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Fintech Varo<\/a> has been hoping to raise a $55 million Series G round but has, so far, closed on $29 million to date, according to a recent SEC filing<\/a>.<\/p>\n Varo<\/a> declined to comment on this new round but the fintech has raised just over $1 billion in funding since its 2015 inception, according to PitchBook<\/a>.\u00a0Fintech Business Weekly author Jason Mikula and Crowdfund Insider both reported the news of the raise earlier this week (here<\/a> and here<\/a>).<\/p>\n It wouldn\u2019t be the first time its fundraising didn\u2019t go as hoped for Varo. In 2023, Varo raised a $50 million equity round at a lower valuation ($1.85 billion post-money) than its massive, \u201coversubscribed\u201d $510 million Series E<\/a> in 2021. That 2021 round valued it at $2.5 billion post-money, according to PitchBook.\u00a0<\/p>\n In somewhat of a surprise move, CEO and founder Colin Walsh recently announced he was stepping down, with Gavin Michael replacing him as chief executive<\/a>. (Michael was previously CEO at the publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange Bakkt; his LinkedIn profile<\/a> shows he assumed a leadership role at Varo in November of 2024.)\u00a0<\/p>\n When asked about speculation that Walsh was forced to resign, a company spokesperson denied that was the case, telling TechCrunch: \u201cThis transition is about the next phase of Varo\u2019s evolution.\u201d<\/p>\n The spokesperson pointed to Michael\u2019s experience as Bakkt CEO and previous leadership roles at Citi and JPMorgan Chase as being \u201cexactly what Varo needs for its next chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cColin has known Gavin for 19 years, and after working closely with him these past months, Colin is confident he\u2019s the right leader to build on the company\u2019s foundation that he built for the last decade, while maintaining Varo\u2019s commitment to financial inclusion,\u201d the spokesperson added.<\/p>\n Walsh will remain on Varo\u2019s board and, as a founder, still maintains a significant stake in the company, the spokesperson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Varo was a highly watched fintech in its earlier years because the startup obtained its national bank charter<\/a> in 2020 \u2014 a move that made it the first-ever all-digital nationally chartered U.S. consumer bank. In a 2022 interview<\/a> with TechCrunch, Walsh said that the company was \u201cstill seeing strong customer growth\u201d and still had \u201ca clear path to profitability.\u201d But as of early 2024, the company was not yet profitable<\/a>. And according to a December 2024 call report, it had reported a loss of nearly $65 million.<\/p>\n Want more fintech news in your inbox? Sign up for TechCrunch Fintech\u00a0<\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Want to reach out with a tip? Email me at\u00a0maryann@techcrunch.com<\/a>\u00a0or send me a message on Signal at 408.204.3036. You can also send a note to the whole TechCrunch crew at\u00a0tips@techcrunch.com<\/a>. For more secure communications,\u00a0<\/em>click here to contact us<\/em><\/a>, which includes SecureDrop and links to encrypted messaging apps.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n