Quick take: On September 8, 2025, Rainforest announced a $29M Series B to scale embedded payments for vertical SaaS. The signal is clear: in payments, service is not a cost center—it’s the growth engine. Here’s what that means for Customer Success and how to turn it into revenue.
What’s New (And Why It Matters)
Rainforest raised $29M (Series B) to accelerate product, expand service, and launch in Canada. The company reports 10× revenue growth since its Series A and credits a service‑first model—white‑glove migrations, responsive support, and a clear path to adoption—for the surge.
Why it matters for Customer Success: Embedded payments touch onboarding, support, finance, and renewals. When service quality is high, three things improve fast:
Adoption: Merchants switch sooner and use more payment types (cards, ACH, tap‑to‑phone, APMs).
Margins & Cash: Fewer failed payments and cleaner reconciliation lift basis‑point margin and reduce DSO.
Trust: Faster answers during payouts, disputes, and surcharging keeps exec confidence high ahead of renewals.
For a deeper dive on how funding news translates to CS moves, see my analysis of Motion’s $60M raise—it includes a 30/60/90 plan you can reuse for any platform rollout (read “What It Means For Customer Success” inside the Motion breakdown).
The Customer Success Angle: From “Payments Headaches” To Revenue Stories
Most platforms struggle with the same payment pain:
Clunky onboarding & risk reviews → stalled activations and higher cost‑to‑serve.
Deposit / invoice mismatches → ticket spikes and tense QBRs.
Chargebacks & fraud → revenue loss and burned CSM time.
Rainforest’s roadmap highlights (embeddable chargeback flows, advanced ACH with real‑time bank checks, BIN lookup for compliant surcharging, partial authorizations for HSA/FSA) aim directly at these gaps.
For CS leaders, this is a chance to turn operational fixes into measurable NRR lift.
If billing friction is derailing renewals, use my 30‑60‑90 CS playbook in Rillet $70M: Kill Billing Friction, Protect Renewals—it shows how to partner with Finance, reduce disputes, and tell a hard‑dollar story at QBRs.
What CS Leaders Should Do Next (30/60/90)
Days 0–30: Map Money Friction
Build a one‑page Payments & Billing Scorecard: auth rate, failed‑payment rate, chargeback rate, DSO, dispute cycle time, payout SLA.
Run 10 call‑listens with Support to capture top payment tickets; tag causes you can fix in‑product (e.g., bank verification, surcharge clarity).
Pull three before/after stories to show time‑to‑first‑payment improvements.
Need a ready framework? Grab the Free Customer Success Plan Template to structure owners, SLAs, and next steps in under an hour.
Days 31–60: Ship Adoption Plays
Migration kit: timelines, merchant messaging, “what changes” checklist, and risk expectations.
Product nudges: in‑app explainers for ACH set‑up, surcharging rules, and refund flows.
Compliance guardrails: enable BIN lookup, partial auth for HSA/FSA, and dispute timers; publish SLAs that CS can cite in renewal calls.
Use the Motion $60M playbook as a model for wiring automation into onboarding so usage nudges and risk checks happen without spreadsheet drama.
Days 61–90: Prove ROI And Lock Renewals
Publish a one‑pager with: auth lift (%), chargeback reduction (%), margin bps gained, DSO change, payout SLA, plus 2 merchant quotes.
Tie alerts to revenue: connect “risk events” (failed payouts, chargebacks, bank rejects) to renewal health alerts so CSMs act before QBRs.
Roll wins into a renewal talk‑track with before/after screenshots.
Not sure which alerts to wire first? Start with the 15 Churn Alerts Every CS Leader Needs and map two directly to payments (e.g., refund loops + payment failures).
Metrics That Matter (Keep It Simple)
Time‑to‑First‑Payment (TtFP)
Authorization Rate (by card type; track HSA/FSA separately)
Failed‑Payment Rate (ACH & cards)
Chargeback Rate (and win rate)
Payout SLA (initiation → cash in bank)
DSO (for invoice‑based flows)
Margin (bps) from payments revenue
These are easy to explain to executives and powerful in QBRs. If you need help setting up clean narratives, my Rillet billing‑friction guide includes a ready 30/60/90 and an exec‑ready scorecard layout.
How You Benefit (Reader‑Level Wins)
Fewer fires: Better onboarding + faster risk reviews = fewer tickets.
Cleaner QBRs: You can show hard numbers on cashflow, margin, and support load.
Career upside: Leaders who turn payments into revenue stories win more budget—and promotions.
For hands‑on tools, download the Customer Success Plan Template and save my Motion $60M analysis for automation ideas you can re‑use.
My Takeaway
Service wins. Rainforest’s Series B is a reminder that support, migrations, and clear payments UX drive adoption and revenue.
When CS leads that effort—and measures it—you protect renewals and earn the right to expand.
—Hakan | Founder, The Customer Success Café Weekly Newsletter