Heirloom raises $8 million from Ripple and Forte to onboard enterprises into web3

Quick Take

  • SaaS startup Heirloom raised $8 million to onboard enterprise firms into the web3 ecosystem using the XRP Ledger, which is the blockchain used by Ripple.
  • Co-founder and CEO Nick Dazé explains why Heirloom is seeing traction with unexpected industries, like academia.

Software-as-a-Service startup Heirloom announced an $8 million raise to create tools that will help enterprise firms enter the web3 ecosystem. Ripple and Forte co-led the investment. 

Heirloom’s software currently enables enterprise firms to mint and track a variety of web3 assets, such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and verifiable credentials (VCs), according to a press release. 

Co-founders Nick Dazé and Julian Vergel de Dios have been building out the tools in stealth mode since the summer of 2021. 

The co-founders homed in on enterprise firms following market research. They found that mainstream consumers understood the value of the web3 vision, but that many would only find it practically useful if and when their favourite brands or services entered the ecosystem, Dazé told The Block. On the flip side, they found most enterprises were interested in experimenting with web3 opportunities but after some due diligence found the process to be too costly and time consuming, he added. 

Heirloom’s software is a no-code toolkit enabling enterprise firms to run web3 campaigns at ease. Primary stakeholders for Heirloom will be marketing and product executives, Dazé said. 

To make this possible Heirloom’s technology stack is built on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), which is the open source blockchain used by Ripple.

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“When we looked at those three features: transaction time, stability and energy footprint, that shortlist was really, really short,” Dazé said. “And XRP Ledger was right at the top of that list.” 

The startup plans to announce partnerships for its software tools by the end of the year.  It's seeing traction with surprising industries like academia and the food and beverage sector, Dazé said.

The funding from the raise will be used for building out the product and for hiring to grow what is currently a 12-person team. 

“I want to be very, very clear, we have no interest in spreading ourselves too thin,” Dazé said. “From a product platform standpoint, we are laser focused on building."


© 2023 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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About Author

Kari McMahon is a deals reporter at The Block covering startup fundraises, M&A, FinTech and the VC industry. Prior to joining The Block, Kari covered investing and crypto at Insider and worked as a python software developer for several years. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected]