European embedded finance provider Swan has added €42 million to its Series B funding round, which will be invested in product innovation and expansion of its operations across the region.
The investment was led by Eight Roads Ventures, with participation from existing investors Lakestar, Accel, Creandum, Hexa, and BPI France.
The new injection of funding will enable Swan to grow in key European markets, like Italy, as well as to further enhance its banking solutions specifically to serve the SMB market, and accelerate the development of tailored card programs. Meanwhile, Swan has 85 new hires planned.
Swan has raised the funding to be in a position to capitalise on the projected growth of the embedded finance market in the coming years, which has been valued at $185 billion globally, including $72 billion in Europe.
Nicolas Benady, founder and chief executive officer of Swan, said: “In the future, I believe business management software will become a key distributor of banking services. Whether it’s for HR or accounting, these tools will offer banking features seamlessly integrated into the user’s workflow.
“This means you’ll have access to banking services right when you need them, directly in the tool you’re using. We call this embedded banking.”
Benady added: “At Swan, we’re working hard to provide both the technology and compliance framework to make this a reality for SMEs across Europe.”
Founded in 2019, Swan processes in excess of €1.5 billion in monthly transactions for more than 150 companies.
Among its customers are accounting software provider Pennylane and freelancer platform Indy, which work with Swan to offer accounts and payments functionalities to their end-customers via a single platform.
Embedding financial products can provide new revenue streams for companies, through interchange fees, interest income, and subscription fees, according to Swan.
“We believe the embedded finance opportunity is immense, and that banking services will increasingly be offered directly where users are, within existing software and workflows,” said Lucile Cornet, partner at Eight Roads Ventures.
“We’ve known Nicolas and his team since their early days and have been consistently impressed by their rapid progress, Tier 1 customer base, and successful international expansion.”
