Cibus Enterprise Fund II, advised by Cibus Capital, has acted as co-lead for a USD 25 million funding round in Growers Edge. The close of this growth round marks Cibus Enterprise Fund II's first investment into Agri-Fintech.
Founded in 2017, U.S.-based Growers Edge provides financial solutions and data-driven tools to help reduce growers' risk and the costs of adopting new, more sustainable products. As recently as 2023, 80% of grain payments in the U.S. were conducted via paper checks. Moving forward, 76% of farmers are "using or planning to use" digital payment platforms, up from 39% last year.
The new funding will enable Growers Edge to scale its financial solutions and expand its reach to additional ag retailers and lenders, while driving greater adoption of climate-smart agricultural products and practices across the U.S. The company's three main business lines support the digitisation of farming operations and uptake of innovation, in turn, contributing to efficient and precise delivery: white label software for retailers to manage and grow their loan books for crop inputs; crop warranty plans, offered to farmers through retailers to protect cropland from downside risk; and digital tools to manage the workflow for originating, closing and servicing mortgages.
The funding round was co-led by S2G Investments, Cibus Enterprise Fund II and Lowercarbon Capital, with additional participation by Otter Creek, iSelect, and Jeff Ubben, founder of ValueAct Capital.
Alastair Cooper, Partner and Head of Venture at Cibus Capital, said: "US farming has had to rely on archaic financial systems for too long. Growers Edge is leading a digital disruption of financing in US agriculture, helping to unlock environmental benefits at a farm level, economic benefits at grower and community level and social benefits at a systems level."
Matt Hansen, CEO of Growers Edge, said: "This milestone is a testament to the creativity and tenacity of our incredible team. They're the true innovators who continue to transform complex challenges into real-world solutions for growers, retailers, and lenders. We're thrilled Cibus Capital has joined us on the journey."
For more information:
Growers Edge
[email protected]
www.growersedge.com/
Cibus Enterprise Fund
www.cibusfund.com