CPO Rising’s Technology Round-Up series continues this week with fresh supply management technology news and updates covering a few recent major announcements. If you are a sourcing, procurement, or spend management solution provider and you are continually innovating the way that procurement and supply chain leaders and practitioners drive value, we’d love to hear from you. Please drop us a note at info at cporising dot com. Thanks, and enjoy!
Altana Closes $200M Series C Funding for Global Value Chain Investment
NEW YORK — Altana, one of the world’s first value chain management systems, announced a $200 million Series C investment led by Thomas Tull’s US Innovative Technology Fund (USIT).
The funding round included participation from March Capital, Generation Investment Management, Salesforce Ventures, Friends and Family Capital, and each of Altana’s key existing investors, including GV (Google Ventures), Activate Capital, Floating Point, and OMERS Ventures. The funding brings Altana’s valuation to $1 billion.
The company stated that over the past three years, governments have introduced thousands of trade restrictions, economic security, procurement, climate, and national security policies that seek to govern global value chains, reversing decades of trade liberalization. Businesses now must know and manage their global value chains, from the sourcing and processing of raw materials, through intermediate production and final assembly, to sale and end use.
According to Evan Smith, CEO and co-founder of Altana, “Great power competition, climate change, and the breakdown of globalization are generational challenges that require a new model for managing global business, including a more assertive role for government,” he said.
“The era of unbridled outsourcing is over. Our platform is uniquely suited to facilitate a new paradigm — organized around trusted global value chains. And this investor group is uniquely suited to accelerate our go-to-market efforts with both governments and enterprises globally. We couldn’t have better partners joining this mission,” Smith added.
Altana is tackling some of the world’s thorniest problems — from building economic security, to mitigating carbon emissions, to protecting critical industries and infrastructure. Its Value Chain Management System unlocks solutions that have never been possible before at scale by bringing applied AI to the infrastructure of global commerce.
Read the full announcement here.
Esker Announces S2P Suite Capabilities Focusing on Sustainable Business Growth
LYON, France & MIDDLETON, Wis. — Esker, a global cloud platform and leader in AI-driven process automation solutions for finance, procurement, and customer service functions, announced new capabilities for its source-to-pay (S2P) suite, incorporating sustainability features that are essential for business growth while complying with the increased environmental, social, and governance (ESG) regulations worldwide.
The company stated that weaving environmental management, social responsibility, and long-term sustainability into S2P processes helps the CFO manage continually evolving regulatory frameworks and mitigate risk, while enhancing visibility, reporting, and collaboration.
According to Catherine Dupuy-Holdich, S2P product manager at Esker, “Embracing sustainability isn’t just a choice, it’s a strategic imperative,” she said. “Companies must weave ESG concerns into every thread of their S2P fabric, since it’s not just about transactions but about transforming the entire supply chain into a force for sustainability.”
New capabilities in Esker’s source-to-pay suite track ESG metrics that align with regulatory frameworks, monitor performance of these indicators, and identify areas for improvement. By facilitating the creation of transparent reports and displaying easy-to-read dashboards, these tools can provide a clear and accurate picture of a company’s environmental impact.
Read the full announcement here.
Procure Analytics Acquires DSSI, Creating a Complete Indirect Goods and Services Spend Solution
ATLANTA, GA — Procure Analytics (PA), a leading data and technology-enabled Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) specializing in indirect spend categories like MRO and packaging, announced the acquisition of Direct Sourcing Solutions, Inc. (DSSI), a managed procurement services provider. This strategic acquisition strengthens Procure Analytics’ position as a full-scope solution for indirect goods and related services.
According to Suja Katarya, CEO of Procure Analytics, “DSSI’s expertise in managed procurement services perfectly complements our existing offerings,” she said. “By combining our data-driven GPO model and Amicus Spend Management with DSSI’s deep procurement knowledge and global resources, we can now provide our members with a truly comprehensive solution to optimize their indirect spend across the board from strategic category management to tail spend sourcing.”
