Palo Alto and San Francisco, Sapphire is well-positioned to help scale companies and venture funds, elevating them to become global category leaders.
