Socure becomes latest biometrics and digital identity unicorn with $100M funding round

The latest unicorn in the digital identity space is Socure, after the company closed a $100 million Series D funding round to bankroll its efforts to reach all consumer-facing verticals with its Intelligent KYC with selfie biometrics.

Accel led the funding round, with participation from existing investors Commerce Ventures, Scale Venture Partners, Flint Capital, Citi Ventures, Wells Fargo Strategic Capital, Synchrony, Sorenson, Two Sigma Ventures and others, according to the company announcement. Sorenson led a $35 million funding round just half a year ago, and Socure has now raised a total of $196 million.

Socure says B2C enterprises can auto-approve 97 percent of customers with its biometric KYC technology, and identify identity and synthetic fraud at a 90 percent rate among the riskiest 2 percent of users. The company will target online gaming, healthcare, telco, ecommerce, on demand service and other potential customers. Socure is already a leading digital identity provider for the financial services industry, according to the announcement, and its technology increases the availability of online services for underbanked and young consumers who do not have extensive data-trails.

“The COVID-19 year accelerated our global shift to a digital-first economy and with that came security challenges,” said Amit Jhawar, partner at Accel. “The Socure team accurately predicted the immediate need for identity verification solutions in industries like banking and fintech, and we’re excited by the tremendous opportunity as Socure expands to support new industries.”

Jhawar, who is also a former general manager of Venmo, will join Socure’s board of directors.

The company notes the total U.S. digital identity market is forecast by One World Identity to grow from almost $15 billion in 2019 to more than $30 billion by 2023.

“We are honored to be working with Accel and our existing investors as we further our mission to ensure 100 percent trusted identity for every application and transaction on the Internet,” comments Socure Co-founder and CEO Johnny Ayers. “We are now more confident than ever that we will be the first company to eliminate identity fraud while unlocking complete and fully-automated coverage of every good ID.”

Ayers returned to Socure’s CEO role in November.

“Reaching unicorn status is a testament to our dedicated and talented team which we are looking forward to rapidly scaling to meet demand,” Ayers continued. “We are incredibly grateful for the chance to innovate and partner to solve this problem with some of the greatest companies in the world and are energized for the opportunities that lay ahead for Socure, especially as we make our march to a potential IPO.”

Socure’s biometric accuracy and regulatory compliance were recently confirmed by an audit performed by Baker Tilly.

Trust Stamp launching $5M funding round

Trust Stamp meanwhile has announced a $5 million funding round made up of a Regulation D private offering and a crowd-funding offering planned for an early-May launch. The funds will be used to strengthen the company’s sales and marketing efforts and accelerate productization of its secure digital identity IP.

The Reg D offering is effective immediately and priced at $15.31 per share. The Regulation CF offering price will be finalized closer to its launch, but Trust Stamp’s board of directors has set a minimum of $22.58.

The company says its personal data-protective biometrics reduce fraud and increase operational efficiency, while reaching a broader base of consumers with unique data transformation and comparison capabilities.

“There has been a massive growth in addressable need as a result of changing consumer expectations,” states Trust Stamp Co-founder and CEO Gareth Genner. “The demand for secure identity solutions has accelerated with the rise in online banking, contactless payments, telemedicine, and more. Trust Stamp’s core technology has the potential to address pressing cross-industry needs involving digital operations, and the growth capital sought in this round will enable us to further our market penetration.”

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital identity  |  facial recognition  |  fraud prevention  |  funding  |  identity verification  |  Socure  |  stocks  |  Trust Stamp