Clerq Raises $12M to Capture Share of $3T High-Ticket Payment Market

"The shift from physical to digital payments has created a massive divide in the U.S. economy - while consumers routinely tap their phones to buy coffee, dealerships selling $50,000 vehicles still wait days for wire transfers to clear or watch customers walk out to retrieve cashier's checks. This friction in high-ticket transactions costs merchants billions in lost sales and processing fees annually, with auto dealers alone paying up to 3% on card transactions while facing chargebacks that can wipe out entire profit margins."

"Clerq bridges this gap with an account-to-account payments platform specifically engineered for high-ticket merchants, enabling instant bank transfers that combine the convenience of Venmo with the security and economics required for five and six-figure purchases. The platform has already achieved 6x revenue growth over the past year while processing hundreds of millions of dollars for Fortune 500 retailers and major dealership groups including Friedkin Automotive."

"Who were your investors and how much did you raise? Clerq raised a $12M Series A round led by 645 Ventures, with participation from existing investors FirstMark Capital, Fika Ventures, Commerce Ventures, and Dash Fund. The Series A also included new strategic participation from Friedkin and Yossi Levi, founder of Car Dealership Guy. Clerq has raised $21 million since inception."

Digital payments have advanced for small purchases, but high-ticket transactions remain slow and costly for merchants. Clerq offers an account-to-account payments platform engineered for high-ticket merchants, enabling instant bank transfers combining convenience with the security and economics required for five- and six-figure purchases. Clerq has achieved 6x revenue growth over the past year and processed hundreds of millions of dollars for Fortune 500 retailers and major dealership groups including Friedkin Automotive. Clerq cuts payment fees by 75% versus cards while eliminating days-long ACH settlement delays, reducing chargeback exposure and targeting a share of the $3 trillion annual high-ticket payments market.

Read at Alleywatch