Fintech startup Parker files for bankruptcy

金融科技初创公司 Parker 申请破产

Parker, a well-funded startup offering corporate credit cards and banking services for e-commerce businesses, has filed for bankruptcy and is widely reported to have shut down. The startup was part of Y Combinator’s winter 2019 cohort, and its Series A was led by Valar Ventures. Parker 是一家资金雄厚的初创公司，主要为电子商务企业提供企业信用卡和银行服务。目前该公司已申请破产，并有广泛报道称其已经倒闭。该初创公司曾入选 Y Combinator 2019 年冬季孵化项目，其 A 轮融资由 Valar Ventures 领投。

Parker came out of stealth in 2023, touting a corporate credit that it said was designed for use by e-commerce companies. At the time, co-founder and CEO Yacine Sibous said the startup’s “secret sauce” was an underwriting process that could properly assess e-commerce cash flows. “We imagined building better financial products for e-commerce founders with the mission of increasing the number of financially independent people,” Sibous told TechCrunch. Parker 于 2023 年结束隐身状态，并推出了一款号称专为电商公司设计的企业信用卡。当时，联合创始人兼首席执行官 Yacine Sibous 表示，该公司的“秘诀”在于一套能够准确评估电商现金流的承销流程。Sibous 在接受 TechCrunch 采访时说：“我们的愿景是为电商创始人打造更好的金融产品，使命是增加财务独立人士的数量。”

Parker’s website is still up and doesn’t mention any shutdown. Instead, a banner at the top boasts that the company has raised more than $200 million in total funding, including a $125 million lending arrangement. However, multiple social media posts state that Parker’s credit card partner Patriot Bank sent a message to customers this week confirming the shutdown. Parker’s competitors seemed to jump on the news with their own posts seeking to lure over the startup’s former customers. Parker 的网站目前仍可访问，且未提及任何倒闭信息。相反，网站顶部的横幅广告仍宣称公司已筹集超过 2 亿美元的总资金，其中包括 1.25 亿美元的贷款安排。然而，多篇社交媒体帖子指出，Parker 的信用卡合作伙伴 Patriot Bank 本周已向客户发送消息，确认了公司倒闭的消息。Parker 的竞争对手似乎也迅速跟进，纷纷发帖试图吸引该初创公司的前客户。

And Parker’s troubles seem to be confirmed in its May 7 filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection. The filing states that the company has between $50 million and $100 million in assets, with liabilities in the same range. It also states that Parker has between 100 and 199 creditors. Parker 的困境似乎已在其 5 月 7 日提交的第 7 章破产保护申请中得到证实。文件显示，该公司拥有 5000 万至 1 亿美元的资产，负债也在同一范围内。文件还显示，Parker 拥有 100 到 199 名债权人。

Fintech consultant Jason Mikula recently claimed that Parker had been in negotiations for a potential acquisition, with the failure of those talks ultimately leading to the startup’s abrupt shutdown. Mirkula added that this “has left small business customers in a tough spot” and also raised “questions about [banking partner] Piermont’s and Patriot’s oversight of the program.” 金融科技顾问 Jason Mikula 最近声称，Parker 此前一直在就潜在的收购进行谈判，但谈判的失败最终导致了该初创公司的突然倒闭。Mikula 补充说，这“让小企业客户陷入了困境”，同时也引发了“对（银行合作伙伴）Piermont 和 Patriot 在该项目监管方面的质疑”。

Parker did not immediately respond to an email from TechCrunch. The company’s CEO Sibous has not explicitly acknowledged the shutdown or bankruptcy on LinkedIn, and in a recent post, he repeated the $200 million funding figure, adding that the company had reached $65 million in revenue. But he also said that if he started over, he’d do some things differently, such as: “Avoid over-hiring, reactive decisions, and doomsayers.” Parker 没有立即回复 TechCrunch 的置评邮件。该公司首席执行官 Sibous 尚未在 LinkedIn 上明确承认倒闭或破产。在最近的一篇帖子中，他重申了 2 亿美元的融资额，并补充称公司已实现 6500 万美元的营收。但他同时也表示，如果重来一次，他会做出一些改变，例如：“避免过度招聘、被动决策以及悲观主义者。”