Sonovate, the UK’s leading recruitment finance provider, has raised a £14 million Series B funding round led by Global Founders Capital, the investment vehicle of Rocket Internet, and supported by Dawn Capital.
Comprising £9 million in equity and £5 million in debt funding, this round of investment follows the £20 million funding round announced in February this year in a Series A funding round led by Dawn Capital with debt funding provided by Shawbrook Business Credit.
Richard Prime and Damon Chapple, former directors of a FTSE 250 recruitment agency, launched Sonovate in 2014 as an alternative to the traditional invoice finance on offer to recruitment agencies. The high-tech platform solves the recurring admin and cash flow challenges traditionally associated with running contractors.
Global Founders Capital specialises in seed, series A and later stage ventures and invests in young technology companies from around the world. Other recent investments include ‘prop tech’ start-up Nested, and online deals specialist TravelBird.
Sonovate co-CEO and co-founder Richard Prime commented: “We launched Sonovate as a disruptive start-up to challenge the status quo in recruitment. In just two years we have completely overtaken the banks, transformed the industry and changed how recruitment agencies operate and we are delighted that this has been recognised by Global Founders Capital.”
Sonovate, which has increased its headcount from 25 to 100 within the space of a year, has grown rapidly from a start-up to the recognised leader in contract recruitment finance, signing up more recruitment agencies in the last two years than every UK bank combined, and is currently growing at a rate of 20% a month. The year ahead will see Sonovate provide £245m of funding through the platform.
Prime added: “The people behind Global Founders Capital are hugely successful entrepreneurs in their own right. They have extensive experience investing in other high growth fintech businesses and are a perfect match for Sonovate. We’re thrilled to have them on board.”
This round of capital investment will help fuel Sonovate’s already impressive growth as it continues to innovate, grow the team and plan for international expansion - with the aim of launching in Europe and North America over the next year. Sonovate will also be investing in developing new products focused on winning more established recruitment agencies and other businesses using contingent staff.
Daniel Jones, Partner at Global Founders Capital, commented: “Sonovate’s product is a highly innovative solution that has made a huge impact on the recruitment sector in the UK. They have already demonstrated rapid growth and dominance within their market and we believe they have the potential to go even bigger. We’re excited to lead the Series B investment in Sonovate and support the team as they take the business to the next level.”
Josh Bell, the Partner at Dawn Capital and Sonovate board member, observed: “This new funding round is a great achievement and will enable the business to accelerate its impressive pace of growth both in the UK and internationally. As initial investors in the business, we will continue to be hugely supportive of the management team in order to help them achieve their growth plans.”