Fintech startup Clearco raises $215 mln in SoftBank-led funding

Clearco, a fintech company that offers capital to startups, said on Thursday it raised $215 million in an equity funding round led by SoftBank Group Corp’s Vision Fund 2 as it accelerates its international expansion.

The company, based in New York, London and Toronto, was started in 2015 by Canadian entrepreneurs and investors Andrew D’Souza and Michele Romanow. Romanow, who is on Canadian reality TV show “Dragon’s Den” where entrepreneurs pitch ideas for an investment, said she heard proposals again and again for funding for marketing and inventory.

“I remember talking to Andrew and I was like, why are founders using the most expensive capital in the world to do something that really has a fixed return?” said Romanow.

The two came up with the idea of funding startups and being repaid with 1% to 20% of the revenue until they recuperate the entire investment, plus another 6% to 12% depending on where the money is spent.

So far they have provided $2.4 billion to 5,500 founders, said D’Souza.

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Source: Fintech startup Clearco raises $215 mln in SoftBank-led funding | Reuters