Nationwide makes venture investment in small business-financing firm BlueVine

BlueVine specializes in financing for small-, medium-sized businesses

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Jul 31, 2018, 10:00 ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 31, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Nationwide announced today that it is making a new venture-capital investment in BlueVine, a leading provider of online working capital financing for small- and medium-sized businesses.

"As the number one total small-business insurer in the U.S., Nationwide has a deep and enduring commitment to small-business owners," said Erik Ross, head of Nationwide's venture capital team. "This investment aligns with our mission to help business owners protect what's most important and plan for a secure financial future."

The BlueVine announcement is part of Nationwide's commitment to invest more than $100 million of venture capital in customer-centric solutions.

"We're thrilled to have Nationwide as one of our new investors. It's exciting for us to partner with a company that's been instrumental in providing the insurance needs of thousands of businesses," said Eyal Lifshitz, BlueVine's CEO and founder. "BlueVine and Nationwide clearly share a similar vision: to help small-business owners thrive and succeed."

In addition to BlueVine, Nationwide's venture capital arm has also made investments in startups like blooom, Nexar, Sure, Matic and Betterview—all of which focus on evolving the insurance and financial-planning process for members. And Nationwide continues to look for partnerships with big and small companies, where it can collaborate across organizational boundaries and drive innovation together.

"As Nationwide nears its 100-year anniversary, we have a tremendous opportunity to help our members in ways they've never imagined," said Scott Sanchez, Nationwide's chief innovation officer. "Investments in companies like BlueVine allow us to learn, establish mutual value and pave the way for a new wave of solutions."

Nationwide is committed to driving innovation that helps members:

Live comfortably in retirement
Meet their insurance and financial needs in novel and digital ways
Protect their data and digital assets
Protect them in the evolving area of mobility

About BlueVine
BlueVine provides flexible working capital financing to small and medium-sized businesses, giving them quick access to funds needed to purchase inventory, cover expenses, or expand operations.

A fintech pioneer, BlueVine developed a fully-online cloud-based platform for invoice factoring, revolutionizing the 4,000-year old financing system that allows businesses to receive cash advances on outstanding invoices. BlueVine also offers Flex Credit, business line of credit financing issued by Celtic Bank, a Utah-chartered Industrial Bank, Member FDIC. Flex Credit is based on 6-month and 12-month payment terms. Based in Redwood City, Calif., BlueVine has raised more than $500 million in equity and debt funding and is funded by Lightspeed Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, 83NORTH, Silicon Valley Bank, Citi Ventures, Rakuten Fintech Fund, M12, Nationwide and other investors.

About Nationwide
Nationwide, a Fortune 100 company based in Columbus, Ohio, is one of the largest and strongest diversified insurance and financial services organizations in the U.S. and is rated A+ by both A.M. Best and Standard & Poor's. The company provides a full range of insurance and financial services, including auto, commercial, homeowners, farm and life insurance; public and private sector retirement plans, annuities and mutual funds; banking and mortgages; pet, motorcycle and boat insurance. For more information, www.nationwide.com .

Contact:
David Gilligan
(614) 249-6349
[email protected]

SOURCE Nationwide