The valuation of Bulgarian fintech company Payhawk has risen from 80 million dollars to 570 million dollars in just seven months. In April, the company attracted 32 million levs in a Series A funding round - the largest investment at this stage on the Bulgarian startup scene. In November, the young company which issues corporate debit cards in combination with an expense management platform in more than 30 countries, beat its own record: Payhawk raised 193 million levs (112 million dollars) in a Series B round that valued it at 980 million levs (570 million dollars). Given the pace, Payhawk stands a chance to become the first Bulgarian unicorn.
The new investor
The Series B round was led by San Francisco-based Greenoaks, which is known for its investments in fintech companies like Robinhood, Stripe and Checkout.com, as well as in Deliveroo. It is not clear what stake the investment fund is acquiring in Payhawk (unofficially, it is 8 or 9%). The sanction of such an investor is a very good sign for Payhawk's future and may attract other investors in time.
Greenoaks was not the only fund to show interest in Payhawk. "We had several proposals, including from investors like Tiger Global, but we decided that Greenoaks was the right partner for us at this stage," the company's co-founder, Hristo Borisov, told the Capital.
Two existing investors in Payhawk also participated in the Series B round: US-based QED Investors and Berlin-based Earlybird Venture Capital. The first to back up Payhawk when the company was founded in 2018 were Bulgarian fund Eleven and the co-founders of software developer Telerik and Telerik Academy.
The valuation of Bulgarian fintech company Payhawk has risen from 80 million dollars to 570 million dollars in just seven months. In April, the company attracted 32 million levs in a Series A funding round - the largest investment at this stage on the Bulgarian startup scene. In November, the young company which issues corporate debit cards in combination with an expense management platform in more than 30 countries, beat its own record: Payhawk raised 193 million levs (112 million dollars) in a Series B round that valued it at 980 million levs (570 million dollars). Given the pace, Payhawk stands a chance to become the first Bulgarian unicorn.
The new investor
The Series B round was led by San Francisco-based Greenoaks, which is known for its investments in fintech companies like Robinhood, Stripe and Checkout.com, as well as in Deliveroo. It is not clear what stake the investment fund is acquiring in Payhawk (unofficially, it is 8 or 9%). The sanction of such an investor is a very good sign for Payhawk's future and may attract other investors in time.
Greenoaks was not the only fund to show interest in Payhawk. "We had several proposals, including from investors like Tiger Global, but we decided that Greenoaks was the right partner for us at this stage," the company's co-founder, Hristo Borisov, told the Capital.
Two existing investors in Payhawk also participated in the Series B round: US-based QED Investors and Berlin-based Earlybird Venture Capital. The first to back up Payhawk when the company was founded in 2018 were Bulgarian fund Eleven and the co-founders of software developer Telerik and Telerik Academy.
Hawk of payments
Founded by former Telerik employees Hristo Borisov and Boyko Karadzhov, Payhawk offers a financial platform to small and medium-sized companies that allows them to easily manage the entire spend process: from issuing corporate cards to automated expense accounting and real-time generation of reports. The company offers cards in partnership with Visa and its software system allows employees to quickly scan receipts, so that managers can easily monitor reporting.
During 2021 Payhawk introduced 3% cashback on all payments made using its corporate cards, free transfers in euro and pounds and support for Apple Pay and Google Pay in 30 countries.
The company says that following the previous investment round the volume of transactions through its platform has increased 663% and continues rising. Customers include Luxembourg's air carrier LuxAir and German automotive parts distributor ATU.
"We can see a very good opportunity on the market. We managed to develop a competitive product in no time and the feedback is very positive. The investment will allow us to use that advantage and expand on three continents," Hristo Borisov said. The company plans to open offices in Paris, Amsterdam, New York, Sidney and Singapore. Currently it has offices in Sofia, Berlin, London and Barcelona, employing some 70 people. "We plan to increase our global team to more than 200 people," Borisov added.
The financing will also help Payhawk to accelerate its product roadmap. That includes the launch of a credit card in the first quarter of 2022, and low-cost cross-border transfers as an alternative to SWIFT payments.
Founded by former Telerik employees Hristo Borisov and Boyko Karadzhov, Payhawk offers a financial platform to small and medium-sized companies that allows them to easily manage the entire spend process: from issuing corporate cards to automated expense accounting and real-time generation of reports. The company offers cards in partnership with Visa and its software system allows employees to quickly scan receipts, so that managers can easily monitor reporting. During 2021 Payhawk introduced 3% cashback on all payments made using its corporate cards, free transfers in euro and pounds and support for Apple Pay and Google Pay in 30 countries.The company says that following the previous investment round the volume of transactions through its platform has increased 663% and continues rising. Customers include Luxembourg's air carrier LuxAir and German automotive parts distributor ATU.
"We can see a very good opportunity on the market. We managed to develop a competitive product in no time and the feedback is very positive. The investment will allow us to use that advantage and expand on three continents," Hristo Borisov said. The company plans to open offices in Paris, Amsterdam, New York, Sidney and Singapore. Currently it has offices in Sofia, Berlin, London and Barcelona, employing some 70 people. "We plan to increase our global team to more than 200 people," Borisov added.
The financing will also help Payhawk to accelerate its product roadmap. That includes the launch of a credit card in the first quarter of 2022, and low-cost cross-border transfers as an alternative to SWIFT payments.
The valuation of Bulgarian fintech company Payhawk has risen from 80 million dollars to 570 million dollars in just seven months. In April, the company attracted 32 million levs in a Series A funding round - the largest investment at this stage on the Bulgarian startup scene. In November, the young company which issues corporate debit cards in combination with an expense management platform in more than 30 countries, beat its own record: Payhawk raised 193 million levs (112 million dollars) in a Series B round that valued it at 980 million levs (570 million dollars). Given the pace, Payhawk stands a chance to become the first Bulgarian unicorn.
