Unicorn Pennylane bags an additional €75 million for electronic invoicing

Paris-based Pennylane, the accountancy platform that reached Unicorn status in early 2024, has raised an additional €75 million to strengthen its position as the go-to solution for European businesses and accounting firms amid the rollout of electronic invoicing regulations across the continent.

The round was led by Sequoia Capital, Capital G, and Meritech, with DST also participating.

CEO and Co-founder, Arthur Waller said: “This fundraising demonstrates the trust our investors have in us and confirms our ambition to make Pennylane the go-to solution for integrated financial management and electronic invoicing. We are proud of our momentum in France, every day 4,500 accounting firms and 350,000 of their clients use our platform daily. Over time, we plan to earn the trust of businesses across Europe, too.”

Founded in 2020, Pennylane brings together the tools and integrations needed to manage all expenses, invoicing, cash flow, and accounting, working with SMEs and their accountants.

The company looks to be the single source for financial and accounting data, used on one side by entrepreneurs to run their business (invoicing and getting paid, paying suppliers and expense management, piloting cash and profitability) and on the other side by their accountants for bookkeeping and tax filings.

According to figures provided by Pennylane, the company has tripled the number of SMEs on its platform in 12 months. This organic growth is backed by the trust of the 4,500 accounting firms that use the software daily and the value experienced by their clients, with more than 350,000 using the platform daily.

“Thanks to our platform, companies can now send and receive electronic invoices, allowing them to smoothly anticipate reforms coming across Europe, complying with new obligations effortlessly,” added Waller.

The fundraise will enable Pennylane to further invest in its vision to make integrated financial management in accounting the standard in Europe, while helping accountancy firms evolve into strategic advisors.

“Although we were not actively seeking funding, this opportunity allows us to further accelerate the development of additional services around purchase and sales invoices to offer businesses and firms a fully integrated and interoperable solution, designed to address the challenges of digital transformation,” said Waller.

Pennylane looks to grow from 550 to 800 employees by the end of 2025, with close to half of its team members working in R&D.

Sequoia partner Luciana Lixandru concluded:”Pennylane’s relentless customer focus continues to drive momentum and trust, with the number of SMEs on their platform increasing 3X in just the past 12 months. Sequoia first partnered with Pennylane in 2021 and Arthur and the team’s speed of execution has impressed us every day since. We’re excited to lead this round and support Pennylane to deliver even greater impact for businesses and their trusted accountancy firms.

“With e-invoicing reforms rolling out in France and across Europe, many companies are just beginning their digitisation journey. This presents a massive opportunity, and Pennylane is perfectly positioned to seize it.”