SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 17, 2024--
Parafin, which builds embedded finance infrastructure, has announced the close of its $100 million Series C financing at a $750 million valuation. The financing was led by Notable Capital, with significant participation from Redpoint Ventures. Existing investors Ribbit Capital, Thrive Capital, and GIC also participated in the round.
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This funding reflects growing confidence in Parafin’s approach to embedded financial services, an area that continues to transform how small businesses access capital and manage their operations. Parafin has seen a remarkable trajectory, funding nearly $1 billion annually for tens of thousands of small businesses in the U.S. and Canada. Since its Series B round in September 2022, the company has grown volumes by 400% and expects to reach profitability within six months.
Parafin’s infrastructure powers financial services for marketplaces, vertical SaaS, and payment platforms, including global leaders like Amazon, Walmart, DoorDash, TikTok, and Worldpay. With a single integration, platforms can launch a full suite of financial products for their small business sellers, including capital, spend management, and savings tools. These services provide access to financing and help businesses thrive by leveraging real-time performance data to offer customized financial solutions.
CEO and co-founder Sahill Poddar shared, “Since we launched Parafin, our mission has been to empower small businesses with financial services. Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy yet banks do not have their backs. Incumbent methods systematically bias against women- and minority-owned businesses. This has historically hindered small business growth. At Parafin, we’ve worked tirelessly to construct our entire company — from our products and teams to our processes — to solve this problem. For example, our machine learning-based risk models train on millions of small business performance data to determine eligibility, offers, and pricing as opposed to relying on credit scores or requiring personal guarantees. Deploying state-of-the-art models enables us to provide responsible and sustainable access to hundreds of thousands of small businesses.”
He added, “This funding is not just a milestone for Parafin but an investment in the future of small businesses. With our machine learning-based risk models and enterprise-grade infrastructure, we’re redefining how financial services are delivered in a digital-first world. This new capital will allow us to scale existing products, ship new products, expand into new geographies, and deepen our partnerships with platforms that support the global small business economy.”
Hans Tung, Managing Partner at Notable Capital and a new board member of Parafin, commented, “What immediately drew us to Parafin was their differentiated approach to solving small business financing at scale through strategic partnerships with the world’s largest platforms. The team has executed flawlessly in building enterprise-grade infrastructure for marketplaces like DoorDash, Walmart, and Amazon, as well as their small and medium business merchants. This is beyond lending — it’s about empowering these businesses through data analytics to grow with the digital economy.”
“Parafin’s focus is clear: To grow small businesses via financial services on digital platforms they use everyday. By embedding financial services directly into the platforms where businesses already operate, the company helps drive growth, loyalty, and retention for platforms while empowering small businesses to thrive,” said Vineet Goel, CPTO and co-founder. “Today, a small business such as a restaurant on DoorDash can get access to financing to grow their operations. As Parafin expands its reach, we’re excited to bring to life solutions that help small businesses not just access capital but also save, store, and spend money via the platforms they transact on.”
About Parafin
Parafin is a financial infrastructure company that provides platforms with embedded financial products for their small businesses by abstracting the complexity of capital markets, underwriting, servicing, compliance, and customer support. By powering the financial services of marketplaces and payment processors, small businesses can run and grow themselves despite uncertain economic conditions. In less than three years, Parafin has launched on Amazon, Walmart, Worldpay, and more platforms to serve hundreds of thousands of businesses and extended over $8 billion in offers. Parafin was founded in 2020 by Sahill Poddar, Vineet Goel, and Ralph Furman, and is backed by GIC, Notable Capital, Redpoint Ventures, Ribbit Capital, and Thrive Capital.
Sahill Poddar and Vineet Goel, Parafin founders. Photo by Darius Riley.
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has helped a former soldier leave Brazil after legal action was initiated against him by a group accusing Israelis of war crimes in the Gaza Strip based in part on soldiers' social media posts.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday said it had helped the former soldier safely leave Brazil on a commercial flight after what it described as “anti-Israel elements” sought an investigation last week. It warned Israelis against posting on social media about their military service.
The Hind Rajab Foundation, named for a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza, said Brazilian authorities had launched an investigation into the soldier after it filed a complaint based on video footage, geolocation data and photographs showing him taking part in the demolition of civilian homes.
The foundation described the move as a “pivotal step toward accountability for crimes committed in Gaza" during nearly 15 months of war.
