Rippling raises $500m after Silicon Valley Bank collapse

Rippling went to market for fresh capital after its primary banking partner, Silicon Valley Bank, collapsed earlier in March, on what is a payroll day for many of its clients

Rippling, a San Francisco, US-based fintech that helps businesses manage their finances and operations, has raised $500m in series E financing. 

Venture capital firm Greenoaks led the round, which values Rippling at $11.25b. 

Rippling went to market for fresh capital after its primary banking partner, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), collapsed earlier in March, on what is a payroll day for many of its clients. 

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), a US government agency that insures deposits to US banks in the event of bank failures, had closed SVB and frozen its assets, which included the payroll funds of Rippling customers. 

This meant more than 50,000 workers might not have received their paychecks. As a result, Rippling decided to extend $130m of its capital to fund its customers’ payments to their employees. 

Rippling had previously set up accounts with JP Morgan Chase, as a redundant payments infrastructure, allowing some employees to receive their payments.  

But, with $545m still locked up at SVB and due to employees, Rippling decided a fundraising round was the best option to source capital. 

In the end, the FDIC announced it would guarantee deposits, but Rippling still went ahead with the series E round. 

Parker Conrad, chief executive officer of Rippling, explained: “First, I believe strongly in handshake deals, and didn’t want to break my commitment.   

“Second, the round is at a good price that we believe reflects our performance, especially given the change in the fundraising backdrop over the last year.  

“It lets us focus on our customers and build great products no matter what happens with the economy.”  

Rippling has now recovered all funds from SVB, its balance sheet holds almost $1b in cash, and its banking operations have moved to JP Morgan Chase.  

Image: Rippling

Josh Poyser Josh Poyser is an editor at FinTech Intel. He has written about fintech for several years and appeared at FinTech Connect 2023 on the 'Unlocking Success: The Art of Fintech PR' panel.