Craft Raises $32M to Help Companies Monitor Suppliers

Intelligence platform Craft has raised $32 million to help companies track supplier networks.

The company announced the Series B equity financing Wednesday (Feb. 1), saying it would use the funds to accelerate research and development and deepen its go-to-market execution.

Based in San Francisco, Craft offers a data platform that lets supply chain, procurement and risk managers monitor their suppliers.

“Increased focus on Cybersecurity, ESG, legal compliance and geopolitics have all further highlighted the need for comprehensive and reliable intelligence on all tiers of the enterprise supply network,” Craft said in a news release. “Increasingly, enterprises in both private and public sectors are seeking to predict and mitigate issues proactively rather than reactively, in addition to embedding continuous monitoring of suppliers into daily operations.”

Craft’s funding comes in the wake of a year that saw a number of tech firms struggle to find financing and go public. As PYMNTS has noted, for much of 2022, the number of deals and the total value of the deals have been lower each month versus the month before.

In the wake of that downturn, companies have pivoted from growth in favor of profits, Thomas Cuvelier, partner at Paris-based venture investment firm Alven, told PYMNTS last year, adding that it’s no longer safe to assume companies will find funding even if they grow at all costs.

“There’s a major focus on profitable growth, which wasn’t the case in 2021. Now we look at [a company’s] unit economics much more carefully than before,” Cuvelier said.

FinTech executives have been echoing that sort of statement more recently. As PYMNTS reported last month, many FinTechs “got walloped in 2022 for bloated valuations,” leading to an increased focus on fundamentals and partnerships.

PYMNTS’ Karen Webster discussed what that means for the industry with Amir Wain, CEO of i2c, and Payoneer Co-CEO Scott Galit.

Galit said this shift has forced a return to more rational valuations based on providing tangible value versus a growth-at-all-costs mentality, noting that Payoneer has always kept its eye on fundamentals and has been adjusted EBITA positive for 10 years running.

Wain agreed, telling Webster, “The core business has to be something that delivers value to its clients that is sustainable over a period of time. I think 2022 was a good thing where it shifted people’s focus back to basics, rather than chasing the next round at triple the valuation.”

For all PYMNTS B2B coverage, subscribe to the daily B2B Newsletter.