News & Insights

UrbanStems tests whether Halloween is the next Valentine's Day

UrbanStems is betting that you'll send flowers for Halloween. CEO Meenakshi Lala launched a limited-edition collection of dark florals with custom tarot cards on October 1, testing whether consumers will treat spooky season like they treat Valentine's Day. Americans will spend $13.1B on Halloween this year, up from $11.6B last year, with more people decorating homes and buying gifts beyond candy and costumes.

Seasonal plays require consistent execution to build new buying habits. That's why UrbanStems is already developing a Thanksgiving collection. For investors watching DTC brands navigate tight consumer spending, this approach shows how to expand revenue without expanding your core product category.

micro1 announces $35M Series A to scale AI-powered talent platform

Fund II portfolio company micro1 has announced a $35M Series A funding round at a $500M valuation. Since our initial investment, micro1 has demonstrated exceptional growth in building "the AI platform for human intelligence" – combining AI-powered talent vetting, performance management, and data platforms that now serve leading AI labs and companies. We believe micro1 is addressing one of the most fundamental questions of our time: how to optimally match human talent with meaningful work in an AI-enabled future. 

Brett Davis named CEO as Bennie founder becomes chairman

Bennie has appointed Brett Davis as CEO, succeeding founder Matt Straz, who will serve as Chairman of the Board.

Davis, formerly Chief Revenue Officer, has been key to Bennie’s growth over the past six years, drawing on a decade at Cigna and advisory work with HR tech firms. Under his leadership, Bennie has tripled growth rates compared to top peers and secured a spot among the Top 100 Employee Benefits Brokers.

Esusu cracks the CNBC Disruptor 50

Portfolio company Esusu just landed on CNBC’s Disruptor 50 list — and for good reason. The fintech startup is flipping the credit game by turning rent payments into credit-building gold. With a billion-dollar valuation and a mission rooted in personal experience, Esusu is helping millions move from “credit invisible” to financially empowered.

Ask the team: How we go from interest to investment

How do venture investors make decisions? Senior Associate Abi Malin gives us an inside look at Motley Fool Ventures' due diligence process and breaks down how we evaluate companies—from first call to final memo.

Scaling smarter: Leadership, culture, and strategy with Carta's CEO

Scaling isn’t just about growth—it’s about evolving leadership, culture, and strategy at every stage. In this candid conversation, Henry Ward, co-founder & CEO of Carta, shares what it truly takes to scale, from understanding product-market fit beyond revenue metrics to hiring mission-driven teams that preserve culture.

Gig Wage innovates gig economy payroll with $8.25M boost

Gig Wage has raised $8.25M to enhance its platform amidst rebuilding from the Synapse/Evolve Bank setback. Founder Craig J. Lewis unveils "Gig Wage 2.0," offering new tools like contractor payment wallets and health benefits. With fresh funding from Discover and Motley Fool Ventures, Gig Wage aims to revolutionize payroll for gig workers, empowering businesses to attract and retain top freelancer talent.

Fondo tackles accountant shortage with AI-driven bookkeeping for booming startups

With entrepreneurship booming in the U.S., the growing demand for accounting services is clashing with a looming CPA shortage. Portco Fondo is addressing this gap by offering startups and small businesses an all-in-one solution for financial management. With $6M in annual recurring revenue, 1,200 customers, and $7M in new funding, Fondo aims to streamline operations, expand globally, and simplify tax and compliance for high-growth businesses.

NewRetirement is now Boldin

NewRetirement has rebranded to Boldin to better reflect its mission: empowering users to be financially confident and bold in their life decisions. Since its inception in 2015, the digital-first planning platform has expanded beyond its original consumer focus to serve enterprise partners as well. With its new name comes a suite of enhanced product capabilities, including a comprehensive Financial Wellness Dashboard.

UrbanStems' Meenakshi Lala's double life

This is how UrbanStems CEO Meenakshi Lala's passion for Indian classical dance helps her lead the company with energy, excitement, and balance.

How MFV is powering through a tough VC climate

Managing Partner Brendan Mathews talks to Washington Business Journal about the "brutal" fundraising environment and how keeping things in perspective and working through the challenges will, more often than not, lead to success. (The article requires a paid subscription for full content.)

Esusu wins 2024 World Changing Ideas Award for transforming rent payments into credit scores

More than 26 million U.S. adults are "credit invisible," lacking a credit history, including many immigrants, people of color, and low-income individuals. Portfolio company Esusu, which helps renters build credit by reporting on-time rent payments to major credit bureaus, enables those renters to access more affordable credit and move toward homeownership. Esusu’s work is the recipient of Fast Company’s 2024 World Changing Ideas Award in the finance category.

