Melio

Melio is a B2B domestic and cross-border payout platform for small businesses to transfer and receive payments. Users can upload and settle invoices through the platform, using several payment methods including bank transfers and credit cards (including virtual cards). It also helps users avoid late payment costs and makes the payout process more efficient and effective by setting policies and permissions to approve spending. 

Melio can also be used to split one bill into multiple payments and even to pay several bills at once. In August 2023, the company launched “Pay Over Time” , a buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) solution. This enables small businesses to settle their suppliers immediately and in full through Melio, and subsequently pay Melio in monthly installments (up to 12 equal monthly installments).  

As of October 2023, the platform gave access to over 7,000 popular vendors which were part of its network, including AT&T, Amex, and First Progress. Melio charges on a pay-per-use basis for credit card and cross border transactions.

The company also operates an R&D center based in Tel Aviv, Israel, to complement its New York headquarters. Melio appointed former Meta and PayPal executive Tomer Barel as its COO in February 2022 to lead its strategy executions and business scaling.

Key customers and partnerships

The company has entered several partnerships to boost its platform. It partnered with Shopify in April 2023 to enable US merchants to pay and manage bills through their Shopify admin. In June 2021, it partnered with Capital One (a diversified banking company) to allow small businesses to access a wider gamut of accounts payable and receivable cash flow management tools. It also partnered with leading accounting software QuickBooks in 2020 to launch “Bill Pay,” which allows QuickBooks users to make payments and automate data entry and insights through the platform. 

The platform has seen strong growth, with its monthly payment processing volumes rising about 5,000% in the 18 months leading to September 2021.

Funding and financials

Melio raised USD 250 million in Series D funding in September 2021, co-led by Thrive Capital and General Catalyst, at a USD 4 billion valuation (around 3x its January 2021 valuation). The funds were earmarked to accelerate the company’s expansion through partnerships with financial institutions, software companies, and marketplaces.