- Wayflyer recently raised $150 million in funding at a $1.6 billion valuation. These are the details.
Wayflyer — an Ireland-based financing and growth platform for e-commerce merchants — announced it has raised $150 million in a Series B round, co-led by DST Global and QED Investors, giving Wayflyer a post-money valuation of $1.6 billion. They were joined by 3 new investors; Prosus, Madrone Capital Partners and J.P. Morgan. Existing investors Left Lane Capital and Guillaume Pousaz (Checkout.com founder) also participated.
The funding will be used to continue Wayflyer’s global expansion, in the US, across Europe, and into Asia, as well as allowing the business to hire world-class talent and expand its product offering. And the funding is following an intense period of growth for the business in 2021, in which cash advances grew more than 900% year-on-year.
As e-commerce continues to rapidly expand globally, Wayflyer is uniquely positioned to help ambitious eCommerce businesses unlock their true potential, solving some of the critical challenges that have long stifled growth. And combining access to capital and insights that help eCommerce businesses deploy that capital effectively, Wayflyer acts as a trusted growth partner to thousands of merchants worldwide. To further the impact on global eCommerce, Wayflyer will use this funding round to provide billions of dollars to ambitious eCommerce merchants in the coming years.
Wayflyer’s Series B funding round comes off the back of a significant period of growth for the Dublin-headquartered company. Last year alone, Wayflyer raised a Series A round of $76 million, expanded into new markets including Spain and the Netherlands, opened a dedicated office in Atlanta, and formed partnerships with the likes of Adobe, Sezzle and eBay UK. Plus Wayflyer’s staff count increased by 525% last year, from 40 up to 250, and its annual capital deployments grew over 900% year-on-year.
The e-commerce sector shows no sign of slowing in 2022, with sales predicted to reach $5.4 trillion by the end of the year. And against this backdrop, funds from Wayflyer’s Series B round will be used to continue building its presence in current territories, expand into new territories across Europe and into Asia, further expand its product range, and hire the best talent globally.
KEY QUOTES:
“Since launching in April 2020, Wayflyer has been relentlessly focused on helping our customers drive growth and removing the barriers that limit their potential. The founders we work with have incredible ideas and passion for making things happen; they’re constantly striving to break new ground and go further in business — and we’re proud to support them and help them reach new heights. Our Series B round will help us build our offering to customers, expand into exciting new territories, and hire more world-class talent. We’ve only just scratched the surface of what’s possible here, and with an incredible team all working together to solve the biggest challenges in eCommerce, I couldn’t be more excited for what’s ahead.”
— Aidan Corbett, Wayflyer CEO
“Aidan, Jack and the Wayflyer team remain focused on helping eCommerce companies grow and maximise their potential. We are impressed by their commitment to building the best products for their customers and proactively helping their customers grow via analytics, practical insights and attractively priced funding. We are pleased to continue supporting the team, as Wayflyer expands globally to provide innovative financing and growth solutions for eCommerce businesses around the world.”
— Tom Stafford, Co-founder and Managing Partner at DST Global
“The pandemic has accelerated eCommerce adoption globally and Wayflyer is transforming financial services for eCommerce businesses wanting to scale quickly, helping them to gain access to capital, inventory and insights at attractive terms. Aidan, Jack and their team have a deep understanding of what will drive value for their customers, and the financial and business innovation that Wayflyer provides will help to fuel eCommerce ecosystems globally.”
— Sandeep Bakshi, Head of Investments for Europe at Prosus Ventures
