Bonsai raises 21 million dollars to bring commerce to publishers

Commerce solution firm Bonsai has announced it has raised 21 million dollars in Series A funding to expand on its checkout technology across the internet.

Its solution allows publishers and merchants to sell products at the point of discovery through on-site carts that are available via affiliate links on media outlets. In turn, publishers are rewarded for creating buyer intent and capturing first-party data.

The financing comes a year after Bonsai first launched, back in January 2021, during which its solutions have already been adopted by the likes of BuzzFeed and Vox Media Group, as well as digital publishers like Refinery29 and Well+Good. Additionally, it now has integrations with over 350 retailers and brands.

In a release, Andrew Lugsdin, the co-founder of Framework Venture, which led the funding, said: “Bonsai has the strongest merchant integrations and the most number of publisher implementations we’ve seen in the market. This, combined with a deep understanding of publisher affiliate businesses, makes Bonsai a unique and compelling player in the checkout provider landscape.”

Lugsdin continued: “The company has proven that embedded commerce for publishers works and that Bonsai is well on its way to capture the lion’s share of a 15 billion dollar gross merchandise volume (GMV) opportunity.”

The Canada-based company intends to use the funding to build on its existing product capabilities and expand its retail partner supply chain into new categories, for which it currently focuses on fashion and beauty. Furthermore, Bonsai also plans to double the size of its team over the next year and a half.