SumUp, a Germany-based financial services company which enables mobile point-of-sale payments, has expanded its recent series B funding with a strategic investment from BBVA Ventures, the venture capital arm of Spain-based bank BBVA.
BBVA’s investment is part of a series B funding round previously announced in May 2013, which was described by SumUp as “a double-digit Euro injection” and believed to be over $20m. The series B round was led by new investors e-commerce website Groupon and credit card company American Express, along with further investment from all of SumUp’s existing investors.
Previously, SumUp raised “a double-digit Euro series A funding round” in the second quarter of 2012, believed to be at least $20m, from b-to-v Partners, Shortcut Ventures, Tengelmann Ventures and business angels including Klaus Hommels.
SumUp will be using the series B funds to establish itself in South America, to increase its activity in Spain and Portugal, and to strengthen its technological position.
Jan Deepen, co-founder of SumUp, said: “International expansion is a key component of our growth story. Having BBVA as a strong partner at our side as we expand to regions beyond Europe – in particular South America – is invaluable.”
Jay Reinemann, executive director, BBVA Ventures, said: “SumUp changes the way point of sale interaction works on a global scale. At BBVA we pride ourselves in driving innovation in the financial sector globally. That’s why we are very excited about investing in SumUp. In less than a year, the team has proven that they can change an entire industry and enable small merchants to run their businesses more successfully.”
Werner Decker, senior vice president, Merchant Services Europe, American Express, said: “We believe SumUp’s skill set and end-to-end payment solution, which offers ease of use, convenience and security, makes them well positioned to play an important role in mobile payments.”
Jason Harinstein, senior vice president, Corporate Development, Groupon, said: “We are pleased to have the opportunity to invest in SumUp, whom we’ve identified as an early leader in the emerging mobile payments space outside the U.S.”
SumUp was co-founded by Stefan Jeschonek and is led by chief executive officer Daniel Klein.