Nebraska-based startup PaySAFE recently announced that Ho-Chunk Inc., an economic development corporation owned by the Winnebago tribe of Nebraska, has purchased majority ownership of the business.
PaySAFE founder Matthew Medlock says the relationship with Ho-Chunk began when he started seeking capital through Pipeline‘s fellowship program. Launched in 1994, Winnebago, Neb.-based Ho-Chunk is now a $260 million global corporation operating more than 30 subsidiaries across the country. 
“While the game plan is changing, we’re still executing on it and growing,” Medlock (right) told Silicon Prairie News. “We found our ideal partner and it just happened to be in our extended backyard. We couldn’t be more excited to be partnering with Ho-Chunk and about what they bring to the table.”
Medlock says the capital from Ho-Chunk’s majority stake in the company will help him and his team continue to scale and dedicate their time fully to creating the best possible product.
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“Ho-Chunk, Inc. is an entrepreneurial company with interests in new technology and innovative ideas like PaySAFE,” said Ho-Chunk president and CEO Lance Morgan in a press release. “The decision to invest in the company was just another opportunity to support an entrepreneur with a great business idea. We believe PaySAFE is a unique service that has the possibility to become something big.”
PaySAFE, an online method of providing escrow services for everything from construction to personal goods launched in March 2012 and has continued to adapt its services to better fit its users needs. While the company previously focused on mediating escrow services, Medlock says the startup has now moved beyond escrow to more of a resource center for private parties making large-scale transactions.
“Most of the growth has come from understanding our market,” he said.
While PaySAFE’s team now helps individuals navigate the process of escrow services—from creating agreements to generating a bill of sale—the startup still also provides fraud and financial protection.
Credits: Matthew Medlock photo courtesy of PaySAFE.
