Ryan Breslow Seeks Up to $27M Bridge Round to Keep Bolt Moving

Ryan Breslow is raising a bridge round of up to $27 million for Bolt, the checkout processing startup he co-founded in 2014. TechCrunch reports that the company, once valued at $11 billion, later fell to a $300 million valuation. The round is meant to help Bolt move toward a future Series E2 financing while addressing what the company called “legacy obligations.”

The financing is being raised from existing investors as a convertible note, meaning it would convert into equity at a discount in a later round. It also includes a pay-to-play provision, which can penalize investors who decline to participate by reducing their stake. For readers tracking startup financing, the key takeaway is that the terms put pressure on current backers to decide whether they still believe in Bolt’s turnaround.

Breslow is personally committing $5 million to the round. He told TechCrunch he believes Bolt is worth saving and said he expects participation from Bolt’s roughly 100 investors to total at least $15 million, though not all are expected to join. He declined to disclose how much cash Bolt has left, while saying the company is nearing profitability and returning to growth after years of shrinking revenue.

The new raise follows a previously attempted $450 million round at a $14 billion valuation that collapsed after investor pushback and litigation, which was later voluntarily dismissed. Breslow says Bolt’s board and a majority of preferred shareholders have signed off on the new fundraise. He is betting on Bolt’s super app strategy, which integrates financial services, peer-to-peer payments, crypto, and credit cards into one-click checkout, while saying AI has helped the smaller company operate more efficiently.