Esusu has raised $130 million at a $1 billion valuation to continue its mission of dismantling barriers to housing for working families, and work towards its vision of unleashing the power of data to bridge the racial wealth gap. This fundraise makes Esusu one of the few Black-owned startups to reach unicorn status both in the United States and globally.
In July last year, the firm raised $10 million to fuel its growth despite the pandemic while in August 2020, Esusu raised $2.3 million in seed extension for US expansion bringing total capital raised to $4 million after it’s 2019 $1.6 million raise led by Acumen Fund.
In the United States, credit is fundamental to financial stability, access to housing, and upward mobility. Unfortunately, the current system leaves millions behind who are credit invisible, thin-file, or otherwise credit-challenged precluding them from accessing quality financial products. Founded in 2018 with the premise that no matter where you come from, the color of your skin, or your financial identity it should never determine where you end up in life, Esusu enables renters to build financial identity, reach financial stability, and ultimately move towards wealth creation.
The platform now reaches over 2.5 million rental units across all 50 states serving landlords and renters alike. The Series B fundraise will enable the firm to scale the team, accelerate new product development, and grow our reach across the rental market.
The round was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 alongside other new investors including Jones Feliciano Family Office, Lauder Zinterhofer Family Office, Schusterman Foundation, SoftBank Opportunity Fund, Related Companies, and Wilshire Lane Capital. Existing investors Concrete Rose Capital, Equity Alliance, Impact America Fund, Motley Fool Ventures, Next Play Ventures, Serena Ventures, Sinai Ventures, and TypeOne Ventures also participated in the round.
According to the firm, it decided to take on additional capital after announcing a $10 million Series A round last July led by Motley Fool Ventures Managing Partner Ollen Douglass. The Series A round positioned the company to accelerate market adoption and become the leading platform in the sector. To scale and create the most comprehensive financial health platform for renters and owners, we needed to invest in our team, platform, and partnerships to achieve this goal. With plans to triple our employees, Esusu will use this Series B capital infusion to scale the team, turbocharge growth through product innovation, and build the most comprehensive financial health platform in the market.
Esusu is experiencing rapid growth. In November 2021, it announced a joint initiative with Freddie Mac Multifamily to help more renters build financial stability by encouraging owners of multifamily properties to report on-time rental payments. On the heels of this groundbreaking collaboration, the firm expects a surge of interest from property owners, managers and renters.
Esusu currently works with 35% of the largest landlords on the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) list. Partners include BH Companies, Camden Property Trust, Cushman & Wakefield (formerly Pinnacle), GoldOller, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Harbor Group, L+M Development Partners, Jonathan Rose Companies, Morgan Properties, Related Companies, Starwood Capital Group, Stoneweg, Winn Residential, and more.