MENA Investors AB Ventures And DASH Ventures Give A Boost To US Fintech Startup Veem In Strategic Funding Round The funding round boasts an impressive global investor base, ranging with participants from the US, China, Japan, Australia, Malaysia, Canada and Jordan.
By Pamella de Leon Edited by Aby Thomas
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur Middle East, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Led by Truist Ventures, US-based global payments platform Veem has raised US$31 million in a strategic round, along with the participation of AB Ventures, the independent corporate venture capital arm of Arab Bank, and Amman-based venture capital firm DASH Ventures. Veem, which aims to simplify remittance services for small businesses worldwide, plans to use the new capital to develop "a robust channel partner program" for the enterprise's geographic footprint, as well improve its product capabilities.
The funding round boasts an impressive global investor base, ranging with participants from the US, China, Japan, Australia, Malaysia, Canada and Jordan. Other participants include MUFG Innovation Partners Co. Ltd., CVC of MUFG, the largest bank of Japan. Previous investors that contributed to this round include GV (formerly Google Ventures), Goldman Sachs, Kleiner Perkins, Silicon Valley Bank, National Australia Bank Ventures and Trend Forward Capital.
"This funding round marks an important milestone for the company, putting us in an ideal position to build out our channel partner program and prepare for Veem's next stage of global growth," said Marwan Forzley, CEO of Veem, who was an ex-executive at Western Union. "Our channel partner network serves as our vehicle to better commercialize our product offering and further expand upon our market development efforts."
According to a statement, Veem is in the process of growing its network of over 225,000 customers, with it sending and receiving money in more than 100 countries. Using its proprietary tech with traditional remittance systems and blockchain tech, as well as integrations with QuickBooks, Xero and Netsuit, Forzley and his team are determined to make Veem the go-to platform for entrepreneurs (as well as their accountants) across international borders.
Having banking institutions invest in the startup certainly shows how traditional entities are seeing the advantage of smaller enterprises such as Veem. And with AB Ventures and DASH Ventures participating in the transaction, it's also an indication how the region's firms are keen to bring more tech and innovation from other markets and to the wider MENA market. Faisal Hakki, Managing Director of AB Ventures, notes that the payments sector has always been on the top of their agenda, and Veem's offering and room for growth was one to watch: "From a value proposition centered on the needs and wants of small businesses and a visionary management team, to its innovative business model and proprietary underlying technology, Veem is a clear category leader in business payments."
DASH Ventures Managing Director Omar J. Sati also stated his excitement in being part of the cap table: "We are thrilled to be joining forces with AB Ventures in this inaugural co-investment; Veem stands out as a class leader in the networked business-to-business space," he said. "The combination of their innovative networked go-to-market approach, rich product features, and potential channels for future monetization all make for a very compelling proposition both as a technology company and as the latest addition to our growing fintech portfolio."
