KCRise Fund
New in KC: BacklotCars funding round lures Windy City tech talent back to KC
Editor’s note: New in KC is an ongoing profile series that highlights newly relocated members of the Kansas City startup community, their reasons for a change of scenery, and what they’ve found so far in KC. Click here to read more New in KC profiles. As Kansas City’s startup scene came online in 2012, Lindsey…
H&R Block’s $2M investment in KCRise Fund: Corporate engagement can’t stop with one check, CEO says
Entrepreneurial energy surrounding such startups as Bungii and PayIt made a $2 million investment in the KCRise Fund an easy choice for Jeff Jones and his team at H&R Block, the high-profile CEO said. “When we think about the different pillars of how we want to give back to the community, taking a stake in…
Global, KC investors charge Grandview-based battery innovator with 8-figure funding round
A Grandview-based leader in battery technology is building a charge for expansion as Spear Power Systems announced this week an eight-figure funding round with world-spanning reach and headline-grabbing international investors. “We are pleased with the quality and synergy of the syndicate,” said Jeff Kostos, president and CEO of Spear. “This investment enables Spear to scale…
C2FO’s advice: Seek global capital, local startup partners (Top VC-Backed event photos)
Leawood-based fintech powerhouse C2FO didn’t raise nearly $300 million in capital by accident, nor without a strategy for selecting the right investors, Kerri Thurston told a crowd of founders, executives and investors gathered to celebrate the startups on Startland’s list of Kansas City’s Top Venture Capital-Backed Companies in 2019. “Focus on folks who can really…
Payit, C2FO making biggest waves, but funding for smaller companies still jumped 81 percent
Editor’s note: The following is the first in a series of analyses of Startland’s list of Kansas City’s Top Venture Capital-Backed Companies. Proof points matter, said John Thomson. “We’re evidence — based on the $100 million-plus growth equity investment we closed this spring — that you can build a world-class tech company in Kansas City,”…