The company stated that DSSI brings over 100 procurement professionals located in Michigan, Kentucky, Mexico, and Europe to the Procure Analytics team. This expanded team strengthens Procure Analytics’ ability to deliver world-class procurement services to its members on a global scale by giving them:
- A hosted punchout catalog offering containing more than 2.5 million items, built-in workflow approval processes, and direct integrations with PA member ERP systems in standard formats;
- Curated catalogs and custom solutions for individual members based on category strategy and individual company or site requirements;
- Expanded category offerings and sourcing capabilities that cover chemicals, gases, welding supplies, repair services, OEM parts, capex, and much more;
- Access to Mexico and 14 European markets with punchout and ERP integration capabilities in multiple languages, as well as dedicated teams stationed in Mexico and Slovakia.
Read the full announcement here.
Zone & Co Acquires Staria Flow, Accelerating the Expansion of AP Automation
NEW YORK and HELSINKI — Zone & Co, a leading provider of ERP-expanding software solutions for the CFO’s office, announced the acquisition of Staria Flow, an innovative AP automation solution, developed by Staria, a Helsinki-based advisory services and solutions firm for growth companies.
The company stated that the acquisition accelerates the capability expansion of Zone’s robust AP automation solution, further cementing its position as the most comprehensive ERP-expanding software provider for companies of all sizes.
According to Thomas Kim, CEO at Zone & Co, “Over the past year, we’ve significantly expanded the breadth and depth of our end-to-end platform, including the addition of GenAI functionality and the acquisitions of Solution 7 & Infinet Cloud,” he said.
“This announcement marks yet another great investment to accelerate our platform’s capabilities, in line with our broader vision that continues to support our organic growth. By combining our capabilities, we create more value, faster for our combined global customer bases. Enabling them to streamline their procure-to-pay process from start to finish with a single login.”
Staria Flow is designed to streamline accounts payable processes and payments, offering users increased efficiency and control over their financial operations, including robust bank connectivity, best-in-class e-invoicing, and precision-driven OCR technology.
Read the full announcement here.
U.S. Bank Introduced Automated, End-to-End Supplier AR Platform
MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Bank announced the introduction of a comprehensive accounts receivable (AR) platform to help suppliers accelerate cash flow, cut costs through automation, and deliver better payment experiences. Created in partnership with Billtrust, U.S. Bank Advanced Receivables brings together the bank’s leading payment and risk management capabilities with Billtrust’s top AR technology to improve the intricate business-to-business (B2B) receivables process.
According to Alberto Casas, head of product for U.S. Bank Global Treasury Management, “Suppliers face many challenges from the time they receive an order until the cash is in their account. This includes numerous manual and paper-based steps, a cumbersome credit process, billing errors and payment delays,” he said.
“With U.S. Bank Advanced Receivables, businesses can transform their entire receivables process to drive down costs and gain real-time visibility into their financial position and cash flow.”
The company stated that the introduction of U.S. Bank Advanced Receivables comes as senior finance leaders increase their focus on operational efficiency. U.S. Bank Advanced Receivables consists of five core solutions to modernize the entire receivables process:
- Invoicing: Provides treasury teams and their buyers flexible and automated invoice delivery options that increase digital payments.
- Payments: After a company’s terms are established, buyers are offered flexible, secure and convenient payment options, including payments via virtual credit cards and ACH.
- Cash Application: With a seamless remittance process, suppliers achieve higher match rates and easier exception handling.
- Collections: Optimizes collections with customized outreach approaches, automation of repetitive tasks and better cash forecasting.
- Credit: The platform is designed for a more efficient way of extending credit to buyers. A customized, secure credit application process eliminates slow manual exchange of information and improves risk management.
U.S. Bank Advanced Receivables builds upon the bank’s complementary digital payment solutions designed to improve efficiencies for corporate finance functions.
Read the full announcement here.
