Andreessen Horowitz-Backed Tally Shuts Down In 'Difficult And Sad' End After Funding Shortfall

Andreessen Horowitz-backed fintech startup Tally, once a beacon of hope for consumers drowning in credit card debt, has officially shut its doors. Despite raising a hefty $172 million over its nine-year run, the San Francisco-based company has hit the brakes, unable to secure the funding needed to keep its operations alive.

The Pivot That Never Took Off

Founded in 2015, Tally's mission was simple yet ambitious: help consumers manage and pay off high-interest credit card debt through a lower-interest loan. With a model designed to bring relief to financially stretched consumers, the startup gained significant traction, attracting the attention of heavyweight investors like Andreessen Horowitz, who led its $50 million Series C round in 2019. The company's potential seemed limitless, with its last valuation clocking in at $855 million.

However, the journey took a detour in April when Tally announced it was sunsetting its consumer app to pivot towards a B2B model. The shift promised a partnership with a “large publicly-traded consumer company” that would leverage Tally’s technology for its 50 million users. Yet, the grand reveal never materialized, leaving the market and its 183 employees in a state of uncertainty.

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No Cash, No Tally

The final blow came on Monday when CEO Jason Brown broke the news on LinkedIn. In a somber post, Brown expressed the “difficult and sad” reality that Tally was unable to secure the necessary capital to continue. Despite exploring all avenues, the startup that once held so much promise was out of options.

For Andreessen Horowitz, a firm known for backing giants like Airbnb Inc ABNB, Coinbase Global Inc COIN, Meta Platforms Inc‘s META Facebook and Instagram and Microsoft Corp‘s MSFT Skype and GitHub. The closure of Tally is a rare miss in an otherwise stellar portfolio.

It’s a sobering reminder that even the most promising ventures, backed by substantial resources, can find themselves on the losing side of the funding equation.

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