Bill.com files for IPO

Bill.com, which makes the very popular business billing and payments app, filed for a $100 million initial public offering on Friday, Nov. 15.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filing from the Palo Alto-based company highlighted certain business trends that make the future bright for an app like Bill.com. According to the filing, midsized businesses are “underserved by current software solutions … many software providers attempt to sell solutions designed for consumers or enterprises, which struggle to gain traction in the SMB market.”

The filing also stated that small and midsized businesses “generally rely upon antiquated and inefficient processes,” leaving plenty of room for an app like Bill.com, which is highly automated, to address the problem.

The company’s most recent round of funding, completed in April this year, brought in $88 million. According to data from Crunchbase, the total raised over Bill.com’s lifetime has been $347.1 million. The company was founded in 2006 by Rene Lacerte.

Bill.com NEW LOGO

The April investment was led by investment firm Franklin Templeton at a valuation of more than $1 billion. Mastercard, Fidelity Investments Canada ULC, Kayne Anderson Rudnick, Temasek, Cross Creek, and FLEETCOR also participated in the fundraising round.

Bill.com has grown rapidly since its foundation. For the most recent quarter of 2019 — Bill.com’s third fiscal quarter of the year — the company reported $35.2 million in total revenue. This represents 57 percent year-over-year growth when compared to the $22.4 million brought in in the third quarter of 2018, and that $22.4 million represented 71 percent growth over the same quarter for 2017. The slowed growth is normal for a maturing company (Bill.com can hardly be called a startup anymore).

But while not a startup, Bill.com is certainly a unicorn, as demonstrated by its $1 billion valuation earlier this year. Its app continues to be a far and away favorite among accounting software user communities like those of QuickBooks and Xero.

The company's product is highly automated, and uses artificial intelligence to perform some tasks.

In its IPO filing, the company described itself: “We are a leading provider of cloud-based software that simplifies, digitizes, and automates complex back-office financial operations for SMBs. By transforming how SMBs manage their cash inflows and outflows, we create efficiencies and free our customers to run their businesses. Our purpose-built, AI-enabled financial software platform creates seamless connections between our customers, their suppliers, and their clients. Customers use our platform to generate and process invoices, streamline approvals, send and receive payments, sync with their accounting system, and manage their cash. We have built sophisticated integrations with popular accounting software solutions, banks, and payment processors, enabling our customers to access these mission-critical services through a single connection. As a result, we are central to an SMB’s accounts payable and accounts receivable operations.”

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