By Krystal Hu
-Fetch Rewards, a shopping rewards app backed by SoftBank Group Group's Vision Fund 2, has raised $240 million in a funding round that valued the company at more than $2.5 billion, Chief Executive Officer Wes Schroll told Reuters on Wednesday.
The fresh capital, consisting of both equity and debt, came after the app doubled its active users base in the past year to 13 million, underpinned by pandemic-fueled e-commerce growth and consumers on a tighter budget in a high-inflation economy.
The latest round, led by investment management firm Hamilton Lane, brought the app's total funding to $578 million, and existing investors including Vision Fund 2, ICONIQ Capital and DST Global also participated.
Founded in 2017, Fetch offers free rewards for customers who submit receipts of everyday purchases on its app. The company positions itself as a one-stop digital loyalty and marketing platform, as it utilizes purchase information to partner with brands and stores.
"We craft partnerships directly with large CPGs, retailers and restaurants who want their companies to be seen as coming forward for the customers' loyalty and reward them with incremental Fetch points for consolidating their purchases," said CEO and founder Schroll.
The platform now has more than 600 partners, including BurgerKing, Unilever and Safeway. Customers can also earn rewards points for purchases from merchants that are not partners with the platform.
The Madison, Wisconsin-based company plans to invest in building out more features and expanding into new markets with a newly-launched Spanish version of the app.
Schroll said the company has no imminent plans of going public.
"We do believe that we should be running the business to be an IPO-ready business over the foreseeable 18-24 months, but we'll decide whether or not that's the right next step for the company and the employees," said Schroll.
