Yoshinori Fukushima, founder and CEO of LayerX.
LayerX
LayerX, a Tokyo-based startup that helps firms automate their workflow with AI, stated on Tuesday it has raised ¥15 billion (about $100 million) in a funding spherical led by Know-how Crossover Ventures (TCV), a U.S. enterprise capital agency whose portfolio consists of Airbnb, ByteDance and Fb.
The Sequence B spherical additionally drew participation from traders together with Japanese banking big Mitsubishi UFJ Monetary Group and native enterprise capital agency Jafco Group, in addition to California-based Coreline Ventures, based by former companions at Tencent and SoftBank-backed DCM Ventures, in accordance with LayerX in a press release.
The seven-year-old startup developed AI-powered software program that helps companies streamline their bookkeeping course of, together with bill processing, expense reimbursements and company card administration. LayerX additionally created an AI instrument that helps enterprises automate document-heavy workflows, similar to extracting information from PDFs and turning it right into a searchable database. Its different choices embrace an funding platform on tokenized actual property, which it collectively developed with Japanese buying and selling home Mitsui & Co.
“LayerX is reworking how enterprises handle monetary operations in Japan,” stated Michael Kalfayan, common companion at TCV, within the assertion. “Their AI-native platform not solely drastically reduces guide overhead, but in addition delivers exceptional transparency, pace, and compliance for finance groups.” LayerX stated it should use the proceeds to increase its crew of engineers and gross sales.
The startup was based in 2018 by serial entrepreneur Yoshinori Fukushima. Previous to LayerX, Fukushima based information aggregator app Gunosy in 2012 and took the corporate public in Japan in 2015. He was featured on the 30 Underneath 30 Asia listing in 2016 for his Gunosy enterprise.
LayerX’s final fundraising was in 2023, when it raised about ¥10 billion in a Sequence A spherical from traders together with Mitsubishi UFJ Innovation Companions and Mizuho Capital. It’s among the many Japanese firms driving digital transformation of industries which can be historically paper-heavy and gradual to undertake AI.
Others embrace Tokyo and San Francisco-based LegalOn Applied sciences, which makes use of AI to hurry up contract evaluate. The authorized tech startup in July secured $50 million in a funding round led by the expansion fairness crew at Goldman Sachs Alternate options.
