As mobile payment startup Square faces reports that it’s delaying an IPO amid growth problems and other pressures, iZettle, the Swedish mobile payments company that has been referred to as the Square of Europe, has raised another €40 million ($55.5 million).
In an interview, CEO and founder Jacob de Geer said the funding will be used to continue building out its business, namely through acquisitions to fill out its small-merchant service offerings beyond payments; and more expansion in Latin America and Europe, the two regions where iZettle is currently active (in nine countries in total: Mexico, Brazil, the UK, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland).
The Series C round was led by Zouk Capital, with participation from a couple of other new investors, Dawn Capital and Intel Capital, as well as previous backers Creandum, Greylock, Index, Northzone and SEB. Prior to this, iZettle has raised $46.7 million, with investors in previous rounds also including three financial services giants: American Express, MasterCard and Banco Santander.
iZettle is not disclosing its valuation, except to note that it is nowhere near the billions that Square has been valued at in its most recent rounds. “Our valuation is not even close to Square’s,” De Geer told me in an interview with a little laugh.
Read More