Data Aggregator Plaid Jumps in ValueData Aggregator Plaid Jumps in Value
Data aggregation is capturing the attention of venture capitalists, who are making multimillion-dollar investments in the technology.
Data aggregation companies are reaching nose-bleed level valuations. Six-year-old aggregation firm Plaid was recently valued at $2.65 billion after a $250 million Series C funding round, according to TechCrunch. It was valued at slightly north of $200 million in 2016, following a Series B funding round.
The company helps link bank accounts with the crowded world of third-party applications like Robinhood, Acorns, Coinbase and PayPal’s Venmo. To date, Plaid has raised $310 million.
The data aggregation business is booming, and has even turned heads at the Treasury Department, which released a report studying fintech and data aggregation earlier this year.
The latest round of funding was led by famed internet analyst turned venture capitalist Mary Meeker, who also joins the board of directors. Meeker is reportedly joined by new investors Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners and Coatue Management. Existing investor Goldman Sachs also participated, along with several others.
Plaid said it has doubled its customer base this year, following a launch in Canada. The firm counts 175 employees and most recently launched Assets, which supplies asset verification reports to Fannie Mae as part of a push to provide data aggregation services to lenders.
