2022 was one for the ages
December 27, 2022
As we wind down the last week of the year, it was only right to look back on just how far we've come in 2022. In a year where every market, every sector, every asset class faced challenges that only come around once every decade or so, we managed to do what most could not - we put our heads down and just kept pushing in order to deliver, to execute, and to excel.
Here's a look back at how much we were able to accomplish in 2022, in a year that will go down as one of our best and most important ever as we make that strategic shift to becoming a pure play software company:
A New Percent: We kicked off the year with a new us - new brand, new messaging, and a new website that would come to define what the year was going to be about. It's one that we've been able to grow into and will serve us well for years to come.
Underwriter Portal Release: We began development of the underwriter portal in Q4 of last year but shipped it in Q1, with the first deals taking flight in Q2. This was a monumental effort, not just in the pace at which we specced, developed, tested, and shipped an entirely new product, but also its significance for our business. With the Underwriter portal released and a full set of features, from markets to borrower management to deal management, we now have a software suite facing all three sides of our market.
Underwriter Clients Onboarded: With the portal live, we managed to close 3 transactions with co-underwriters engaged, signing them on as clients, and ending the year with five more contracts out for review and signature. We're projecting 24 underwriters in contract by the end of 2023 and we're well on our way there.
Borrower Portal Revamp: The Borrower portal in 2021 did not get the attention it deserved, with very little functionality and even less usage from our clients. A concerted effort was made to bring this up to par with the rest of the platform and that we did. A new consistent UI was implemented and we started to take down features one by one - compliance questionnaires, deal management, data room, markets, the list goes on. This is now up to the level of everything else we have and it will be even more critical as we shift to the white label multi-market functionality in 2023.
Investor Portal Enhancements: We never lost sight of our largest and most active client base as critical enhancements were made to the investor experience. Transaction history has been requested for years and we finally delivered on it without a hitch, even with thousands upon thousands of transactions in the database. We also launched a completely new investment process that we had to educate our users on that would be transformational for not just us but our industry as a whole. The new syndication process is felt across not just the investor portal, but the underwriter and borrower portals as well, and it provides unparalleled insight into real investor demand.
Blended Notes for Investment Advisors: We launched blended notes in earnest at the end of last year but its impact was immediately felt as we had two tech-enabled investment advisors ([ ]) ask to create custom blended notes for them based on their mandate. Nearly $[ ]M later, we've proven out the value of diversified exposure to these investment advisors and it's allowing us to secure several more in 2023.
Venture Debt: We veered into a new asset class within private credit for the very first time, taking advantage of the market dislocation in venture capital to announce our support for startups and VC-backed companies who are going to need help in the coming months. This opened up our playbook and helped us expand our pipeline exponentially from what we had before. Deals could get done faster and it helped us attract the right attention from Tier 1 institutions.
Our Own Venture Debt: All this was made possible because we tried it out ourselves. 474 investors and a 1.45x oversubscription later, we closed on $[ ]M in venture debt for ourselves that couldn't have come at a better time given how rapidly the VC market was changing in March of this year. 9 months later, all the noise we've been making around our venture debt capabilities caught the attention of [ ] and they gladly stepped up to take over the bulk of our venture debt upon refinancing, with every intent to become an Underwriter on the platform to syndicate their other venture debt positions in the future.
Awards and Recognition: We won American Banker's Best Places to Work in Fintech and ABFJournal's Most Innovative Emerging Companies, and we were finalists at Finovate, Fintech Nexus, and Benzinga. To top it all off, we're about to win an even more prestigious award that will be announced very shortly. All of this is thanks to the work we've done here internally but also our efforts in getting our name out there, with millions of impressions this year across dozens of press pickups.
A New Organization: We went through a number of re-organizations and structural team changes, none more significant than the most recent one. What we look like today is very different from where we started in January and it took weeks of evaluation and planning to ultimately give ourselves the best chance for success in the coming year. Objectives are set, targets are locked in, and now it's on us to execute.
First Close of the Series B: We were counted out but we fought the odds, we faced down a VC market that had all but shut off and we kept pushing. For our efforts, we were rewarded with a round that came together when everyone else is pulling back with a set of strategic investors that we could not be more excited to have on board. They bring prestige, debt capital, and strategic value that will be paying dividends for years to come.
A Banner Month of December: In a fitting end to the year, we recorded the highest revenue month ever in December of close to ~$[ ]M. This was the culmination of all of the year's efforts across all lines of businesses including platform, data, advisory, and institutional.
What a year, what a story, and what a company we've built together. We have all the momentum and tailwinds heading into 2023. Happy new year, I couldn't be more excited to be on this journey with all of you
