KC investors power $4.5M round for OP startup poised to ‘unlock billions’ for its customers
May 5, 2022 | Startland News Staff
Overland Park-based Realto has closed a $4.5 million funding round — thanks in large part to the backing of Kansas City-based investors.
“We’re excited to welcome these important investors as we continue to expand our robust trading capabilities across the universe of alternative products,” Brian King, co-founder and CEO, said in announcement of the funding round which was led by Firebrand Ventures and received support from KCRise Fund.
The injection is expected to further fuel growth of Realto — the first fully-automated online marketplace for secondary trading of illiquid real estate and alternative securities — and support key hires.
“We are thrilled to lead this round in Realto,” said John Fein, Firebrand Ventures managing partner and newly announced Realto board member.
“The team has deep experience building exchanges and facilitating commercial real estate transactions, and is targeting a huge addressable market of traditionally illiquid real estate and other alternative assets,” he continued. “The Realto platform is poised to unlock billions of dollars of value for their customers and we’re very excited to support their growth.”
In 2020, the company raised $3.5 million in a round led by Gary Fish, founder of Fishtech Group and a nationally known thought leader within the cybersecurity space, and JE Dunn Construction.
Darcy Howe and Ed Frindt, KCRise Fund
New funding for the company follows several months of successes including clearances by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said, noting indicators that brought investors such as Darcy Howe and KCRise Fund eagerly to the table.
“KCRise Fund is delighted to invest in Realto and its seasoned leaders,” said Howe, managing director, noting King’s track record as former vice president of the now-exited Bats Global Markets.
“The team has an established history of successfully disrupting highly complex industries and we are excited to partner with them in scaling their private securities marketplace.”
Click here to learn more Realto and how its platform works.
Featured Business
2022 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Mentorship opportunities abound in KC
Those hoping to further their businesses with the help of seasoned professionals need not look far. An array of opportunities await professionals seeking help to find their way through the foggy labyrinth of creating a business. Organizations such as KCSourceLink, which helps startups and small businesses find resources to grow, work to connect entrepreneurs with…
KC learning, sharing stories at TECHNA conference
Dozens of leaders in North American technology will be arriving in Kansas City this week to learn about area successes like Google Fiber and the Cisco Smart City project. Set for Wednesday through Friday, the annual Technology Councils of North America (TECHNA) conference will host about 60 cities’ technology councils from the U.S. and Canada.…
SpiderOak nabs $3.5M for ‘Zero Knowledge’ software
SpiderOak recently closed a multi-million dollar round that will grow its team and boost development of its privacy cloud software. The company, which creates software that encrypts data without ever learning its actual contents, raised a $3.5 million Series A round that also will help fund its transition from Chicago to Kansas City. Chicago-based OCA…
Google lauds Kansas City tech in congressional hearing
Dirt off your shoulder, Kansas City. Search engine giant Google added a proverbial feather to Kansas City’s tech hat Thursday while testifying in a U.S. Congressional hearing. In a hearing with the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, the tech titan said Kansas City has been transformed as a result of Google Fiber’s…