Whatnot has raised $545 million in a Series G financing, marking what the company says is the largest funding round ever completed in the live-commerce industry.
In a company blog post, Whatnot said it will use the capital to expand its buyer base through marketing, strengthen trust and safety across its marketplace, launch new product categories and geographic markets, and develop AI-powered tools designed to automate administrative tasks for sellers.
The company’s valuation now sits at $20 billion, following its latest round of funding, which was led by Iconiq, Lightspeed and Avara, CNBC reported.
Robinhood Ventures Fund I (NYSE:RVI) also revealed it invested $30 million of preferred stock in the e-commerce company.
The funding comes as Whatnot reports rapid growth across its platform. The company said sellers had already generated more sales by the midpoint of 2026 than they did during all of 2025, and more than 650,000 people are joining the platform each week.
Over the past year, the number of sellers surpassing $1 million in lifetime sales has more than doubled, while the share of sellers earning a full-time income on the platform has increased by 25%.
The company said the new funding will help it continue investing in the small businesses that power its live-shopping marketplace, with a focus on expanding seller opportunities and simplifying operations through new technology.
Founded in Los Angeles in 2019, Whatnot operates a livestream marketplace where sellers auction and list products in real time. The platform focuses on collectibles and enthusiast categories — including sneakers, sports cards, apparel, vinyl records and luxury goods — and generates revenue by taking a percentage of each transaction.
This latest funding round shows investor confidence in livestream commerce, even as competition intensifies. While the format has become a dominant retail channel in China through platforms such as Taobao Live, adoption in the U.S. is still developing.
At the same time, rivals including TikTok Shop, Amazon Live and eBay Live are investing more heavily in creator-led and livestream shopping, raising the stakes for the sector’s fastest-growing players.
Earlier this year, Whatnot faced allegations tied to an illegal gambling operation and violation of the RICO Act when it allowed sellers to conduct randomized box breaks and randomized repack breaks of collectable items on its platform.
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