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- Happy Money
Happy Money Valuation, Funding & Investors
Happy Money is valued at $1.1B as of February 2022.
Last Happy Money valuation
$1.1B
Series D · Feb 2022
Last Happy Money funding round
$146M
Undisclosed stage · Nov 2023
Cumulative funding Happy Money raised
$331M
across 6 funding rounds
Key investors in Happy Money
Anthemis
TruStage Ventures
Tencent
Mohamed El-Erian
Joe Saunders
About Happy Money
Happy Money is an Irvine-headquartered fintech company that originates personal loans through partnerships with community banks for debt consolidation, home improvements, and other purposes. Founded in 2013 under the name Payoff, the firm rebranded to Happy Money in 2021 to emphasize borrower financial wellness. Its online platform assesses credit profiles to match users with suitable loan offers from lenders across the United States. Borrowers access automated payment plans that prioritize high-interest debt payoff while reporting activity to credit bureaus for score improvements. Happy Money serves customers nationwide with a focus on those transitioning from credit card reliance to savings habits.
Founded
2009
HQ
Website
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2C
Revenue model
Product sales
Valuation
$1.1B (Feb 2022)
Happy Money Valuation
Happy Money is currently valued at $1.1B, based on its Series D in February 2022.
The $50M round was led by Anthemis, with participation from TruStage Ventures.
Happy Money valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 2022 | Series D | $1.1B |
Happy Money Funding History
Happy Money has raised a total of $331M across 6 funding rounds.
Happy Money's first fundraising round was a $7M Series A in December 2013. The most recent completed round was a $146M undisclosed-stage round in November 2023.
Happy Money funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2023 | Undisclosed stage | TruStage Ventures (lead) | $146M | - | Happy Money is a fintech platform providing unsecured personal lending solutions in partnership with credit unions, focusing on happier lending experiences that help borrowers achieve goals with less financial stress and enable credit unions to strengthen balance sheets through high-performing assets and national reach. The company closed a strategic transaction in November 2023 led by TruStage Ventures and other institutional investors, described variably as a Series Unknown round of $145.6M or Series E of $3M, aimed at accelerating growth, expanding the technology platform, and enhancing lending capabilities to serve more credit unions and consumers. TruStage's involvement includes both financial backing and support from its national sales team to broaden adoption. Happy Money has facilitated over $6 billion in loans for more than 300,000 members as of November 1, 2023, while remaining privately held under independent operations led by CEO Joe Heck. Guggenheim Securities advised on the transaction, with Cooley as legal advisor. |
| Feb 2022 | Series D | Anthemis (lead); TruStage Ventures | $50M | $1.1B | Happy Money is a fintech platform founded in 2009 that provides unsecured lending services in partnership with credit unions, with a focus on helping borrowers refinance and consolidate high-interest credit card debt. The company's main product offering is the Payoff Loan, which helps members pay off credit card debt and experience reduced financial stress. Happy Money claimed to have worked with more than 205,000 borrowers and facilitated $3.7 billion in loans through 2021. In February 2022, Happy Money closed a $50 million Series D-1 funding round led by Anthemis Group and co-led by CMFG Ventures, the venture capital arm of CUNA Mutual Group. The round valued the company at a pre-money valuation of $1.1 billion, elevating Happy Money to unicorn status. This funding round brought the company's total capital raised to $135 million since its 2009 founding, with existing investors including Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings. The company planned to use the new capital to accelerate development of additional products, including an end-to-end lending API, and to deepen partnerships with its network of lending partners. Happy Money employed approximately 400 people at the time of the funding announcement and had recently appointed tech veteran Jeff Winner as permanent CEO in November 2021, who previously held leadership roles at Twitter, Stripe, and served as CTO of Goldman Sachs' Marcus consumer banking division. |
| Sep 2019 | Series D | TruStage Ventures (lead) | $70M | - | Happy Money, formerly Payoff, is a fintech company founded in 2009 that provides a product ecosystem to help consumers pay off debt, save money, and evaluate spending habits through tools like the Happy Score, which measures financial wellbeing using cash flow, savings, behavioral, and psychometric data. The company positions itself around 'mindful capitalism' and fighting 'Sad Money' by promoting happier relationships with money via lending, spending, and savings products. It has partnerships with credit unions such as Alliant, First Tech, and Technology Credit Union. In September 2019, Happy Money raised $70 million in its Series D funding round led by CMFG Ventures (now associated with TruStage Ventures), bringing total funding to over $140 million across multiple rounds from investors including Anthemis Group and Toba Capital. The round aimed to accelerate growth, expand partnerships with credit unions and ethos-aligned financial institutions, and leverage CUNA Mutual's national sales force reaching 95% of US credit unions. TruStage Ventures first invested in Happy Money in 2017 and continued support in later rounds. The company continued raising funds, including a $50M Series D-II, $3M Series E in 2023, and others, totaling over $336M by 2023. |
