Ampla raises $258M from Goldman Sachs and Atalaya

Ampla raised $258 million from Goldman Sachs and Atalaya Capital Management to provide consumer brands with lines of credit, CEO Anthony Santomo tells Axios.

Why it matters: Startups have faced one of the most difficult fundraising environments in a decade and traditional banks have cut back on providing loans.

Details: The New York-based financial services provider will provide the credit lines to omnichannel consumer brands with between $1 million and $500 million in sales, Santomo says.

• It is part of a broad offering of services that includes digital banking and a new corporate credit card it launched Wednesday in partnership with Visa, he says.
• The credit lines are used primarily to purchase inventory, while the credit cards are for charging expenses like marketing, namely buying ads on social media, for example, Santomo explains.

What's next: Ampla is always looking to raise more capital to support more brands, Santomo says.

• Ampla can scale with Goldman Sachs in particular, given it's a tier-one investor, he says.
• And there are plenty of products in the pipeline, Santomo adds.

By the numbers: Ampla's revenue is growing 100% year over year, Santomo says.

• It has exceeded $1.5 billion in originations and is processing a run rate of $6 billion worth of transactions via its platform.
• Ampla's customers include Carbone Fine Foods, Cuts Clothing and Serenity Kids.

Catch up fast: It was founded in 2019 and is backed by VMG Partners, Forerunner Ventures, M13 Ventures, Infinity Ventures and Core Innovation Capital.

• Ampla raised a $60 million Series A in late 2021.