Archives

Kasada: $20 Million Raised For Bot Management And Agentic Defense Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 7, 2026

Kasada has raised a $20 million funding round led by EQT, with participation from existing investors Ten Eleven Ventures, Main Sequence Ventures, Reinventure, Our Innovation Fund, the StepStone Group, and Turnbull & Partners.

First Horizon Wealth Management: Eric Teal Named As As CIO

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 7, 2026

First Horizon Bank announced Eric Teal has joined First Horizon Wealth Management as senior vice president and chief investment officer. In the role, Teal will lead the investment team responsible for setting investment strategy, overseeing portfolio construction, and sharing market insights with wealth management clients.

Raymond James Launches ESOP Advisory Investment Banking Practice

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 7, 2026

Raymond James has established an ESOP Advisory investment banking practice and hired Mark Buchanan to build and lead it, expanding the firm’s Investment Banking division and adding dedicated capability for employee stock ownership plan transactions.

Lazard Asset Management: Gordon McKemie Named As Managing Director And Head Of Leveraged Loans And High Yield

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 7, 2026

Lazard Asset Management has named Gordon McKemie managing director and head of leveraged loans and high yield, adding a senior hire as the firm builds out its credit franchise.

Artificial Labs: $45 Million Series B Raised For Digital Insurance Brokerage Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 7, 2026

Artificial Labs, a London-based provider of digital broking and underwriting technology for specialty and commercial insurance, has completed a $45 million Series B funding round as it looks to accelerate growth and expand internationally.

Summit Wealth Merges With $470 Million Firm Premier Private Wealth To Expand Tennessee Footprint

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 7, 2026

Summit Wealth Group, an independent registered investment advisory firm, has merged with Premier Private Wealth, a Nashville-based wealth manager with $470 million in assets under management. The transaction lifts Summit’s total assets under management to approximately $3 billion and expands the firm’s presence in Tennessee.

Sanctuary Wealth: Marissa Fox-Foley Named As Chief Marketing Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Sanctuary Wealth has appointed marketing executive Marissa Fox-Foley as chief marketing officer, tasking her with leading the firm’s enterprise marketing strategy as it looks to strengthen its brand and expand marketing support for its Partner Firms.

Orchard: $30 Million Closed To Scale Open Marketplace Model

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Orchard announced it grew revenue 40% in 2025, outperforming the broader housing market during what it described as one of the industry’s more difficult years. The company attributed the performance to the launch of three new markets in spring 2025 and the addition of more than 500 agents over the past two years.

Kindred: $125 Million Raised For Scaling Community-Driven Travel Alternative

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Kindred, a members-only home swapping platform, said it has raised $125 million to expand its community-driven approach to travel and further position home swapping as a mainstream alternative to hotels and short-term rentals.

Carson Group Acquires Carson Wealth Milton And Integrates Atlanta Office To Expand Georgia Footprint

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Carson Group announced it has fully acquired its Carson Wealth location in Milton, Georgia, building on what it described as a long-standing partnership with Managing Partner and Wealth Advisor G.C. Lewis. The Omaha, Nebraska-based wealth advisory firm said it manages more than $55 billion in assets under management and that the Milton team reported about $218 million in advisory and brokerage assets.

EP Wealth Expands In New Mexico With $390 Million Firm LongView

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

EP Wealth Advisors, a fee-only registered investment advisor, has partnered with LongView Asset Management, extending EP Wealth’s Southwest footprint with an expanded presence in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The addition brings more than $390 million in assets under management to EP Wealth, which said the move strengthens its ability to serve families across the state.

Urban SDK: $65 Million Growth Round Raised For Expanding Geospatial AI Platform For Local Governments

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Urban SDK, a Jacksonville, Florida-based provider of geospatial AI software for public-sector agencies, has raised a $65 million growth funding round from Riverwood Capital as it looks to scale what it calls an “AI-powered system of action” for local and state governments across the U.S.

Portal26 Launches AI Value Realization Module To Boost Enterprise ROI

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Portal26 announced it has introduced an AI Value Realization Solution to help enterprises close what it described as a significant gap between generative AI spending and measurable returns. The Los Gatos, California-based company positioned the new module as a decision support layer that uses enterprise user behavior signals to identify which AI agents, applications, and migration efforts are most likely to deliver high value, then guides organizations on how to build and deploy them.

Tether Investments Makes $150 Million Strategic Investment In Gold.com

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Tether Investments has made a $150 million strategic investment in Gold.com, acquiring a minority stake and forming a long-term collaboration to expand access to gold across both digital and traditional distribution channels.

CargoTuff: Load Securement Products Maker Acquired By H.I.G. Capital

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

H.I.G. Capital announced that one of its affiliates has completed the acquisition of CargoTuff, a manufacturer and distributor of load securement products used to prevent load shifting and reduce freight damage across rail, ocean, truck, and intermodal shipping.

PayByPhone: Mobile Parking Payments Provider To Be Acquired By Lightyear Capital

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Lightyear Capital has signed an agreement to acquire PayByPhone, a Vancouver-based provider of mobile parking payments and parking management software, from Corpay.

