BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Notarize, the notary public platform allowing any person or business to get their documents legally notarized online, today announced $20 million in a new round of funding, bringing total funding to date to $31 million. The round was led by Boston-based Polaris Partners, with participation by Lennar Corporation, Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, Fifth Wall Ventures, Second Century Ventures, the venture arm of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), and a subsidiary of Realogy Holdings Corp.
“We have hit significant milestones in our first two years in market, including the introduction of our API and Enterprise products, as well as the country’s first platform to bring real estate closings online, Notarize for Mortgage,” said Pat Kinsel, founder and CEO of Notarize. “We’ve delighted customers with our products, maintaining a near perfect 4.9 rating in the App Store. We are proud to have these first-of-their-kind solutions make such impact in several industries, from banking, to construction and real estate.”
“We are extremely encouraged by our partners and customers that have embraced digital notarization to transform their own operations, but know we have barely scratched the surface. Our partners today include the country’s largest wholesale lender, United Wholesale Mortgage, more than one hundred other lenders and title companies, and 3,000 other businesses. This new infusion of funding will allow us to reach new audiences and create even greater efficiencies for our partners’ most important transactions, anytime, anywhere,” said Adam Pase, co-founder and COO of Notarize.
“Notarize has been on a trajectory from day one, influencing legislation and building the technology, relationships and infrastructure to change business processes, while also creating a superior customer experience for an antiquated process,” said Dave Barrett, managing partner at Polaris. “We are compelled by the market size of 1.2 billion notarized transactions a year and the $32 billion they represent. Notarize saw the potential to address the pain points of traditional notary with a secure, streamlined solution that is already saving government, businesses and consumers countless hours and dollars. Very few companies truly transform industries; the impact they stand to have on the real estate industry is particularly exciting.”
Notarize has focused efforts around the real estate industry with Notarize for Mortgage and Notarize for Title Agents, enabling real estate professionals to execute a breadth of closings online, such as buying or selling a home, refinancing a property or executing a lease. Notarize will utilize new funding to integrate with additional lending partners looking to bring their digital offerings to market and offer their customers a convenient, intuitive online experience. Notarize was the first to develop technology to connect all parties — lenders, borrowers, title agents, notaries, GSEs and real estate agents — and greatly reduced the amount of time, paper and human inaccuracy typically involved in transactions. The support of strategic investors will enable Notarize to reach hundreds of thousands of real estate and title agents with a trusted, end-to-end solution.
“Notarize technology will allow Title Resource Group (TRG) to better serve the growing number of customers who prefer online digital solutions,” said Don Casey, president and CEO of TRG, Realogy’s title and closing division. “Moving toward a full digital closing has been one of our strategic objectives for some time, and Notarize has helped tackle the legal and technical barriers to help make the digital real estate transaction a reality.”
“Online notarization is an essential component of the digital home buying experience and we’re pleased to launch an initial program with Notarize this year,” commented Bruce Gross, CEO of Lennar Financial Services. “Notarize’s online closing process aligns with Lennar’s vision of creating a seamless digital transaction. We are excited to provide a new resource that will improve the home buying experience and enable our customers to move into their dream homes faster.”
In addition to building digital notary products, Notarize has been instrumental in updating laws accepting online notarizations and setting technical standards for the broader real estate industry. Today Notarize serves a national audience from Virginia. There are now four additional states that have passed online notarization bills — Indiana, Nevada, Tennessee, and Texas — empowering their notaries to serve customers online in all 50 states, 24x7. Notarize is expanding operations into these states as the laws go into effect this year.
Previous Notarize funding included investments by Polaris Partners, Ludlow Ventures, Fifth Wall, Flight Ventures, and Second Century Ventures.
About Notarize
Notarize is the first notary public platform allowing any person or business to get their documents legally notarized online. Notarize is also the first company to enable an entirely online mortgage closing process. Founded in 2015, Notarize has helped tens of thousands of individuals and businesses (on every continent, except Antarctica) get documents digitally notarized. For more information, visit www.notarize.com.
