Helcim Secures $53M Series C Funding to Scale SMB Payment Platform Across North America

Calgary-based payments firm Helcim has secured $53 million CAD in Series C funding as it moves to capture a significant portion of the North American small business market. The round signals a major valuation jump for the processor, highlighting a growing demand for transparent, vertically integrated payment alternatives as traditional banks retreat from merchant services.

What was announced

Helcim closed a $53 million CAD Series C financing round led by the Growth Venture Fund of the Business Development Bank (BDC). The investment includes new participation from Curql Collective - a strategic fund representing over 160 North American credit unions - and Gold House Ventures. Existing investors Headline, Aquiline, Information Venture Partners, Vesey Ventures, Clocktower Ventures, and Alberta Accelerate Fund also joined the round.

This latest injection brings Helcim’s total equity raised to $100 million since its 2022 Series A. The company’s valuation has surged to $250 million, a significant increase from the $97 million valuation recorded during its Series B in 2024. The funding follows a period of rapid scaling; Helcim recently crossed $150 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) and is currently on track to process nearly $10 billion in annual payment volume. The company now supports more than 22,000 active merchants across Canada and the U.S. with a team of 200 employees.

A key driver of this growth is the January 2026 launch of an AI-powered Payment Extension. This tool allows merchants to self-integrate Helcim’s processing into their existing software stacks, bypassing the restrictive "lock-in" models common in embedded payments. Helcim plans to use the new capital to expand its platform into additional financial services and deepen partnerships with regional banks and credit unions.

"There's a real void in the market right now - merchants are coming to Helcim faster than ever, looking for a modern alternative. This round lets us act on this at scale: expanding our platform, growing our team, and moving up-market so no business outgrows what we can offer them."

Nic Beique, Helcim's Founder and CEO.

The companies involved

Helcim is a Calgary-based payments company that distinguishes itself by operating its own end-to-end infrastructure. Unlike many competitors that resell third-party technology, Helcim built its platform from the ground up in 2020, allowing it to offer volume-based interchange-plus pricing. This structure is designed to provide small and mid-sized businesses with more transparent fee schedules than traditional flat-rate providers.

The funding round was led by BDC Capital, the investment arm of the Business Development Bank of Canada. BDC Capital provides a wide range of specialized financing and venture capital to Canadian firms. Curql Collective, a new investor in this round, operates as a bridge between fintech innovation and the credit union industry, backed by a massive network of North American institutions. Other key backers include Information Venture Partners, a Toronto-based firm focused on early-stage B2B fintech, and Vesey Ventures, which specializes in the intersection of traditional financial services and technology. Headline and Clocktower Ventures also represent significant venture capital presence in the global fintech and payments ecosystem.

What this means

Helcim’s valuation jump is a direct result of the shifting landscape in Canadian banking. As major incumbents divest from merchant services, a "service vacuum" has emerged. Helcim is positioning itself not just as a processor, but as a primary financial partner for SMEs that have been sidelined by larger institutions. By building its own stack, Helcim avoids the margin compression that plagues resellers, giving it the flexibility to compete on price while moving up-market into the mid-market segment.

The involvement of Curql Collective is particularly telling. It suggests that credit unions are increasingly desperate for modern payment hubs to retain their small business members. If Helcim can successfully integrate its AI-powered tools into these regional networks, it could become the de facto infrastructure for non-bank commercial lending and payments in North America. The next phase to watch is Helcim's expansion into "additional financial services," which likely points toward lending or treasury management.