Cata Raises USD 5.3M to Unlock Growth for F&B and Retail Brands Globally

This level of capability was once only available to global brands like Starbucks or McDonald’s, and delivery aggregators like Grab, foodpanda, or Uber Eats. Cata changes this by offering the cutting-edge technology businesses need to deliver advanced digital experiences that are functionally complete and branded as their own.

“The tools needed for F&Bs and retailers to digitise operations have been out of reach for too long. They’re either too costly, too complex, or too fragmented to deliver results and drive ROI,” said David Brunier, Founder & CEO at Cata. “Our goal is not only to be the innovating force enabling merchants to access the most modern technology for their businesses, but also to make large-scale digital operations possible for any operator globally, allowing them to build and own their customers’ online experience directly,” he added.

The oversubscribed funding round was led by global fintech investor Portage and backed by other prominent investors like White Star Capital, 468 Capital, FoodLabs, FJ Labs, Rally Cap, and Iterative. Funding will support continued product development with a focus on AI-driven capabilities and Cata’s global expansion. Germany marks its first new market, where the company is already working with well-known curated brands such as Goldies, Brammibal’s Donuts, The Klub Kitchen, and Saveur de Banh Mi.

A more connected and scalable operating model with Cata

The oversubscribed funding round was led by global fintech investor Portage and backed by other prominent investors like White Star Capital, 468 Capital, FoodLabs, FJ Labs, Rally Cap, and Iterative. Funding will support continued product development with a focus on AI-driven capabilities and Cata’s global expansion. Germany marks its first new market, where the company is already working with well-known curated brands such as Goldies, Brammibal’s Donuts, The Klub Kitchen and Saveur de Banh Mi.

For many businesses, this also means finally owning their customer data and gaining a clearer view of who their customers are, how often they return, and what drives their purchasing behaviour. Cata translates these insights into automated actions such as personalised campaigns, loyalty programmes, and CRM workflows that enable businesses to respond to customer behaviour in real time and drive repeat engagement and retention.

Since launching last year, Cata has partnered with brands such as Guzman y Gomez (GYG), which uses its branded app across all 23 Singapore locations. Since launching with Cata, GYG has more than doubled its sales through digital channels, achieving double-digit app sales growth almost every month. Their work enabled significant growth across all major metrics simultaneously, from tremendous user growth, doubled average monthly frequency, industry-leading retention rates, and ever-growing basket sizes, exemplifying that the right digital product stack can drive meaningful growth for traditional businesses.

As more businesses continue using Cata, the platform continuously improves based on usage. This means each business benefits from more effective features and capabilities over time, without needing to build or optimise them on their own.

Addressing the gap between digital ambition and operational reality

Traditional offline businesses now face pressure to digitise, presenting both an opportunity and a growing gap between where they are and where they have to be to stay competitive. This is evident in F&B, where businesses face rising labour, rent and resource costs in an already competitive environment. In Singapore alone, the Ministry of Trade and Industry found that nearly two-thirds of F&Bs that ceased operations in 2025 had been registered for five years or less, with many never reaching profitability. Many of them tend to optimise labour, rent and product margins first, but often miss out on leveraging technology to improve performance.

“We see a clear shift toward businesses prioritising ownership of their customer relationships and data as a core driver of growth,” said Jake Bodanis, Partner at Portage. “Cata enables businesses to build, manage and scale their digital channels with control, speed and efficiency,” he added.

Since launching last year, Cata has partnered with brands such as Guzman y Gomez (GYG), which uses its branded app across all 23 Singapore locations. Since launching with Cata, GYG has more than With an initial focus on F&B, Cata is addressing a challenge that extends across broad consumer industries. Alongside its geographic expansion into developed markets globally, the company plans to expand into retail and booking as part of its long-term growth strategy to unlock additional digitally underserved sectors. As customer expectations and operating pressures increase, businesses that unify their digital operations and take ownership of their data will be better positioned to improve performance and stay competitive.  its sales through digital channels, achieving double-digit app sales growth almost every month. Their work enabled significant growth across all major metrics simultaneously, from tremendous user growth, doubled average monthly frequency, industry-leading retention rates, and ever-growing basket sizes, exemplifying that the right digital product stack can drive meaningful growth for traditional businesses.

About Cata

Cata is a comprehensive white-label SaaS platform that enables restaurants and retail businesses to launch branded mobile apps with enterprise-level features in days, not months. The company democratises access to digital capabilities previously available only to global giants like McDonald’s and Starbucks, allowing businesses to drive significant revenue growth, own their customer relationships, and streamline operations. Headquartered in Singapore, Cata’s mission is to become the global infrastructure powering the digital storefronts of offline businesses.