ShiftMed enhances healthcare workforce solutions with CareerStaff Unlimited acquisition

ShiftMed, a leading staffing and workforce management firm, recently expanded its capabilities by acquiring CareerStaff Unlimited from Genesis HealthCare. The acquisition enhances ShiftMed’s offerings with CareerStaff’s platform, which aggregates services from over 1,000 staffing firms nationwide into a unified management system for healthcare staffing needs.

How NewRetirement's holistic approach sets it apart

NewRetirement CEO Stephen Chen digs into what differentiates its financial planning platform from the competition: It may be the only one that serves both consumers as well as advisers and workplaces.

iink's Tom McGrath: From teenage entrepreneur to CEO

Here's how iink Payments CEO Tom McGrath went from custom-designing and reselling skateboards he got on eBay as a teenager to leading an insurtech company that's helping to take the inefficiencies out of the insurance claim payouts process.

InHerSight: 5 new workplace trends for 2024

InHerSight CEO Ursula Mead talks about the five workplace trends for the next year, focusing on recruitment and support for underrepresented demographics. According to data and observations from InHerSight, these trends include a decline in employer support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), the phenomenon of "well-being washing," the priority of remote work, the importance of fair pay, and dissatisfaction with efforts to address racial equity. 

Dilene Upendra, our rising star

Not to brag but we couldn't be prouder that DC Inno has named our very own Dilene Upendra as one of the DMV region's top young innovators under the age of 25. Congratulations, Dilene! We knew you when. She joins an impressive group of young disruptors, philanthropists, and venture capital enthusiasts who are shaking up the status quo.

Nickson's Cam Johnson: From Goldman Sachs to entrepreneur

On the Texas Business Minds podcast, Nickson founder and CEO Cameron Johnson talked about his journey to entrepreneurship and what it took to grow an idea into a real business.

Sunnyside secures $11.5M to launch drinking coach "Sunny"

Portfolio company Sunnyside, the app that promotes healthy drinking habits, raised $11.5 million in Series A funding led by Motley Fool Ventures with major participation from Will Ventures. It also announced that it's hired Steve Lloyd as chief product and technology officer.

LegalMation raises $15M in Series A funding

LegalMation has raised $15M in Series A financing. The round was led by Aquiline Capital Partners LP, Aquiline Technology Growth, with continued participation from existing investors like Motley Fool Ventures. It plans to use the funds to grow its customer base and build new end-to-end litigation workflow automation and analytic tools.

iink gets $12M in fresh capital

iink does the complex, sometimes-frustrating work of shepherding property damage claims through the many time-consuming steps involving insurance companies, homeowners, and mortgage issuers. Fund II invested $1M as the last investor to join the Series A round. 

2023 TIME100 Next: Wemimo Abbey and Samir Goel

Find out how portfolio company Esusu's Wemimo Abbey and Samir Goel landed on this year’s TIME100 Next list.

HUNGRY makes Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies

The comprehensive platform that provides exceptional food and events solutions for corporate America has landed on the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private U.S. companies for the third consecutive year. Previous Inc. 5000 honorees include household names like Under Armour, Microsoft, Patagonia, Intuit — and HUNGRY.

Esusu and Keyway work together to advance credit-building for residents

Keyway, the AI-powered real estate investment manager, announced today a new partnership with Esusu, the leading financial technology company leveraging rent reporting for credit-building, to make Esusu’s rent reporting platform available to Keyway’s multifamily real estate portfolio.

HUNGRY raises $10M Series C1 funding

With an eye toward profitability in 2024, digital caterer HUNGRY Marketplace closed a $10 million funding round that included current investors and professional athletes.

Save on car payments with Esusu & Caribou

MFV portfolio companies Esusu and Caribou are collaborating to make it easier for renters to save money and improve their financial health via lower car payments.

MFV increases investment in Bennie Seed round

Motley Fool Ventures made its second investment in Bennie, a tech-focused benefits provider led by Matt Straz. Escalate Capital, Interplay, and Picus Capital also participated.

Esusu co-founder explains his mission to “do good and do well”

Wemimo Abbey, co-founder and co-CEO of Esusu, describes how his vision of justice capitalism informs Esusu’s approach to helping renters across the U.S.