There was no immediate comment from Brazilian authorities. Brazilian media reported Saturday that the investigation was ordered by an on-call federal judge in Brazil’s Federal District. The decision was issued on Dec. 30 but first reported over the weekend.
Israel has faced heavy international criticism over its war against Hamas in Gaza, with the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister. The International Court of Justice is separately investigating genocide allegations.
The Brazil case raised the prospect that rank-and-file Israeli troops could also face prosecution while traveling abroad.
Israel adamantly rejects the international allegations, saying its forces in Gaza are acting in accordance with international law and that any violations are punished within its judicial systems. It blames Hamas for civilian deaths, saying the militant group conceals tunnels and other infrastructure in residential buildings, necessitating their demolition.
Throughout the war, Israeli soldiers have posted numerous videos from Gaza that appear to show them rummaging through homes and blowing up or burning residential buildings. In some, they chant racist slogans or boast about destroying the Palestinian territory.
The military has pledged to take disciplinary action in what it says are a handful of isolated cases.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead.
Israel’s offensive has killed over 45,800 Palestinians in Gaza, according to local health officials. They say women and children make up over half the dead but do not distinguish between civilians and militants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.
Israeli airstrikes on Sunday killed five people in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza and four in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to health workers. Gaza's Health Ministry said at least 88 people had been killed in the past 24 hours.
The war has caused widespread destruction in Gaza and displaced around 90% of the population of 2.3 million people, with many forced to flee multiple times.
In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Israeli forces killed a member of the Palestinian security services, calling him a wanted militant.
Israel's paramilitary Border Police said Sunday they carried out an operation in Meithaloun village overnight to arrest Hassan Rabaiya. They said he was killed in a shootout while trying to escape.
Israeli authorities released helmet-cam footage that showed the police shooting the suspect and blowing up what police said was an explosives lab in his home.
The Palestinian security services identified Rabaiya as a first lieutenant in its Preventive Security force, saying he was killed while “performing his national duty.”
Meithaloun is near the West Bank city of Jenin, an epicenter of Israeli-Palestinian violence in recent years. The Palestinian Authority has been waging a rare crackdown on militants in Jenin, angering many Palestinians.
The internationally recognized Palestinian Authority exercises limited autonomy in parts of the West Bank and cooperates with Israel on security matters. But Israel has long accused it of inciting violence and turning a blind eye to militants, while Palestinian critics view it as a corrupt and ineffective body that aids the occupation.
The West Bank has seen a surge of violence during the war in Gaza. Israel captured both Gaza and the West Bank, as well as east Jerusalem, in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians want all three territories for their future state.
Israel's defense minister warned Sunday that the truce that ended more than a year of fighting with Lebanon's Hezbollah is at risk.
Israel Katz said the agreement requires Hezbollah to withdraw to the north of the Litani River and Lebanese troops to eliminate militant infrastructure in the buffer zone — “something that hasn’t happened yet.”
“If this condition is not met, there will be no agreement, and Israel will be forced to act on its own to ensure the safe return of the residents of (Israel's) north to their homes,” he said.
Both sides have accused the other of violating the ceasefire agreement. Israel has withdrawn from just two of the dozens of towns it holds in southern Lebanon. And it has continued striking what it calls Hezbollah targets, accusing the militant group of attempting to launch rockets and move weapons before they can be confiscated and destroyed.
The deal struck on Nov. 27 required Hezbollah to immediately lay down its arms in southern Lebanon. It gave Israel 60 days to withdraw its forces and hand over control to the Lebanese army and U.N. peacekeepers.
Hezbollah, severely degraded after Israeli strikes, has threatened to resume fighting if Israel does not fully withdraw its forces by the 60-day deadline.
Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip. Associated Press writer Mauricio Savarese in Rio de Janeiro contributed.
Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Palestinians mourn their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Relatives of Mohammed Al Mabhouh,15, who was killed by the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, mourn over his body at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A tent camp for displaced Palestinians is set up amid destroyed buildings in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A tent camp for displaced Palestinians is set up amid destroyed buildings in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A tent camp for displaced Palestinians is set up amid destroyed buildings in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A tent camp for displaced Palestinians is set up amid destroyed buildings in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians mourn their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians mourn their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Mourners carry the bodies of their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, during their funerl at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians mourn their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians mourn their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
