Microsoft and Nationwide invest $12m in online lender BlueVine

Online business lender BlueVine has topped up its $60 million Series E funding round with an additional $12 million from the venture arms of Microsoft and FS firm Nationwide.

Founded in 2013, BlueVine is one of a host of alternative digital financing platforms to have popped up in recent years, offering SMEs and entrepreneurs access to its cloud-based working capital financing platform.

The firm has grown rapidly, recently hitting the $1 billion funding volume milestone, and now has more than 200 employees in New Jersey, New Orleans and Israel.

The new money comes eight weeks after BlueVine raised $60 million from Menlo Ventures, SVB Capital and others, bringing the Series E round to $72 million.

"We're excited about BlueVine's suite of technology-enabled working capital solutions for small and medium sized businesses," says Elliott Robinson, partner at Microsoft's fund, M12. "The company's market traction to-date has been impressive and we believe their technology and talent have set them on the path for continued growth."