NAB Ventures, the strategic investment arm of financial services firm National Australia Bank, led a $24m round for Veem, a US-based international payment platform operator that has rebranded from Align Commerce.
The series B round included GV, the subsidiary of internet and technology conglomerate Alphabet formerly known as Google Ventures, as well as SBI Investment, a unit of financial services provider SBI Group, Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers (KPCB) and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).
Veem has developed a platform that allows small businesses to make and receive cross-border payments, facilitating transactions with global partners, customers and suppliers. It routes payments along various rails including blockchain
Melissa Widner, general partner at NAB Ventures, will join Veem’s board of directors. She said: “Veem goes beyond the domain of foreign exchange-focused organisations and remittance companies by approaching global payments from a non-traditional point of view.
“This unique perspective has allowed for Veem’s growth and rapid expansion into global markets, and we expect their team and technology to continue to challenge the global payments status quo.”
KPCB led Veem’s $12.5m series A round in late 2015, which included Recruit Strategic Partners, the corporate venturing arm of human resources firm Recruit, as well as SVB, which invested through its SVB Ventures unit, Digital Currency Group, FS Venture Capital and Pantera Capital.
Bitcoin Opportunity, Boost VC, Pantera Capital, Bayhill Capital Management, Nyca Investment, Pivot Holding, Fenway Summer, R3 and Whittemore Collection had provided an undisclosed amount of seed capital the year before.