Financial technology startup Fundbox is preparing for conducting an IPO in the future and has created a position of a CFO in its corporate structure.
San Francisco based financial technology startup Fundbox Inc. hired a former investment banker Marten Abrahamsen as its first-ever chief financial officer (CFO), the Wall Street Journal reported on Jan. 14. Abrahamsen was brought in as CFO to bolster the company’s executive team as Fundbox prepares to launch a potential initial public offering (IPO) in the future.
Founded in 2013 by three partners – Eyal Shinar, Toma Michaeli, and Yuval Ariav – the startup helps in expediting the payment of outstanding balances owed to sellers and extends a line of credit to buyers so that they can meet their financial obligations on time. A 2019 research report revealed that U.S. companies are owed as much as $3.1 trillion, the startup said in a press statement.
Targeting companies in several industries such as business-to-business (B2B), construction, and consumer electronics, Fundbox has offered its services to approximately 200,000 businesses over its seven-year course. Fundbox uses modern technology – data analytics, machine learning, and engineering – to determine businesses’ creditworthiness.
Fundbox Potential IPO and New CFO
Fundbox is one of the many startups that have hired a CFO with a background in capital markets or investment banking. According to his LinkedIn profile, which has already been updated to show his new role as Fundbox CFO, Abrahamsen has worked for some major financial institutions.
Before his latest appointment, he was the growth equity investor & senior member of the investment team at The Chernin Group. He spent four years between 2014 and 2018 working at Coatue Management as a senior investment professional. He has had stints at investment bank Goldman Sachs, the Royal Bank of Scotland, Vector Capital, and Perella Weinberg Partners.
Fundbox’s head of corporate communications Tim Donovan said the company spent two years searching for a suitable CFO until they found Abrahamsen, who is seen by his new boss as the “Swiss army knife” of expertise. Donovan said Abrahamsen has the required financial experience to move the company in the right direction.
“He has investing and financial experience and the rigor to invest in the right processes and procedures that would set our company up if and when we’re ready to go public.”
Abrahamsen’s roles at the startup consist of corporate development, budgeting, and strategy. In an interview, the new CFO said he will focus on minimizing the company’s costs and improve the margins. He will also be tasked with planning for the company’s potential IPO in the future.
Speaking to CFO Dive, he said he has what it takes to launch an IPO and added that his new role at Fundbox is a “dramatic shift” from the previous positions he has held.
Fundbox Financials
Fundbox has not been at liberty to share its financial insights. However, Abrahamsen says the company is “in a very healthy financial position” and is not rushing to launch an IPO although the management is already thinking in this direction.
Last September, Fundbox raised $176 million in a Series C round of funding, bringing the total capital raised to $440 million. Some of the startup’s investors include Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Allianz X, Khosla Ventures, Spark Capital Growth, General Catalyst, Arbor Ventures, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan, and MUFG Innovation Partners.