Passthrough raises $10M Series A

After launching two funds with hundreds of investors, the MFV team knows all about the painstaking process of collecting documents and onboarding LPs. When we met Passthrough and saw its approach to streamlining the process, we knew it was a worthy investment.

Ollen Douglass recognized for VC leadership

Tech diversity publication UrbanGeekz named MFV's managing partner, Ollen Douglass, as one of the top 10 Black VCs managing $100M+ funds.

Finli founder gives businesses a financial lift

Finli founder Lori Shao shares her immigrant story in the hopes of inspiring owners of businesses in underrepresented communities.

MFV participates in Bennie Seed round extension

In the first investment from its new fund, Motley Fool Ventures joined a $38M Seed extension for Bennie, a benefits management firm that serves small and medium-sized businesses.

New MFV portfolio company Finli raises $6M in Seed funding

Led by fintech veteran Lori Shao, Finli creates digital financial tools for micro-business owners.

Microshare launches app to address labor shortages

To help customers increase productivity, Internet of Things (IoT) specialist Microshare released a new app that delivers data analyzed on the Microshare cloud.

Caribou named 2022 top workplace by Washington Post

The Washington Post recognized Caribou among the best small businesses to work for in the D.C. area, particularly for its commitment to helping customers save money.

HUNGRY acquires healthy snack company NatureBox

To expand its suite of food options for businesses, HUNGRY Marketplace added curated snacks and pantry items through its acquisition of NatureBox.

New MFV portfolio company Bamboo raises $15M Series A

There are many Robinhood-esque platforms globally because of a growing need to invest in U.S. stocks in different parts of the world. Bamboo, launched in January 2020, is one such platform in Nigeria. Following two years of significant growth and raising $2.4 million to facilitate it, the investment firm is announcing that it has raised $15 million in a new financing round.

Esusu raises Series B at $1B valuation

Esusu, the leading financial technology company for rent reporting and data solutions for credit building, today announced a new valuation of $1 billion after closing a $130 million round of funding.

Nickson is one of 22 Texas tech companies to watch in 2022

As the year comes to a close, NTX Inno is looking at the startups poised to shape the headlines of 2022.

Caribou streamlines auto refinancing experience for consumers

In the market for new and used cars, costs are up and discounts are down. On the recent Black Friday, discounts were at record lows. Today, the average price of a new car is $40,000 and a used one is $25,000.

Esusu uses tech to build financial access and inclusion

With 45 million people in the United States lacking credit scores, and millions more marginalized due to their background, race, and zip code, entrepreneurs Wemimo Abbey and Samir Goel realized they had an opportunity to help bridge the wealth gap by using technology and data to create financial access and foster inclusion.

HUNGRY launches new cafe and coffee bar service

Office catering powerhouse HUNGRY announces the arrival of a new café and coffee bar service set to launch in cities across the country.

Republic launches $60M crypto fund

The fund advisor arm of financial services company Republic has launched a $60 million Seed fund, its first and flagship fund.

HUNGRY raises $21M Series C

Soon after the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020, Jeff Grass began to wonder about the future of HUNGRY, a startup he co-founded in late 2016.

HomeCare.com CEO talks healthcare disruption

Todd is the founder and CEO of ShiftMed, a digital workforce management platform that recruits, credentials, and schedules licensed CNAs, LPNs, and RNs to work at healthcare providers. Walrath is also the founder and CEO of HomeCare.com, an online marketplace designed to connect caregivers to families and healthcare providers looking for experienced and credentialed post-acute care workers.

New MFV portfolio company Esusu raises $10M Series A

Led by Motley Fool Ventures, the Series A funding round raised $10 million. Esusu, headquartered in New York City, has raised more than $14 million.

MotoRefi continues growth with $45M funding round

MotoRefi has raised another $45 million in a round led by Goldman Sachs just five months after investors poured $10 million into the fintech startup to help turbocharge its auto refinancing business.

KETOS CEO Meena Sankaran's journey to CEO

Meena Sankaran is the founder and CEO of KETOS, a company that's working to save lives with innovative water-quality products. She's a true creator and builder of change and is the embodiment of inspiration, innovation, and impact.

UrbanStems raises $20M Series C

After growing 130% last year and 500% since 2018, Washington, D.C.-based floral delivery startup UrbanStems said on May 5 that it’s on track to book its busiest week in its four-year history thanks to a surge in Mother’s Day orders and that it has just closed a $20 million round of funding.

