Bold, a financial technology company enabling access to electronic payments in Colombia, today announced that it has raised $50 million in Series C funding led “by existing investor General Atlantic, a global growth investor, with participation from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group.”
Existing investors InQLab and Amador also participated in the investment round.
With this new funding, Bold says it plans “to bolster its product roadmap and offerings, as well as continue its focus on business expansion while deepening its position as a leading merchant acquirer in Colombia.”
Bold was founded in 2019 to serve small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) with a mission of fostering financial inclusion “through the democratization of Colombia’s digital economy.”
Bold currently offers low-cost payment terminals “that enable businesses to accept card present and card-not-present payments and also support other local payment methods.”
The seamless enrollment process “allows merchants to enroll in just minutes, providing immediate access.”
This latest investment follows Bold’s February 2022 $55M Series B round.
Since then, Bold has scaled “from 380 to more than 800 employees and currently boasts more than 150,000 monthly active merchants.”
José Vélez, Co-Founder and CEO of Bold, said:
“Our work continues to empower small businesses by breaking payment barriers in Colombia. Now, thousands of merchants have access to digital financial services and can focus on the growth and success of their businesses. We’re thrilled to continue our work with General Atlantic and proud to partner with the IFC as we seek to transform and simplify how businesses accept payments in the digital era. We are also excited by our forthcoming product offering that will deliver even greater value to merchants, following Bold’s recent regulatory approval as a financial institution in Colombia.”
Luiz Ribeiro, Managing Director and Co-Head of the Brazil Office at General Atlantic said:
“We believe Bold is positioned at the forefront of Colombia’s emerging economy and playing a key role in bringing widespread accessibility to digital financial services. Since our initial investment in 2022, we’ve seen Bold provide significant value to Colombian merchants, and we look forward to continuing our efforts with José and his team to further scale Bold’s offerings.”
General Atlantic’s investment in Bold is “subject to regulatory approval by the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia.”
As noted in the update Bold is “a Payment Services Provider (PSP) in Colombia and one of the largest and fastest-growing fintechs in the country.”
The company’s mission is to unlock “the potential of small entrepreneurs by providing simple, affordable, and secure financial services specifically designed to the needs of SMBs.”
With its innovative card readers and free app, Bold currently empowers “more than 150,000 monthly active merchants across Colombia to grow their businesses by accepting a wide variety of payment methods, both offline and online.”
Bold was granted Colombian regulatory approval as “a financial institution in 2023, enabling the company to offer its merchants not only payment terminals, but also merchant accounts, debit cards, and short-term working capital loans.”
The company is headquartered in Bogotá.