ElevenLabs: $500 Million Series D At $11 Billion Valuation Raised For Voice AI Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

ElevenLabs announced that it has raised $500 million in a Series D financing round that values the voice and conversational AI company at $11 billion, more than tripling its valuation from a year earlier. The company said the round brings its total funding to $781 million across five rounds since its founding in 2022.

FMG: Wealth Management Marketing Platform Acquires Testimonial iQ

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

FMG, an all-in-one marketing platform for wealth management enterprises, financial advisors, and insurance professionals, said it has acquired Testimonial iQ, an online reputation management platform built for the wealth management industry.

Vault Digital Infrastructure: CVC DIF And Northleaf Sell Seven-Asset U.S. Data Center Portfolio To Igneo

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

CVC DIF and Northleaf Capital Partners said Vault Digital Infrastructure, a joint venture they co-own with Landmark Dividend, has sold its U.S. data center portfolio to Igneo Infrastructure Partners, the direct infrastructure business of First Sentier Investors.

Alphathena: Direct Indexing Platform Partners With Evergreen Wealth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Alphathena, an AI-enhanced direct indexing platform for wealth management firms and advisors, has struck a strategic partnership with Evergreen Wealth, an AI-powered registered investment advisor founded by fintech entrepreneur Bill Harris.

Graici: $7.5 Million Series A Raised For Medicaid Renewal And Redetermination Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Graici, an AI data company focused on Medicaid renewal and redetermination, has raised $7.5 million in a Series A round led by Santé Ventures. As part of the financing, Santé Founding Managing Director Dr. Joe Cunningham joined Graici’s board.

Pasito: $21 Million Series A Raised For Building AI Workspace For Benefits Industry

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Pasito, an AI-native workspace for group health, life, and retirement benefits, has raised $21 million in Series A funding to scale an “agentic AI” platform designed to eliminate manual work across insurance and benefits operations. The round was led by Insight Partners, with participation from Y Combinator and insurance-focused MTech Capital.

Derapi: $7 Million Raised For Distributed Energy Software Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Derapi, a software company building connective infrastructure for the distributed energy ecosystem, has raised $7 million in seed funding to expand its team and accelerate adoption of its universal API platform. The seed round was led by Earthshot Ventures with participation from Tuesday Capital, Susquehanna Sustainable Investments, WYVC, Breakthrough Venture Capital, WovenEarth Ventures, Radicle Impact, Raisewell Ventures, and angel investors including E8 Angels, GreenSky Capital, and Aurora Venture Investments. The investors join existing backers UNION, Ubiquity Ventures, and M1C.

Edward Jones: Venture Arm Invests In AI Tools For Estate Settlement, Long-Term Care, Equity Grants, And Business Owners

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Edward Jones Ventures announced it is entering its second year with new investments in technology platforms aimed at helping families and financial advisors navigate complex financial milestones, including estate settlements, long-term care planning, equity compensation, and business ownership. The firm framed the push as a response to more complicated client needs amid what it cited as a $124 trillion wealth transfer now underway.

Cartwheel: K-12 School Telehealth Mental Health Provider Closes Series B After 300% Growth

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Cartwheel announced it has become America’s largest K-12 mental health provider after nearly 300% year-over-year growth in new school-district partnerships, bringing its reach to 350 school districts across 15 states. The company, which provides telehealth-based mental health services for students, families, and school staff, also said it has formed partnerships with state departments of health and education in Arizona, Georgia, and Virginia.

Ecovia Bio: Biopolymer Ingredient Maker Closes Series B To Expand Livonia Manufacturing Capacity

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Ecovia Bio, a Michigan-based biotechnology company focused on sustainable biopolymer ingredients, said it has closed a Series B funding round led by Pointe Angels, an angel investor group based in the Grosse Pointe communities east of Detroit.

UBEES: €8 Million Series A Raised To Scale Regenerative Pollination Worldwide

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

UBEES, a company that applies professional beekeeping and connected-hive technology to regenerative agriculture, has raised a €8 million Series A round to fund its next phase of growth. The financing was co-led by Starquest and Capagro, with participation from Newtree Impact.

Polaron: $8 Million Closed For Material Sciences Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Polaron, a London-based AI startup focused on advanced materials characterisation, design, and manufacturing, has raised $8 million to build what it calls an “intelligence layer for materials science,” targeting a longstanding bottleneck in industrial materials development: understanding how a material's manufacturing process relates to its performance.

Hublo: €40 Million Reinvestment Vehicle Secured For Healthcare Workforce Management Software Platform

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Revaia announced it has closed a €40 million reinvestment vehicle dedicated to Hublo, a French provider of workforce management software for the healthcare sector, extending its support for the company after Hublo’s 2025 sale and beyond Revaia’s initial holding period.

Norton Rose Fulbright: Five Business Partners Added In Chicago And St. Louis

By Amit Chowdhry ● Feb 6, 2026

Norton Rose Fulbright is expanding its US business practice with the addition of five partners across Chicago and St. Louis, bolstering the firm’s corporate, private equity, healthcare, leveraged finance, and transactional tax capabilities.