Worth, a fintech startup dedicated to simplifying underwriting for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), has successfully raised $20 million in a seed funding round. The sizable investment, revealed exclusively to TechCrunch, underscores the startup’s potential to transform SMB financing.
Proven Founders Behind Worth’s Success
Securing such a substantial seed round is no small feat, especially in today’s challenging funding climate. However, Worth’s co-founders, siblings Sal Rehmetullah and Suneera Madhani, bring a track record of success. The duo previously founded Stax Payments, a fintech firm that grew to a valuation exceeding $1.1 billion before they exited. Stax, which reached over $140 million in recurring revenue and raised $245 million, continues to operate independently.
Building on their experience, the Orlando-based entrepreneurs are now focused on Worth, a platform that streamlines SMB onboarding and underwriting for financial institutions, making it as seamless as consumer credit applications.
Solving a Major Pain Point for SMBs
Applying for financial services as an SMB is often a time-consuming process. Unlike consumers who can apply for an Apple Card and use it almost instantly, small businesses face cumbersome applications, extensive documentation requirements, and long waiting periods for approval.
Worth aims to eliminate these bottlenecks, offering a frictionless experience for SMBs seeking credit cards, loans, and financial services. The company’s technology reduces paperwork, speeds up approvals, and minimizes application abandonment.
How Worth’s AI-Powered Platform Works
The key to Worth’s efficiency lies in its AI-driven approach. The platform enables financial institutions to onboard and underwrite businesses with just three key pieces of information: name, address, and tax ID. By leveraging automation, Worth pre-fills applications and performs real-time checks, including:
- Know Your Business (KYB) verification
- Know Your Customer (KYC) verification
- Ownership identity verification
- Fraud detection
- Bank account verification
- Financial statement analysis
Worth’s proprietary data, built through AI and a strategic partnership with Equifax, includes insights on over 242 million SMBs globally. By continuously updating this data, the platform provides real-time financial insights to banks, credit unions, payment processors, and fintech companies.
Growing Client Base and Revenue Trajectory
Despite launching its product just a year ago, Worth has already demonstrated strong growth. While the company hasn’t disclosed exact revenue figures, its annual recurring revenue (ARR) has reached seven figures, with triple-digit growth. Notably, the startup onboarded 12 new customers in Q4 2024 alone.
Currently, Worth serves over 25 clients, including industry players like Aurora Payments, REPAY Holdings, Fairwinds, and PatientFi.
Monetization Strategy and Future Plans
Worth generates revenue through a platform subscription model and usage-based fees. Clients pay for access to instant verification, pre-filling capabilities, case management, predictive monitoring, and AI-powered analytics.
Looking ahead, the company plans to introduce the Worth Score—a business credit score designed to help SMBs assess their financial health—by early 2026.
Investment and Expansion Plans
TTV Capital led the equity round, with participation from Ingeborg, Florida Funders, Deep Work Capital, and Florida Opportunity Fund. Worth also secured $5 million in debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank, bringing its total capital raised to $20 million.
With more than 50 full-time employees, Worth plans to use its new funding to expand sales and marketing efforts, driving further adoption of its platform.
TTV Capital’s Neil Kapur believes that Worth’s technology delivers measurable ROI by automating and enhancing SMB onboarding. With a seasoned founding team and a clear market need, Worth is poised to redefine underwriting in the financial sector.
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