Tulyp, the one-stop shop software platform digitalizing trade finance based in Paris, has successfully closed a €1.5 million Seed round led by Speedinvest alongside other major investors including Kima Ventures, Purple Ventures and business angels.
With clients spanning three continents, Tulyp is committed to ensuring that SMEs have access to trade finance services on par with large corporations. To achieve this, the company provides an innovative, seamless platform that digitizes and secures the entire trade finance process, levelling the playing field for smaller businesses in global markets.
Bridging the trade finance gap for SMEs
Trade finance, despite being crucial for the global economy (6% of global GDP), particularly struggles to serve the needs of smaller businesses. A study by the Asian Development Bank highlighted a substantial $1.7 trillion gap in trade finance in 2020 alone, accounting for 10% of global trade. This gap is partly due to the sector’s slow modernization compared to other areas of finance, which are rapidly embracing digital technologies. While large corporations benefit from these advancements, enhancing supply-chain efficiency and transparency, SMEs are often left behind due to their fragmented nature and limited scale.
Tulyp aims to solve the gap between SMEs and large businesses by providing an agile one-stop-shop platform that:
- Enhances the value for SMEs by enabling faster, more secure international deal closings beyond traditional processes
- Mitigates risks in import-export transactions, such as transport, currency, and counterparty risks, ensuring secure and transparent payment terms that protect both buyers and sellers
- Collaborates with global financing companies to alleviate cash flow problems for SMEs engaged in international trade, reducing financial pressures and associated risks
- Accelerates import-export transactions by providing a one-stop shop that consolidates all necessary services, streamlining the entire process
Nicolas Mazza, CEO of Nama Enterprise said: “Since integrating Tulyp into our operations at Nama Enterprise, it has revolutionized our business by enhancing security and transparency, making transactions risk-free and efficient. Tulyp’s user-friendly interface and seamless workflow integration have simplified previously complex processes and provided transparency throughout the transaction lifecycle. Tulyp has supported our expansion into new markets, including large-scale trades and bulk shipments to Vietnam, playing a crucial role in facilitating smooth and secure transactions. Our partnership has been invaluable in mitigating risks and scaling our trading operations significantly.”
Expanding services and forging partnerships
This new capital will be used to accelerate growth and enhance Tulyp’s service capabilities in key markets, notably by improving the platform, and refining functionality and scalability. This fundraising will also help Tulyp forge new strategic partnerships with B2B financing companies and freight forwarders, enhancing the added-value services offered to our clients. Tulyp also aims to increase the pace of customer acquisition in its strong markets, Europe and Asia, reinforcing its commitment to expanding its global footprint and reinforcing its market presence.
Maxime Girres, CEO and founder of Tulyp stated: “After more than 2 years of hard work and iteration, we are really proud that Tulyp is now live with active clients on three continents. Bringing new key partners like SpeedInvest, Kima Ventures, Purple Ventures and strategic Business Angels will help us scale our client offering and onboard new clients. By helping SMEs develop their business all around the world, we truly believe that Tulyp is opening a new era for SMEs in trade finance! It is now a new chapter in Tulyp’s growth that we are looking forward too!”.
Alexis Majos, Principal at Speedinvest mentioned: “We are very excited to be investing in Tulyp for its role in revolutionizing SME trade, addressing the trust deficit and financing inefficiencies in international transactions. There is a $500bn trade finance gap in the segment, and we believe that Maxime and his team are the pioneers that will tackle it with the right product.”
Alexis Robert, Partner at Kima Ventures stated: “We had been looking for a startup in trade finance for a long time, and one that would disrupt the letter of credit that is slowing down our commercial exchanges. With Tulyp, we have discovered a passionate team and are very happy to support them with Kima Ventures”
