Kristo Käärmann is swapping out early investors for later-stage specialists in a secondary sale that checks off one of the big drivers for an IPO. Financial tech startup TransferWise announced on Wednesday it raised $292 million in the secondary sale, bringing its funding to $689 million to date. According to CEO Kristo Käärmann, TransferWise was able to pursue an all-secondary round of this size because it’s been profitable for two and a half years. The move, which essentially replaces some early investors on TransferWise’s cap table with later-stage specialist ones like BlackRock, also serves as a reminder of the time constraints that can face early stage tech investors. Käärmann says some early investors didn’t sell at all, or sold only a portion of their shares.

Source: Forbes May 22, 2019 11:00 UTC