Friday Fund Day: Startup News From The Southeast For The Week Of July 14-18, 2025
We're expanding what we put in these Friday round up articles to include additional notes from interesting meetings, conversations, and things we learned this week while out reporting. We hope it helps introduce you to new people who you should have on your radar and other startup updates that we mi
Funding news. Acquisition headlines. People to know and updates to be aware of. We’re ending the week with a look back at what happened over the last few days across the startup scene.
Let's get into it here....
Funding News
* Birmingham, Alabama-based Occupi, a payment platform for renting properties that Hypepotamus highlighted in late 2024, closed a $3.105 million oversubscribed seed round. Fenway Summer and Assurant Ventures co-led the round, according to a press release. Social impact venture capital firms Halcyon Venture Partners and Sorenson Impact Foundation, as well as private investors, joined the round.
Franzy, the franchise-focused marketplace based in Charlotte, North Carolina, raised a $2.2 million seed round from York IE. Hypepotamus covered Franzy as it looked to build the "Zillow for franchises" in 2024.
HOPE Hydration is a water-tech & media startup based in Miami, raised a $20 million Series A, according to Crunchbase.
ETON Solutions, a North Carolina wealth management technology company, raised a $20 million Series C round.
North Carolina based Folio, a hospitality-focused financial operations platform, announced a $14 million Series A, led by Thrive Capital and Construct Capital, with participation from Redseed VC and SciFi VC. More details here.
Atlanta-based Viva Finance, a fintech startup and credit provider for employees, landed a $220 million in new capital. More here.
Acquisition News
* Atlanta-based Cox 2M, which provides Internet of Things (IoT) asset management, was acquired by Cognosos. Details here.
In Other News
- EV company Rivian announced it was opening up its East Coast headquarters in Atlanta, right along the Beltline. ANF has more information.
- Embarc Collective, the startup hub for Florida and the Tampa Bay area, announced a new partnership with the University of South Florida (USF). USF is the first university to join Embarc's University Partnership Program, which is designed to "bridge academic innovation with real-world startup application and workforce development."
- Artemis Immersive, a North Carolina-based 3D animation HealthTech startup, has been nominated for a Netty Award, an awards program celebrating excellence in the modern tech landscape. Details here.
- Rune Aero, an Atlanta-based air transportation startup and a ATDC Accelerate company, secured a NASA SBIR Phase II award.
- Atlanta-based CallRail introduced Voice Assist, which is designed to ensure businesses never miss a lead. Detail here.
New Names & Faces
- Capwave, a fintech platform for startups, announced it is bringing on Charlotte-based Reid Williams as cofounder and CPTO (Chief Product and Technology Officer), according to founder Charlotte Ketellar's LinkedIn. Williams was previously the founder of Cruisen, a sales tool for cruise advisors.
Editor's Note
We're expanding what we put in these Friday round up articles to include additional notes from interesting meetings, conversations, and things we learned this week while out reporting. We hope it helps introduce you to new people who you should have on your radar and other startup updates that we missed in our other articles from the week.
This week the Hypepotamus team met up with Marianne Faloni to learn more about the newly-launched BoldImpact ATL, an organization designed to turn global sustainability goals into local impact. They have some ambitious goals around the World Cup and the Super Bowl, which will bring more eyes and tourists to Atlanta...and they have some events coming up this summer for those interested in learning more about the movement.
Atlanta is going to be home to another hacker house-style place, with the Founder House. The house is currently recruiting for 5 founders to join its private co-living community for early-stage founders. Details here.
We reconnected with Aarti Sahgal, Founder & CEO of Synergies Work Inc., at the Atlanta CEO Council dinner this week. Her team is hosting the Eddie Awards this coming September, which is a night to celebrate “Entrepreneurs Dedicated to Diverse and Inclusive Excellence.”
The HudsonAlpha AgTech Accelerator has a new video out showcasing their recent cohort and their pitches. It is worth a watch for anyone looking at early-stage agriculture-based entrepreneurs. Watch the video here.
We just grabbed our tickets for 3686 in Nashville in September!
