BC Business
Two of just four Canadian companies to make the latest Fintech 250 list, Dapper Labs and Trulioo are also both valued at well over $1 billion.
Team members at online digital identity verification platform Trulioo, which recently saw its valuation climb to $1.75 billion
From the Forbes 400 to the BC500 (huh? why not just give everyone a “Participant” ribbon?), rankings and other lists of companies and business leaders can get a little long. Still, we’re happy to see that two B.C. names made the 2021 edition of the Fintech 250.
The annual list, compiled by U.S. tech market intelligence provider CB Insights, aims to highlight the most promising private financial technology firms worldwide.
“This is the fourth class of the Fintech 250, and it’s also the most international, representing 26 countries,” said Anand Sanwal, CEO of CB Insights. “These 250 fintech startups are attacking an incredibly diverse array of financial services opportunities across 19 sectors, including digital banking, insurance, payroll, retail investing and more.”
Among the Fintech 250’s class of 2020, 17 companies went on to go public, and 25 got acquired, Sanwal noted.
Four Canadian businesses made the list, down from seven last year. The two B.C. companies: fellow unicorns Dapper Labs and Trulioo, in the Cryptocurrency and Regulatory and Compliance categories, respectively.
Dapper Labs, whose offerings include blockchain game CryptoKitties and online marketplace NBA Top Shot, has played a leading role in the rise of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The Vancouver-based company is now valued at US$7.6 billion, with help from a US$250-million fundraising round announced in September.
Vancouver-headquartered Trulioo is the top online identity verification provider, serving five billion consumers and 330 million businesses through its Global Gateway platform. In June, it closed a US$394-milllion Series D funding round that pushed its valuation to US$1.75 billion.
“We are thrilled to once again be included on CB Insights’ Fintech 250 list among the most innovative and important fintech companies in the world,” said Trulioo CEO Steve Munford, whose business appears on the list for the third time. “Advancements in fintech are integral to achieving financial inclusion, especially for unbanked populations. We’re proud to provide secure digital identity solutions that increase financial inclusion across the globe.”
CB Insights used what it calls an evidence-based approach to select the Fintech 250 from more than 17,000 companies, including applicants and nominees. Among the factors figuring in its final choice: data submitted by the companies, business models, market momentum, Mosaic scores and CB Insights’ proprietary algorithm, which measures the overall health and growth potential of private companies.
This year’s Fintech 250 cohort has raised about US$73.8 billion in aggregate funding since 2016, via almost 1,200 deals. Year-to-date as of September 14, courtesy of 275 deals, the class of 2021 had gathered a combined US$40.3 billion in equity funding.
The list includes startups ranging from early-stage players to unicorns, or businesses with a value of at least US$1billion as of their latest funding round. Fun fact: there are now 860 unicorns globally, according to CB Insights. Of that select group, 118, or roughly 14 percent, belong to the Fintech 250.