As the year comes to a close, this final edition of B2B FinTech @Scale brings together some of the most telling signals shaping the future of financial services. From AI-backed tax infrastructure and deepfake defense to autonomous consumer agents and AI-native private banking, the themes are clear: trust, efficiency, and scale are being redefined.
This week’s issue features a Q&A with Deduction, exploring how AI and human expertise are converging to address the growing CPA shortage, alongside deal highlights that underscore where capital — and conviction — are flowing as we head into 2026.
A Q&A with Deduction on Solving the CPA Shortage with AI and Human Expertise
In this edition of B2B FinTech @Scale, we speak with the team behind Deduction, a US-based tax platform redefining how individuals and sole proprietors access professional tax services. Founded by Sai Dhanak and Jonathan Kieliszak, Deduction combines AI-driven efficiency with CPA-backed expertise to deliver a white-glove tax experience—without the traditional price tag or friction.
In this Q&A, the team shares how they’re addressing the growing CPA shortage, why consumer trust in AI is accelerating, and how the future of tax filing will balance automation with human oversight.
1. Tell us about yourself / your co-founder(s).
Deduction was founded by Sai Dhanak and Jonathan Kieliszak. Jonathan comes from a family of CPAs and has deep expertise in tax compliance and advisory. Sai’s background is in scaling technology companies, where he experienced firsthand the challenges of tax planning and compliance. Together, they set out to democratize access to professional tax services by combining AI with CPA expertise. Our tax team is led by Casey Epton, CPA, who ensures our tax guidance meets the highest standards.
Read more from the interview here: Deduction on Building a White-Glove Tax Experience at Scale
This week’s deal highlights
by @Samarth Shekhar
Here are the deal highlights from last week– the last edition for the year as we (and most of you) head for a short break. We’ll be back with the next edition in January – until then, happy holidays and a Guten Rutsch (“happy sliding!”, in German) into 2026!
As most of us have seen in the past few months, GenAI-enabled deepfakes (voice, video, images…) are on the rise, and financial services are a key target- with Deloitte estimating $40bn in fraud losses in the US alone by 2027. Resemble is aiming to catch them all (or at least 98% of them).
AI threat firm Resemble AI secures $13m funding…Resemble AI specialises in securing enterprise generative AI from creation through to distribution. Its technology is designed to help organisations address an emerging category of cyber risk, where manipulated audio, video and images can enable crimes ranging from financial fraud and brand impersonation to corporate espionage… The company cited figures stating that deepfake-related fraud caused $1.56bn in global losses in 2025, with generative AI expected to enable up to $40bn in fraud losses in the US alone by 2027.
On the other hand, Pine is expanding to be the financially savvy personal assistant – like actually doing the grunt-work of calling and emailing service providers for consumers, negotiating lower bills etc.
Pine launches AI agent as it secures $25m Series A…Pine operates an AI-powered platform that handles calls, emails and software interactions on behalf of consumers. With bank-level security and transparent privacy controls, the service is engineered to automate time-consuming administrative processes and secure more accurate and efficient outcomes for users. The company’s autonomous digital agent is capable of negotiating lower bills, cancelling subscriptions, filing complaints, securing refunds, attending meetings, booking appointments and managing multiple forms of personal communication.
If SMBs are the next battlefield for financial services (incumbents vs. newcomers), the war is already on in the midsize business segment. Flex’s approach targeting the business owners and their private wealth is fresh and much-needed.
Flex, the AI-native private banking platform for high net worth middle-market business owners, has secured $60m in a Series B equity round led by Portage, bringing its total equity raised to $105m… Founded in 2023, Flex builds financial infrastructure for high net worth business owners who generate between $3m and $100m in revenue. The platform combines private credit, business and personal finance tools, payments capabilities and ERP functions into a single ecosystem. ”Unlike many of our FinTech peers who focus on saving large enterprises money, we focus on helping ambitious owners make more money.”
Read on for more on the founders and investors in the news last week. If you are building or backing “what’s next in finance” and want to spread the word with our network of 20K+, reach out to Samarth Shekhar or Frank Schwab.
FUNDING ROUNDS
AI InsurTech Liablix secures €1.2m pre-seed funding
Italian startup Liablix, an AI-driven InsurTech specialising in automated motor-claims analysis, has secured €1.2m as it looks to scale its technology internationally.
The company, founded by Davide Castellucci, Filippo Begani and Davide Moricoli, landed the fresh backing in a round led by DFF Ventures, with participation from FJ Labs, Plug&Play and a select group of angel investors, according to Beinsure.
Liablix’s platform transforms crash images and incident data into detailed 3D reconstructions that map accident dynamics and assess liability with a level of consistency that human adjusters cannot always match.
