EyeVerify sells to Alibaba affiliate for more than $100M
September 13, 2016 | Bobby Burch
In what represents one of the metro’s most notable exits in the last decade, Kansas City-based startup EyeVerify announced Tuesday that it has been acquired.
Ant Financial — the payments affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding — purchased EyeVerify for more than $100 million, according to an unnamed local source familiar with the deal.
Ant Financial started using EyeVerify’s biometric security tool in early 2016. Valued at about $60 billion, Ant Financial boasts about 450 million customers, offering services such as online payments, peer-to-peer lending, wealth management and more, Bloomberg reports.
Led by CEO Toby Rush, EyeVerify created the “EyePrint ID,” which transforms a selfie of a user’s eye into a biometric security key. It’s used by millions of people around the world to access mobile banking or other secured information.
Founded in 2012, EyeVerify has 35 staffers, has raised $13 million to date and was named a Top 10 Startup to Watch in 2016 by Startland News.
Now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ant Financial Services Group, EyeVerify plans to stay in Kansas City after the deal, according to the firm. Current employees and the executive management team will also remain with the firm.
The exit is an unequivocal win for Kansas City. Not only will founding team members likely see a nice payout, but so too will EyeVerify’s local investors. Local investors in EyeVerify include Mid-America Angels, Women’s Capital Connection, Think Big Partners, Flyover Capital, Sprint and other private investors.
“Mid-America Angels and the Women’s Capital Connection are proud to have identified EyeVerify as a promising business opportunity and participated in this deal from its earliest stages,” a spokeswoman with MAA said. “We congratulate Toby and his team on years of hard work, and look forward to celebrating this timely victory for Kansas City during Techweek.”
Check back in later for more on this breaking story.
2016 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Prospect KC earns $10K grant from Jacques Pépin Foundation as Gumbo Fest set to return
A newly announced grant will be pivotal to advance The Prospect KC’s mission to empower lives, disrupt poverty, and cultivate community through culinary education, said chef and founder Shanita McAfee-Bryant. The $10,000 grant from The Jacques Pépin Foundation (JPF) is one of 16 recently awarded to organizations that use culinary arts to enhance lives and…
She made kitchens her classroom; now this young foodie has her own Olathe bakeshop
Oreo cheesecake cookies. Take-and-bake cinnamon rolls. Pina Colado sodas. After seven years as an home-based business in Olathe, Cake Loft now has a storefront and even more attention-grabbing offerings. Owner Chrissy Zemencik’s line includes cakes, cupcakes, decorated sugar cookies, and macarons, as well as gourmet cookies — apple pie, cherry pie, lemon blueberry, brown butter…
Meet KCSourceLink’s trio of ‘navigators’ now embedded in KC business support hubs
A new initiative from KCSourceLink that places three experienced business leaders in strategic locations across Kansas City will help aspiring entrepreneurs better connect with the resources and answers they need to start and grow businesses and side hustles, said Becca Castro. “KCSourceLink is making it easier than ever for aspiring entrepreneurs and seasoned business owners…
NXTUS launches bracket-style pitch competition for Kansas startups with $20K in prizes
A new, high-energy pitch competition is expected to help startup founders collide with angel investors and innovation leaders from across Kansas — all set against the excitement of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament this spring. The Gamechangers & Champions bracket bash is set for March 21 in downtown Wichita — a one-day bracket-style experience organized…