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Nelnet announces move on fintech services with new Nelnet Loan Servicing
Lincoln-based Nelnet announced on Monday that the company is expanding its service options to provide new services to fintech lending platforms. A press release from Nelnet said that “Nelnet Loan Servicing will leverage the experience, scale, and personnel of its existing servicing business with technology enhancements to meet the unique needs of fintech companies with…
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Kansas City’s Firebrand Ventures closes fund at $17.7M
Firebrand Ventures announced the close of its seed fund on Wednesday, with an oversubscribed total of $17.7 million, nearly 250% over their initial goal of $7M. In a time when roughly 75-80% of venture capital raised in the U.S. still goes to California, Massachusetts and New York, Firebrand’s Kansas City-based fund is proving there’s VC interest…
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Lincoln-based SitStay announces acquisition and move to Wichita
Lincoln-based SitStay was one of the first online pet supply retailers when it was founded in 1996. The company maintained its spot in Lincoln’s e-commerce ecosystem for 22 years (154 in dog-years) before announcing the next phase of the company’s journey. SitStay was acquired by pet product manufacturer Buddy Brands earlier this month. SitStay is…
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SixThirty bridges the gap between fintech startups and corporate partners
Atul Kamra’s first job was working in a garment factory for his aunt in India. He learned a lot about the fashion industry and how fashion retailers operate. He eventually came to America on a scholarship and launched a career in business, learning about “character and cash flow” at big-name companies like American Express Bank.…
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Novel Growth Partners launches investment fund for Midwest tech startups
Novel Growth Partners, a new Kansas City-based finance fund announced its official launch earlier this month. The fund is taking a unique approach to investing with a revenue-based finance model that focuses on smaller, growing tech companies in an often overlooked region of the country. Novel formed earlier this year on the premise of providing…
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TechAccel announces investment in plant biotechnology startup Plastomics Inc.
Venture development company TechAccel, LLC announced on Thursday that it has completed a science advancement investment with Plastomics Inc., a St. Louis-based biotechnology startup making better crops through chloroplast engineering. TechAccel’s investment will fund a science advancement initiative designed to accelerate the development of Plastomics’ technology and a new chloroplast-expressed insect control trait collaboration currently…
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Nelnet completes acquisition of Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, Inc.
Nelnet announced this week it has completed the acquisition of Madison-based Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, Inc. from Great Lakes Higher Education Corporation. A press release provided by Nelnet said the company paid $150 million for 100 percent of the stock of Great Lakes, following the satisfaction of all required closing conditions. The acquisition makes…
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Flyover Capital funds Midwest startups and success stories
Most startup funding news seems to come out of Silicon Valley, but Flyover Capital knows the value of the Silicon Prairie’s talent pool and local entrepreneurs and is paying close attention to the next crop of tech success stories growing in the Midwest. Based in the Kansas City area, Flyover Capital looks to fund innovative…
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Laura McCoolidge Classen brought on as new Managing Director of Mid-America Angels
The Mid-America Angels investment network (MAA), which focuses on early-stage companies in the Kansas and Missouri region, announced Thursday that Laura McCoolidge Classen, formerly of Nebraska Angels, has joined as the group’s new Managing Director. Classen is taking over for Rick Vaughn, the group’s founding Managing Director who has held the role for over a…
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Bungii closes $3M funding round led by Midwest backers
Kansas City-based Bungii, an on-demand truck transportation service app, announced the close of their Series A round this month. Co-founder Ben Jackson said the startup closed their oversubscribed $2 million funding round at over $3 million. Jackson said that he takes great pride in the fact that the large majority of the round was raised…