By automatically checking damage compatibility and assessing whether reported injuries align with the physics of an incident, the software helps insurers reduce errors, speed up decisions and avoid the costly phenomenon of loss creep.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/03/ai-insurtech-liablix-secures-e1-2m-pre-seed-funding/
AI finance platform Bags secures $2.75m investment
Bags, a U.S. FinTech that blends AI-driven financial reviews with human expertise to support small businesses, has secured new capital as it looks to expand its reach across the country.
The company has raised $2.75m in a funding round led by Ford Foundation, with participation from Partnership Fund for New York City, Zeal Capital Partners, Slauson & Co, Limited Ventures and Blueprint FTC.
These investors join existing backers including Slauson & Co, Connecticut Innovations, Howard Schultz Family Foundation and Swanston Labs. The latest round brings Bags’ total capital raised to $7m.
Bags focuses on helping small businesses understand and improve their financial health by providing a mix of AI-powered bookkeeping insights, CFO-level reporting and strategic support. Many small firms struggle to secure financing or scale due to disorganised books, missed expenses or incomplete documentation.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/09/ai-finance-platform-bags-secures-2-75m-investment/
Swiss cyber firm Saporo bags €7m Series A round
Swiss cybersecurity company Saporo, the graph-native identity security specialist, has secured €7m in fresh investment as it accelerates its expansion across Europe and into the US.
The Series A round was led by TIN Capital, with participation from G+D Ventures, CDP Venture Capital through its Corporate Partners I – ServiceTech fund, XAnge, Lightbird VC and Session VC. Each backer is set to support Saporo’s market development efforts, from strengthening its network in Northern Europe to helping pursue German and Italian opportunities. Advisory firm Trachet acted as the fundraising advisor.
Saporo, which enables security teams to view enterprise identity landscapes in the same way attackers assess them, focuses on reducing the risk of identity-driven intrusions.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/04/swiss-cyber-firm-saporo-bags-e7m-series-a-round/
Home equity FinTech Nada closes $10m Series A
Home equity investment platform Nada, a financial technology company offering tools for homeowners to access and manage their home equity, has secured fresh investment to accelerate its growth.
The company has raised $10m in a Series A funding round led by Interlock Partners. Other investors included LiveOak Ventures, which returned after leading Nada’s Seed round, and Riverwalk Capital Partners. Nada also expanded its venture debt facility with Nomura Strategic Ventures, bolstering its institutional position with additional capital support.
Founded to modernise the way homeowners access their equity, Nada provides a digital platform that enables people to unlock and invest in home equity through debt-free financial products. The company has developed an integrated homeowner finance platform, pairing capital from both institutional and individual investors.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/03/home-equity-fintech-nada-closes-10m-series-a/
AI threat firm Resemble AI secures $13m funding
Resemble AI, a generative AI security company focused on defending organisations against deepfake and synthetic media attacks, has secured a new round of capital to accelerate its platform development and expand its global footprint.
The business has raised $13m in strategic funding. Participants in the round include Google’s AI Future Fund, Okta Ventures, Taiwania Capital, Gentree Fund, IAG Capital Partners, Berkeley Frontier Fund and KDDI. The company said this latest raise brings its total venture funding to $25m to date.
Resemble AI specialises in securing enterprise generative AI from creation through to distribution. Its technology is designed to help organisations address an emerging category of cyber risk, where manipulated audio, video and images can enable crimes ranging from financial fraud and brand impersonation to corporate espionage.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/09/ai-threat-firm-resemble-ai-secures-13m-funding/
Stablecoin payments firm Fin secures $17m funding round
Fin, a next-generation payments company, has secured fresh funding to accelerate the launch of its stablecoin-powered transactions platform.
The company, which specialises in instant, high-value global payments, is aiming to simplify the way large sums are moved across borders.
The business has raised $17m in a Series A round led by Pantera Capital, with participation from Sequoia Capital and Samsung Next. Fin said the new investment will support its initial product rollout and enable the hiring of additional specialists to scale the company.
Fin offers a digital payments system designed to handle large transactions for corporates and financial institutions. Its technology aims to provide instant payments using stablecoins while retaining a traditional banking-style experience.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/04/stablecoin-payments-firm-fin-secures-17m-funding-round/
Pine launches AI agent as it secures $25m Series A
Pine, an AI-driven consumer digital-chore automation company, has secured $25m in a Series A funding round led by Fortwest Capital.
The new product investment is driven by the growing frustration consumers face when dealing with long hold times, repetitive transfers and ineffective customer service. Pine said its “ask-and-it’s-done” AI is designed to return time, money and peace of mind to users by taking over these tasks entirely.
Pine operates an AI-powered platform that handles calls, emails and software interactions on behalf of consumers. With bank-level security and transparent privacy controls, the service is engineered to automate time-consuming administrative processes and secure more accurate and efficient outcomes for users.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/03/pine-launches-ai-agent-as-it-secures-25m-series-a/
Parametrix raises $27m to expand parametric digital insurance
Parametrix, a provider of parametric insurance for digital business interruption, has raised $27m in Series B funding led by Mundi Ventures, FirstMark Capital, and Hannover Digital Investments, the corporate venture arm of HDI Group.
