Streamlined Payment Rails and Procedures Ensure Smoother Transactions
Berlin, Germany - Berlin-based fintech startup Payrails has recently closed a $32 million Series A funding round, led by HV Capital, with participation from existing investors including EQT Ventures, General Catalyst, and Andreessen Horowitz. This investment brings Payrails' total funding to approximately $52.8 million.
Founded in 2021, Payrails offers an enterprise-grade, modular payment operating system designed to help large companies manage complex payment operations across multiple providers, geographies, and systems. The platform supports features such as payment orchestration, tokenization, reconciliation, unified analytics, and recently added support for in-person payments.
Payrails operates in 30 markets, primarily across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) regions. Its clients include prominent consumer-facing enterprises like Puma, Vinted, Flix, InDrive, Just Eat Takeaway, Careem, and others. The company addresses challenges enterprises face with fragmented payment methods, varying regulatory requirements, and the need for flexibility and control in payment workflows.
With the fresh capital, Payrails plans to accelerate product innovation, expand its product roadmap to cover the entire payment lifecycle with new capabilities, and grow teams in key locations including Berlin, London, and Paris, focusing on commercial and product roles to support scale. The company aims to continue developing its payment operating system to set new industry standards by enhancing performance, flexibility, and visibility for enterprise payment management.
David Haber from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) emphasises the long-overdue need for innovation in the scalable, integrated payment infrastructure market. He believes that Payrails' operating system fits these requirements perfectly. This marks a16z's first investment in a German FinTech company, apart from Rasa.
The fresh capital will also be used to expand go-to-market efforts across EMEA to meet growing enterprise demand. Payrails' customer base comes from various industries, including mobility and travel, e-commerce, financial services, and subscription services. By 2024, Payrails processed daily more than a million transactions and expanded into 30 new markets in EMEA.
With HV Capital now holding approximately 25% of Payrails, a16z and General Catalyst each hold 8%. EQT Ventures continues to hold 19% of Payrails. The investment in Payrails underscores the growing demand for innovative payment solutions in the global market and Payrails' commitment to lead the way in enterprise payment management.
The new funding from financial investors such as HV Capital, EQT Ventures, General Catalyst, and Andreessen Horowitz will enable Payrails, a Berlin-based business, to develop its technology-driven payment operating system. With this investment, Payrails aims to expand teams in key locations, innovate its product, cover the entire payment lifecycle, and set new industry standards in enterprise payment management.
