PayIt Wins $100M+ Investment for Digital Services Software

New York-based venture capital firm Insight Partners, which focuses on transformative technologies, has invested more than $100 million in software that facilitates digital payments for government services.

The beneficiary was PayIt, a startup in Kansas City, Mo., that has been recognized by Government Technology, SXSW and others since its inception in 2013. Crunchbase shows PayIt has fewer than 50 employees, and the company has been mum on its count of clients, but signs indicate steady growth: PayIt previously closed a $4.5-million seed funding round in January 2016 with five investors, which has now been dwarfed by a windfall from a single partner, and the company won a multi-year contract with the state of Kansas in 2017.

A news release on Thursday said the new funding will allow PayIt to continue growing its footprint and product capabilities, which include cloud-based, purpose-built mobile modules through which citizens can pay for motor vehicle documents, taxes, highway tolls, professional licensing and other services.
The investment round is one of the largest in a gov tech company in recent years — to put it in context, the average Series C round in gov tech companies since the beginning of 2017 has been $29.6 million. Nextdoor's Series G round in December 2017 pulled in $75 million.

In a statement about the massive investment, PayIt Founder and CEO John Thomson said he was “thrilled” about a partnership that will accelerate the company’s efforts.

According to the news release, Insight Partners manages more than $20 billion of assets and has invested in more than 300 companies worldwide. The firm’s managing director, Ryan Hinkle, lauded PayIt for inventing a product to meet people’s growing expectations for convenient, digital interaction with government.

"As consumers, we increasingly expect world-class mobile experiences in everything we do, from booking hotel rooms to getting rides to ordering groceries," he said in a statement. "PayIt brings this type of world-class experience to their government partners, saving time for consumers and creating more efficiency for the agencies served. We're excited to welcome the PayIt team to the Insight family and to embark on this next phase of growth together."