Pipe Raises $16 Million | Bolt Cuts 30% | COVID Fraud Indictment

Fintech company Pipe just closed a $16 million funding round, and it's doubling down on a simple idea: small businesses should be able to access capital directly inside the software they're already using.

The round was led by Fin Capital and MaC Venture Capital, with MaC's General Managing Partner Marlon Nichols joining Pipe's board of directors. This marks Pipe's first equity raise since relaunching its core embedded financing product, Pipe Capital, in 2024.

Strong Momentum Behind the Raise

The funding comes on the back of serious growth. Pipe tripled its revenue in 2025, and in Q1 of 2026 nearly doubled revenue year-over-year. Over the past two years, Pipe Capital has originated more than 15,000 advances to small businesses globally, totaling more than $300 million.

The company also recently extended its capital warehouse facility with Victory Park Capital for two years, increasing the limit to $225 million, giving it deep liquidity to keep lending as it scales.

What Pipe Does

Pipe helps small businesses access funding through the software they already use. Rather than sending business owners to a bank branch or a standalone loan application, Pipe embeds financing options directly into the platforms businesses rely on daily. Partners include AI-powered point of sale provider Epos Now, as well as Boulevard, GoCardless, Housecall Pro, Live Payments, and Uber.

Cumulatively, 20% of Pipe's capital originations now come from outside the United States, and the company expects that international share to keep growing.

What's Next

The new capital will support strategic growth, including expanding partnerships, scaling originations, and advancing toward profitability in 2026.

As CEO Claurelle Rakipovic put it: "Pipe has built the infrastructure that small business financing should have had from the start, AI-native, partner-embedded, and easily accessible for the tens of thousands of businesses that have been told for too long they're not worthy of capital."

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Bolt Drops the Hammer Again: 30% of Workforce Let Go in AI Pivot

If there were a punch card for corporate restructuring, Bolt would have easily earned a free sandwich by now.

This week, the high-profile fintech "super app" confirmed it is cutting approximately 30% of its current workforce. However, because the company has already drastically trimmed its ranks over the last few years, this marks its fourth round of staff reductions since 202, and that 30% actually translates to fewer than 40 people losing their jobs.

The Quick Facts:

• The Cut: Roughly 30% of the remaining staff (under 40 employees).

• The Reason: Artificial Intelligence. Founder and returning CEO Ryan Breslow hit the internal Slack channel to tell the team that operating in 2026 requires a much leaner, more "AI-centric" organization to keep up with the competition.

• The Context: Bolt has been on a wild valuation rollercoaster. After raising $355 million in 2022 at a massive $11 billion valuation, reports indicate that recent secondary stock sales have pegged the company’s value closer to the $300 million mark.

The strategy going forward is simple: trim the human headcount, crank up the algorithms, and try to leverage AI to do the heavy lifting. Bolt is officially running lean and mean.

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Buffalo Man Faces 10 Federal Charges in $140K COVID Relief Fraud Scheme

A 24-year-old Buffalo man has been indicted on ten federal counts for allegedly running a years-long scheme to steal COVID-19 relief funds, and then trying to cover his tracks.

The Charges

U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced that a federal grand jury returned a 10-count indictment charging Brandon Millender with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and concealment money laundering, charges that carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and fines up to $500,000.

How the Scheme Worked

Between April 2021 and August 2025, Millender allegedly conspired with others to defraud financial institutions and the Small Business Administration by submitting fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loan applications containing information about non-existent businesses, including fabricated payroll expenses and revenue.

To carry it out, he created email addresses, bank accounts, credit card accounts, and CashApp accounts using the names, Social Security numbers, and other personal information of real individuals, without their knowledge or permission. Affected institutions included KeyBank, Harvest Small Business Finance, Benworth Capital Partners, CashApp/Block, and the Small Business Administration.

An Attempted Cover-Up

The alleged fraud didn't stop at stolen funds. Between June and August 2025, Millender allegedly sought to obstruct the federal investigation by attempting to influence an individual to provide false and misleading information to federal investigators.

Where Things Stand

In total, the scheme involved over $140,000 in PPP loan proceeds. Millender was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer and released on conditions. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York, with the investigation led by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation Division.

As always, an indictment is an accusation; Millender is presumed innocent until proven guilty.