US-Israeli fintech Sunbit raises $130m, hits unicorn status
Sunbit, the BNPL service provider, has raised $130m in capital following a successful Series D investment round.
The funding drive was led by the America-Israeli fintech VC Group 11, along with Zeev Ventures, Migdal Insurance, Harel Group, AltalR Capital and More Investment House and raised Sunbit’s valuation to $1.1bn.
Sunbit is now the latest company to claim unicorn status as a private company with a valuation of over $1bn.
Sunbit expansion strategy
The fintech unicorn which was founded in 2016, is headquartered in Los Angeles and is led by CEO and co-founder Arad Levertov and its CTO Ornit Dweck-Maizel.
The fintech startup, which operates R&D centres in Tel Aviv and Binamina, specialises in the US credit market and has innovated a payment solution that enables US stores to provide their customers with the option of buy now pay later (BNPL) services.
Sunbit will use the funds to expand its current merchant footprint to reach more retailers and service providers, online and offline with the new investment.
In a statement released by the company, it revealed plans to develop more products that serve its customers and merchants, helping them to facilitate transactions and enhance their budgets and their bottom lines.
Sunbit facts
- According to reports, Sunbit is the only fintech BNPL technology that enables a 90% approval rate.
- Each month, the company expands its customer base by more than 300 merchants and tens of thousands of new users.
- The first 30-second approval process provides $60- $10,000 funding transactions
- Sunbit services are available in 7,300 locations. These include one-quarter of car dealer service centres across the US
- Sunbit also provides services to US-wide retailers such as Eyemart Express and Cycle Gear.
Speaking about the latest funding round, Levertov said the new investment was evidence of Sunbit’s market potential. “The continued support from existing investors as well as new commitments from esteemed investors such as Migdal Insurance and Harel Group underscores the impact we are making in the sizable markets we serve.”
He continued, “Our hyper-growth illustrates that there is a demand for our unique buy now, pay later solution built for everyday needs. The new capital will enable us to further disrupt the $216bn auto service and repair industry and the combined $330bn dental, eyewear, and elective healthcare industries — markets that are stuck in the era of ’80s-style financing.”
Guy Fischer, CIO and deputy CEO of Migdal Insurance, who is also a new board member for Sunbit, explained, “Our fintech investment arm, Next Gen Finance, plans to invest $2bn over the next two to three years. As a strategic investor, we are looking to partner with global fintech leaders.”
He said, “In our view, Sunbit’s technology and forward-thinking vision gives it a lasting foothold as a leader in the rapidly evolving buy now, pay later space. Investing in Sunbit carries less risk because of its unique business model, despite possible rising interest rates and inflation. We’re proud to partner with them to deliver better solutions.”
Dovi Frances, founding partner of Group 11 added, “We know financial technology, and Sunbit’s potential was clear from the beginning. As their first institutional investor, we saw them as a category-defining company, turning the traditional notion of how and where financing occurs on its head.
“Sunbit’s exponential customer growth creates a wealth of expansion opportunities and I fully expect Sunbit to be a decacorn within the next five years.”
