← State of Embedded Finance 2026

Seat Geek

“Can SeatGeek become the default end-to-end ticketing OS for fans, teams, and venues by owning both primary and secondary inventory while layering flexible payments to increase purchase frequency and order size?”

Founded2009
HQNew York, NY
FoundersJack Groetzinger, Russ D'Souza
Total raised$438M+
Latest roundSeries E, August 2022
Valuation$1B pre-money (2022)
IndustryMarketplace / Two-sided
The story

Founded in 2009 as a ticket search aggregator, SeatGeek expanded from secondary-market price comparison into a full primary and secondary ticketing platform, signing partnerships directly with NFL teams, NBA franchises, and venues. A planned SPAC IPO at $1.35B was canceled in mid-2022 due to market conditions, replaced by a $238M Series E that valued the company at $1B. The embedded finance layer has deepened post-2022, with Affirm BNPL layered onto checkout to lift conversion and average order value, and Stripe anchoring payment processing and seller tax reporting.

Last 12 months
2024-10
Product timeline
2009
Founded as a ticket search engine aggregating secondary market listings for live sports, concerts, and theater.· pivot
2014
Expanded into primary ticketing, partnering directly with teams and venues to sell tickets.· pivot
2022
Partnered with Affirm to offer BNPL installment payments for ticket purchases.· lending
2022
Raised $238M Series E at $1B pre-money valuation after canceling $1.35B SPAC deal with RedBall Acquisition Corp.· pivot
2022
Integrated Stripe for payment processing and 1099-K tax reporting for sellers.· banking
The stack
Payments / PSP
Stripe
Lending
Affirm BNPL installment plansZip pay-in-4 over 6 weeks
Accounting gap: none