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Wells Fargo Foundation selects three Silicon Prairie companies for first...
Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN2) announced this week its selection of five companies nationally to participate in the incubator’s first agtech cohort – the program’s fifth cohort. IN2 is a...
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Medical device start-up Simergent completes seed round
Launched through the Chicago-based health-tech incubator Matter, medical device start-up, Simergent, LLC, recently closed a $2.835M round of seed funding on April 18. Led by Oklahoma-based i2E, Inc....
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ClickSWITCH builds new payments system, receives funding
ClickSWITCH, a Minneapolis based financial payments company, has announced that they had secured $13 million Series B Funding. This round was led by Commerce Ventures and Point72 Ventures. ClickSWITCH...
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Flywheel’s New Owner: About WP Engine
On Monday, WP Engine announced that it is acquiring Flywheel. Flywheel is an Omaha-based startup that has helped designers create, build, host, and manage WordPress sites. The deal was described as...
View ArticleNCR acquires Omaha-based D3 Banking
NCR Corporation has acquired D3 Banking, an Omaha-based financial technology company for an undisclosed amount. NCR announced the news in a July 2 press release. NCR is publicly traded on the NYSE...
View ArticleD3 Banking acquisition hot on the heels of Flywheel’s exit
D3 Banking’s acquisition by NCR positions the large banking financial technology leader to capitalize on new market opportunities, according to Mark Vipond, President and CEO of Omaha-based D3 Banking,...
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Tractor Zoom raises new round
Tractor Zoom raised 1.5 million in the beginning of July in a round led by investors Inova Memphis and Ag Startup Engine, according to SEC filings this month. Kyle McMahon, Tractor Zoom founder and...
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Funding news from last week
Last week was an active week in the Silicon Prairie with a variety of companies receiving outside investment. Some noteworthy companies continue to raise money: • Understory, the Madison based weather...
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Re-shaping our region for the 21st Century
By Matt Cordio and Kathleen Gallagher We’ve got a lot going for us here in the middle. We are one of the world’s agricultural powerhouses. We’ve got the country’s highest concentration of...
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Health system in Midwest launches $100 million venture fund
UnityPoint Health, based in West Des Moines, Iowa, has launched a $100 million venture fund to invest in early-stage growth companies in digital health, medical devices, and therapeutic and...
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Puma Scan builds quick momentum in Des Moines
Puma Scan helps technologists scan a variety of software development code to identify irregularities. The company started in Des Moines in 2017 as an open source product targeted at software...
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BanQu, a blockchain as a service company in Minnesota, begins fundraising in...
BanQu, a blockchain as a service company, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, filed paperwork with the SEC this week. The company provides technology that enables supply chain transparency, traceability,...
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MākuSafe scaling up production of innovative wearable tech and poised for...
MākuSafe was Co-Founded in 2016 by CEO Gabriel Glynn, an Iowa native. Gabe grew up around manufacturing; his dad was a machinist and is currently a safety manager. Just 4 years ago while touring a...
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Ensmarten Saturday: How does early stage valuation work?
In our work with entrepreneurs, there are a number of perception gaps. One of the biggest is that early stage valuation is a science. Many believe that if they just knew the parameters then they could...
View ArticleiotaMotion Completes $2.52 Million Round
Last week, Iowa City based iotaMotion CEO and co-founder, Chris Kaufmann, MD, announced that the company had completed its usability testing and raised $2.52 million in funding to help the company...
View ArticleAnother Raise for Inprentus
Inprentus, a Champaign, Illinois, company filed paperwork with the SEC on Friday that it had completed a raise of more than $1 million. Inprentus makes blazed diffraction gratings used at synchrotrons...
View ArticleTwo Wisconsin Companies Announce Raise of More Than $1 Million
OnLume and Simply Solutions announced last week that they had raised over one million dollars in venture funding. Madison based medical device company, OnLume, filed paperwork with the SEC that they...
View ArticleEnsmarten Saturday: Liquidation Preferences – What Are They and How Do They...
If you are an entrepreneur who is raising money and do not know what a liquidation preference is, allow Ensmarten Saturday to enlighten you. You are not alone. One of my many surprises as a venture...
View ArticleNon-Dilutive Capital Grants Help Lincoln Startups
LaunchLNK is a local program in Lincoln, Nebraska that helps startups find early stage, non-dilutive capital. LaunchLNK, and their partners provide $25,000 as a grant to early stage companies that...
View ArticleGross-Wen Technologies Continues Strong 2019
Ames, Iowa based Gross-Wen Technologies (“GWT”) filed paperwork with the SEC on Tuesday that it had raised an additional $1.25 million dollars. The company which provides revolving algal biofilm...
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