F2 Venture Capital and strategic investors also participated, taking the company’s total funding to $45m, according to the Coverager.
Founded in 2018, Parametrix is a Lloyd’s Coverholder offering coverage for financial losses caused by digital infrastructure and technology downtime.
Its policies protect businesses from disruptions such as third-party SaaS outages, service-level agreement breaches, and cloud failures. Payments are triggered automatically once a verified event occurs, using the company’s proprietary monitoring technology, which tracks more than 7,000 cloud-based technology providers.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/10/parametrix-raises-27m-to-expand-parametric-digital-insurance/
Hometap launches new equity solution after $50m funding
Hometap, the Boston-based FinTech firm pioneering alternative home equity financing solutions, has secured $50m in new capital from affiliates of Gallatin Point Capital.
The company said the fresh funding will support the expansion of its flexible home equity solutions, designed to offer homeowners innovative alternatives that do not add to their monthly financial burdens.
Founded in 2017, Hometap specialises in helping homeowners unlock the value of their property without taking on debt or committing to monthly repayments. The business aims to make homeownership less stressful by providing transparent, accessible financial tools tailored to the real pressures faced by households.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/09/hometap-launches-new-equity-solution-after-50m-funding/
AI security firm Zafran secures $60m Series C
Zafran Security, which develops technology to help organisations automate exposure management, has secured fresh backing from investors as demand for intelligent defence tools accelerates.
The firm has raised $60m in a Series C investment round led by Menlo Ventures. Existing backers Sequoia Capital and Cyberstarts took part, along with PSP Growth, Vintage Investment Partners, and Knollwood Investment. This latest injection takes Zafran’s total funding to $130m.
Zafran specialises in threat exposure management powered by agentic artificial intelligence. Its technology supports large enterprises in mapping assets, detecting vulnerabilities, analysing risk and orchestrating remediation workflows autonomously.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/04/ai-security-firm-zafran-secures-60m-series-c/
Flex raises $60m Series B to scale AI private bank
Flex, the AI-native private banking platform for high net worth middle-market business owners, has secured $60m in a Series B equity round led by Portage, bringing its total equity raised to $105m.
The round also had participation from CrossLink Capital, Spice Expedition, Titanium Ventures, Wellington, Companyon Ventures, Florida Funders, FirstLook Partners, Tusk Venture Partners and others.
The fundraise comes as the company responds to accelerating demand from business owners who struggle with fragmented financial workflows. Running a profitable middle-market company requires navigating numerous disconnected systems, and Flex aims to replace this complexity with a unified finance platform.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/04/flex-raises-60m-series-b-to-scale-ai-private-bank/
7AI raises $130m to expand enterprise AI security
AI security specialist 7AI, which develops autonomous AI agents for enterprise cybersecurity, has raised $130m in a Series A round.
The round was led by Index Ventures, with new investor Blackstone Innovations Investments joining alongside Greylock, CRV, Spark and all existing seed backers. The deal represents the largest cybersecurity Series A on record and follows the company’s emergence from stealth mode in February 2025. Index Ventures partner Shardul Shah will also join the firm’s board of directors, and the total capital raised now reaches $166m.
7AI is known for building dynamic security agents that autonomously respond to alerts and conduct investigations across major enterprises. Its technology underpins what the business describes as an “agentic security” movement that replaces traditional manual response processes with automated analysis and resolution.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/08/7ai-raises-130m-to-expand-enterprise-ai-security/
Kalshi launches Series E after new prediction product boom
Kalshi, the world’s largest prediction market, has announced a landmark Series E funding round that values the company at $11bn.
The company raised $1bn in a round led by Paradigm, with commitments also coming from Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, Meritech Capital, IVP, ARK Invest, Anthos Capital, CapitalG, and Y Combinator.
Founded in 2018, Kalshi, which established prediction markets as a recognised financial asset class, operates a platform where users can trade on real-world outcomes. The firm positions itself as a regulated and trusted marketplace offering accurate, real-time expectations on the future and is now used both by institutional players and everyday consumers.
https://fintech.global/2025/12/03/kalshi-launches-series-e-after-new-prediction-product-boom/
As we wrap up the final edition of the year, one thing stands out: innovation across fintech continues to accelerate, even as the industry navigates structural shifts in talent, trust, and technology adoption. The companies featured this week reflect a broader move toward AI-native models that don’t replace humans, but reframe their role at scale.
We’ll be back in January with fresh insights, new founders, and the signals that matter most. Until then, thank you for reading — and wishing you a restful break and a strong start to the year ahead.