On average, Agicap customers manage 15 different bank accounts each. As a result, chief financial officers (CFOs) working at these companies need to make sure they have enough funds in the right bank accounts to pay their employees and suppliers across various subsidiaries, countries, and currencies. You may have a hard time.
This is also why we look to Agicap to centralize cash-related data and predict future cash positions. The Lyon-based startup received a series C funding round of €45 million (approximately €4,800 at current exchange rates) from a single investor, AVP, the VC firm formerly known as Axa Venture Partners. The company has just raised $1,000,000.
The fintech startup previously raised $100 million in 2021 amid the digital fundraising frenzy surrounding the pandemic. At the time, the company was valued at 415 million euros (approximately $450 million at current exchange rates). The value of the business has since increased “significantly,” according to Agicap, but the amount was not disclosed.
“Although we are not disclosing the exact valuation, we have successfully increased the value significantly since 2021,” co-founder and CEO Sébastien Bayet (pictured above) told TechCrunch. When asked about this, he hinted at the new valuation. Les Echos previously reported that Azicap was raising funds at a valuation of between €700 million and €800 million (or between $750 million and $860 million). He said: In this range. ”
Narrow focus – “huge” market
Agicap's relative success is due to its narrow focus on financial management software, and it's not trying to do everything at once like most fintech startups.
It's also a relatively untapped market, as many businesses still rely on Excel and file exports from bank accounts and ERP software. Evidence of this can be found in a recent survey conducted by Agicap of 500 CFOs from mid-sized European companies. When asked about the tool of choice to manage and forecast their cash position, 80% said Excel.
It's also worth noting that Agicap's main customers are CFOs and finance departments. And if the money team likes the product, they're not going to unsubscribe right away.
Agicap customers can sync data from their existing bank accounts, credit institutions, and ERP solutions. It then acts as a central repository for viewing everything related to past and future cash flows. But Agicap is more than just a visualization dashboard. Users can also initiate and schedule transfers directly from that interface.
“We think we can use treasury management as the foundation of what's called a CFO suite and provide other tools to CFOs and treasurers,” Beyer said.
In that vein, the startup just recently added accounts payable and receivable. These features allow you to see pending invoices and prompt customers if they are late, so you can get paid faster. Similarly, Agicap imports purchase orders so you can pay your suppliers on time and use that data for future budgets.
The startup currently has 8,000 customers, about half of them in France. Most of the remaining customers are spread across other European countries. “We focus on medium-sized companies with average annual revenues of between €5 million and €10 million, up to €500 million,” Beyer said.
“We've already reached breakeven on a cash basis this quarter, so we didn't need to raise additional capital to continue development. But we believe our market is huge.” he added.
In addition to hiring new talent to find new customers, Agicap plans to use the funds to launch new capabilities in credit management and foreign exchange risk management.
What about offering credit products directly? “We don't want to be a bank,” Beyer said. “In other words, we don't want to take the financial risk of lending money ourselves. We know how to make software, and that's what we're going to focus on.”