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IndustryUpdate

includes a $7.5 million Series A round led by Chailease
and Andre Koo, with participation from Era and existing
investor Inauguration Capital, along with more than $30
million in committed credit facilities. Exponent provides
lending, corporate card and AI-powered accounting
tools tailored for franchise operators. The company
said it serves more than 100 multi-unit operators rep-
resenting over 10,000 locations and has grown revenue
approximately 800 percent year over year since launch-
ing commercially in 2025.

InvoiceCloud joins Boston Tech Week
InvoiceCloud is serving as a founding host of Boston
Tech Week, the city’s inaugural decentralized tech-
nology conference taking place May 26 to 31, 2026.
The event, presented in partnership with Andreessen
ANNOUNCEMENTS Horowitz, will feature hundreds of gatherings focused
on AI, fintech and innovation across Boston neighbor-
AdvicePay celebrates hoods. InvoiceCloud plans to host two sessions at its
10-year anniversary headquarters, including an event examining how sales
teams use AI to improve pipeline generation and cus-
AdvicePay is marking its 10th anniversary after growing tomer engagement, and a discussion with the Mass
from a niche fee-for-service planning payments platform Technology Leadership Council on maintaining trust in
into a broader operational support system for RIAs and the age of agentic AI. The company said the event high-
broker-dealers. Established in 2016 by Michael Kitces lights Boston’s growing influence in AI and fintech.
and Alan Moore, the company was created after the
founders observed existing payment processors declined RESEARCH
to address the compliance and billing complexities tied
to financial planning fees. Since launch, AdvicePay 1 in 3 Americans unable to make
noted, it has processed more than 2 million transactions
and surpassed $1 billion in planning fees. The company full monthly debt payments
has expanded into compliance, engagement workflows New research from Achieve and Money.com found that
and adviser compensation, including through its acqui- rising debt and living costs are straining Americans
sition of AdvisorBOB. financially and emotionally. The research showed that

AEON raises $8M to build agentic 34 percent of U.S. consumers cannot fully pay their
economy settlement layer monthly household debts, while 28 percent describe
their unsecured debt as unmanageable. The study also
AEON, a settlement layer focused on the emerging agen- linked financial stress to anxiety, sleep problems, fatigue
tic economy, raised $8 million in pre-seed funding led and other health concerns. Many respondents reported
by YZi Labs with participation from multiple venture cutting spending on necessities or using emergency sav-
and blockchain-focused investors. The company said ings to cope. Despite the challenges, the survey found
the funding will support development of payment infra- that many consumers remain open to strategies such
structure designed for autonomous AI agents and agent- as debt consolidation, and 75 percent said they remain
to-agent transactions. AEON recently launched an AI hopeful their financial situation will improve.
payment product enabling on-chain transactions across Brands without in-app financial
more than 50 million merchants globally and partnered
with BNB Chain to introduce an x402 Facilitator for tools fear losing customers
verifiable on-chain settlement. The company added that New research from Galileo Financial Technologies found
its infrastructure is designed to support AI-native com- that consumer demand for integrated financial services
merce through programmable, trustless and real-time inside brand apps is growing faster than brands are
payment capabilities. delivering them. The 2026 Galileo Integrated Financial
Exponent raises $40M to build financial Services Research Report, based on surveys of more than
2,000 U.S. consumers and 150 senior executives, found
OS for franchise operators that while 80 percent of executives plan to launch inte-
Exponent raised more than $40 million in combined grated financial services, only 20 percent have done so.
equity and credit financing to expand its financial plat- The research also showed that easier payments, rewards
form for multi-location franchise operators. The funding and refunds increasingly influence customer loyalty and
purchasing behavior. Galileo reported that brands are
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