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
Digital Sandbox reports substantial impact on Kansas City economy
The results are in for Digital Sandbox KC — and they look good. The business incubator on Wednesday unveiled its most recent statistics on the program’s impact in Kansas City. Launched in early 2013, the program provides up to $25,000 in non-dilutive grants to area, early-stage entrepreneurs for specific projects. Since inception about three years…
Fund me, KC: MatchOn serves up virtual tennis club
Startland News is continuing its segment to highlight area entrepreneurs’ efforts to accelerate their businesses. This is an opportunity for entrepreneurs — like MatchOn founder Garrett Gates — to share their stories to gain a little help from their supporters. Back MatchOn’s Indiegogo campaign here. Who are you? Garrett Gates, founder and CEO of MatchOn.…
Techweek KC aims for significant growth in 2016
With aggressive goals in mind, Techweek Kansas City is ramping up excitement for its second-annual festival of innovation and entrepreneurship in the City of Fountains. The national tech conference and media firm hosted a countdown party Monday in downtown Kansas City in which Techweek CEO Amanda Signorelli said she hopes to top the festival’s inaugural…
Dignity and a dollar: The Grooming Project empowers KC mothers
Natasha Kirsch believes that a living wage does more than provide people with money. That’s why she founded Empowering the Parent to Empower the Child (EPEC), a non-profit that helps young mothers in poverty find higher-paying jobs and become self-reliant in the process. And to achieve that mission, Kirsch is kickstarting an effort that not…