Roundtrip partners with the American Cancer Society

Hundreds of American Cancer Society regional offices will now be able to use Roundtrip’s transportation scheduling software as part of a new, exclusive relationship.

Territory closes $22M Series B funding

Direct-to-consumer meal delivery service Territory Foods closed on $22 million in Series B funding to expand into new cities.

MotoRefi tech makes it easier for millions to refinance car loans

MotoRefi keeps finding new ways to connect car owners with lower auto loan rates. This Forbes article spotlights MotoRefi’s relationships with Even Financial, Savvy, and SoFi.

Republic receives $36M Series A funding

Motley Fool Ventures participated in the latest fundraise for Republic, a platform to connect entrepreneurs and investors.

New MFV portfolio company Madison Reed raises $50M

Madison Reed, a tech-enabled provider of hair care products, saw expansive growth during the pandemic. Investors rewarded the company’s progress with a $50M funding round. This is Motley Fool Ventures’ initial investment in the company.

MFV invests $5M in funds directly addressing underrepresentation in VC

To more deliberately commit ourselves to our North Star, Motley Fool Ventures has invested $5 million of our $150 million fund into 14 other venture capital funds directly addressing underrepresentation in VC.

MotoRefi raises $10M round

Amid a flurry of fintech deals, MotoRefi’s latest round further validates the company’s goal of providing better auto refinancing loans to car owners.

Blokable's approach a "critical key" to housing affordability

Blokable’s new development in Auburn, Wash., “signals a flashpoint for unlocking affordability barriers in housing,” according to Forbes.

Nickson continues Dallas growth

In this video interview, Nickson Living founder Cam Johnson describes the company’s service and demand spike in 2020.

Dorsata improves physician-patient experience

Dorsata’s approach to electronic medical records better equips women’s health providers to have meaningful, detailed visits with patients.

KETOS CEO aims to make water safer and cleaner

CEO Meena Sankaran reflects on the value of water and how KETOS is committed to real-time intelligence about water use and safety for its customers.

MFV voted Venture Deal Team of the Year in the D.C. area

We’re not ones to pat ourselves on the back, but we wouldn't say no to some recognition every now and then. The chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth that serves Washington, D.C., northern Virginia, and southern Maryland named Motley Fool Ventures as its Venture Deal Team of the Year for 2020.

Devoted Health and the positive patient experience

This commentary from MedCity News gives Devoted Health high marks for its “focused, human mission rooted in empathy.”

HUNGRY gets creative with its business during COVID-19

Here’s a quote we love from HUNGRY co-founder and COO Eman Pahlavani in this article about the company’s ability to thrive during the bleakest circumstances: “The best ideas come out of necessity and innovation,” Pahlavani told the Associated Press. “There’s always a way to get out of a bad situation.”

Motley Fool Ventures’ statement on justice, equitable opportunity, and investing for change

The killing of George Floyd and the sensitive issues surrounding it weigh heavily on us professionally and personally. We want liberty, justice, and equitable opportunity for all Americans. They are critical to the health of our democracy, and for the future of our children and loved ones.

Roundtrip awarded NIH grant

As a further validation of its health and transportation strategy, Roundtrip won a $252,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health to look at the impact of transportation on opioid use disorder transportation.

Virtual patient support is here to stay

Citus Health CEO Melissa Kozak shares her perspectives about options to treat specialty patients during COVID-19 in this podcast from the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy.

InHerSight’s new app personalizes job matches to career goals

This TechCrunch article explains how InHerSight expanded its mission during COVID-19 to help women find companies that match their career ambitions.

Modular smart homes and the affordable housing crisis

Blokable Co-CEO Aaron Holm explains his leadership team’s approach to smart homes and manufacturing in this brief video.

How Affectiva’s Rana el Kaliouby found the courage to become CEO

In this Fortune Trailblazers piece, Rana describes the leap from CTO to CEO at Affectiva.

How UrbanStems approaches Valentine’s Day

It’s a day full of love and big expectations. UrbanStems CEO Seth Goldman points to customer service as a key differentiator during this TV interview.

LegalMation: IBM Watson AI for litigation

This Datamation article doesn’t hold back on the challenges of litigation, including the massive amount of paperwork involved in the preparation to argue a case and the cost for a client. The good news, the author believes, is that LegalMation’s artificial intelligence approach could make it less onerous.

Bakersfield looks to Bitwise for $750K contract

Bitwise receives a boost from the Bakersfield, Calif., county council, which approved a $750,000 tech training contract.