C2FO

History

The company was founded as Pollenware in January 2008 by Sandy Kemper, former CEO of UMB Financial Corporation. The name was subsequently changed to C2FO, an acronym describing the collaborative cash flow optimization services the company's platform provided.

C2FO posted its first $1 billion quarter in the fourth quarter of 2013. It experienced growth during 2014, handling $2.9 billion worth of transactions in the fourth quarter of 2014, with $1.4 billion of that happening in December.

In October 2019, C2FO acquired India's largest early payment platform, Priority Vendor. In the fourth quarter of 2019, C2FO achieved an annualized funding run rate of $39B. In March 2020, C2FO claimed it had accelerated more than $100B in payments for companies.

C2FO announced partnering with Experian in February 2021 to provide working capital to Experian vendors.

Funding

The first C2FO market clearing took place in 2010, and received backing of venture firm Union Square Ventures, known for investing in companies like Twitter and Zynga. In 2015, C2FO completed a $40M round of equity funding led by Temasek Holdings, a global investment company based in Singapore. Temasek joined a list of C2FO investors including Union Square Ventures, OPENAIR Equity Partners, and Mithril Capital. In Q1 2016, Citi Ventures became the newest investor. In early 2018, C2FO completed a $100M funding round led by Allianz X and Mubadala Investment Company, along with strong participation from existing C2FO investors: Temasek, Union Square Ventures, and Mithril Capital.

Office locations

C2FO is headquartered in Kansas City, Mo and reports operations in an additional nine locations worldwide.

References

References

1. [http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/print-edition/2014/10/10/tapping-the-trillions-this-man-wants-to-change-how.html?page=all Kansas City Business Journal: C2FO]. Kansas City Business Journal, October 10, 2014.
2. [http://upstart.bizjournals.com/entrepreneurs/hot-shots/2016/08/12/how-this-entrepreneur-creates-entirely-new-markets.html "C2FO's Sandy Kemper: How this entrepreneur creates entirely new markets"]. Kansas City Business Journal August 12, 2016.
3. [http://siliconprairienews.com/2012/09/pollenware-raises-9-1-million-round-led-by-union-square-ventures/ Silicon Prairie News: Pollenware Raises 9.1 Million Round Led by Union Square Ventures] Silicon Prairie News September 6, 2012
4. [http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2015/01/08/c2fo-billion-dollar-month-volume.html Kansas City Business Journal: C2FO]. Kansas City Business Journal, January 8, 2015.
5. [https://www.startlandnews.com/2019/10/c2fo-priority-vendor Startland News: Fresh off $200M funding haul, C2FO acquires India's largest payment platform in bid to expand market position] Startland News, October 10, 2019
6. [https://c2fo.com/newsroom/c2fo-frees-up-working-capital-funding-during-economic-uncertainty/ C2FO: C2FO Frees Up Working Capital During Economic Uncertainty] C2FO, March 17, 2020.
7. [https://www.pymnts.com/news/b2b-payments/2021/experian-teams-with-c2fo-on-early-payments-for-suppliers Experian Teams With C2FO On Early Payments] PYMNTS, February 2, 2021
8. [http://www.usv.com/2012/09/pollenware.php Union Square Ventures Blog: Pollenware]. Union Square Ventures, September 5, 2012.
9. [https://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2015/08/11/the-daily-startup-invoice-marketplace-c2fo-scores-40-million/ Wall Street Journal: C2FO]. Wall Street Journal Daily Startup Blog August 11, 2015.
10. [https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/19/exclusive-mithril-led-by-peter-thiel-and-ajay-royan-closes-on-roughly-850-million/ Tech Crunch: Mithril, Led by Peter Thiel and Ajay Royan, Closes on Roughly $850 Million] TechCrunch: January 19, 2017
11. [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-01-20/peter-thiel-s-mithril-capital-raises-850-million-vc-fund/ Peter Thiel's Mithril Capital Raises $850 Million VC Fund] Bloomberg: January 19, 2017
12. [http://www.treasury-management.com/news/696/c2fo-receives-strategic-investment-from-citi-ventures.html Treasury Management International: C2FO Receives Strategic Investment from Citi Ventures] Treasury Management International, February 1, 2016.
13. [http://siliconprairienews.com/2016/02/c2fo-adds-citi-ventures-as-a-strategic-investor/ Silicon Prairie News: C2FO Adds Citi Ventures As a Strategic Investor] Silicon Prairie News, February 5, 2016.
14. [http://www.sharedserviceslink.com/news/citi-venture-becomes-latest-prominent-c2fo-investor Shared Services: Citi Ventures becomes latest prominent C2FO investor] Shared Services Link: February 2, 2016.
15. [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-27/allianz-investment-arm-co-leads-funding-round-in-fintech-c2fo Allianz Investment Arm Co-Leads Funding Round in Fintech C2FO] Bloomberg: February 27, 2018.
16. [https://c2fo.com/company/ Giving Every Business the Power to Thrive]. C2FO