| Jun 2016 | Series C | Anthemis (lead); Tencent (lead) | $47M | - | Happy Money is a fintech platform founded in 2009 that provides lending solutions to help borrowers consolidate and pay off unsecured debt, particularly high-interest credit card debt. The company offers products like the Payoff Loan and operates as a leading platform for unsecured lending in partnership with credit unions. In June 2016, Happy Money closed a Series C funding round led by Anthemis Group and Tencent, raising $46.8 million to enhance product offerings and enter new markets. However, the post-money valuation for this specific round was not publicly disclosed at the time. The company would later achieve unicorn status in February 2022 when it raised $50 million in Series D-1 funding at a $1.1 billion pre-money valuation, demonstrating significant growth over the intervening years. Happy Money had grown to a 400-person company by 2022, with a track record of working with over 205,000 borrowers and helping fund $3.7 billion in loans through 2021. |
| Oct 2014 | Series B | Mohamed El-Erian (lead) | $12M | - | Happy Money raised $12 million in a Series B funding round in October 2014 led by Mohamed El-Erian. The funding aimed to expand the customer base and improve technology infrastructure. This followed earlier seed rounds, including $1.7 million in April 2010 led by FirstMark and approximately $4.1 million in January 2012 led by Great Oaks Venture Capital. The company continued raising capital in later years, reaching total funding exceeding $300 million across multiple rounds by 2023. |
| Dec 2013 | Series A | Anthemis (lead); Joe Saunders | $7M | - | Happy Money is a fintech platform focused on unsecured lending in partnership with credit unions, offering tools to help consumers consolidate and pay off credit card debt. The company raised $7 million in Series A funding in December 2013 led by Anthemis Group, with the goal of scaling operations and increasing market penetration. The post-money valuation for this round was not publicly disclosed. Happy Money would go on to achieve significant growth, raising a total of $336 million across multiple funding rounds and reaching unicorn status by February 2022 with a $1.1 billion pre-money valuation in its Series D-1 round. |
Who has invested in Happy Money?
5 investors have backed Happy Money across its funding rounds, including Anthemis, TruStage Ventures, Tencent, Mohamed El-Erian and Joe Saunders.
Lead investors include TruStage Ventures, Anthemis, Tencent and Mohamed El-Erian.
Happy Money Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Lead | Dec 2013 | ||
| 3 | Lead | Sep 2019 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Dec 2013 | ||
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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
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Start Free TrialHappy Money Competitors
Happy Money competitors include listed companies like Upbound and Qfin Holdings, and private ones like iCred, InCred, China Rapid Finance and Touzhijia.com.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private | $94M | - | $1.1B | 11.2x | ||
| Private | $93M | - | $1B | 11.1x | ||
| Publicly listed | $4.7B | $1.7B | $1B | 0.6x | ||
| Private | - | - | $1B | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $1B | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $2.4B | - | $989M | 0.8x |
Happy Money Public Comps
Happy Money is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Mercantil Servicios Financieros, Upbound, Bravura Solutions, Arzan Financial Group, Qfin Holdings, Canaccord Genuity, Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, Edelweiss Financial Services, Yixin Group and Navient.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $95M | - | 12.2x | - | - | - | |||
| $4.7B | $1.7B | 0.6x | 0.6x | 1.5x | 5.2x | |||
| $201M | $55M | 4.9x | 4.9x | 17.9x | 17.0x | |||
| $37M | - | 32.4x | - | - | - | |||
| $2.4B | - | 0.8x | 0.8x | - | - | |||
| $1.6B | $143M | 0.6x | 0.6x | 6.8x | - | |||
| $323M | - | 3.0x | - | - | - | |||
| $606M | - | 2.1x | - | - | - | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Happy Money competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Happy Money
| When was Happy Money founded? | Happy Money was founded in 2009. |
| Where is Happy Money headquartered? | Happy Money is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, United States. |
| Is Happy Money publicly listed? | No, Happy Money is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is Happy Money's valuation? | Happy Money was last valued at $1.1B in its Series D in February 2022. |
| How much funding has Happy Money raised? | Happy Money has raised $331M across 6 funding rounds. |
| What was Happy Money's last funding round? | Happy Money's last funding round was a $146M undisclosed-stage round in November 2023, led by TruStage Ventures. |
| Who are Happy Money's investors? | Happy Money's investors include Anthemis, TruStage Ventures, Joe Saunders, Tencent and Mohamed El-Erian. |
| Which companies are comparable to Happy Money? | Companies comparable to Happy Money include iCred, InCred, Upbound, China Rapid Finance, Touzhijia.com and Qfin Holdings. |
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