THE NEWS WRAP: Automated copy startup Persado raises $US21 million

Persado, a startup developing software that replaces copywriters with computers, has raised $US21 million ($A26m), the Wall Street Journal reports.

The Series B round was led by StarVest Partners and includes Citi Ventures and American Express Ventures, along with current investor Bain Capital Ventures.

The startup, which was founded in New York in 2012, specialises in creating automated messages that try to persuade people to take action, the types of messages that traditionally have been written by copywriters.

Braintree opens up bitcoin to its merchants

Braintree has announced the broad availability of its bitcoin payments product, Pando Daily reports.

In September, Braintree announced it would be partnering with Coinbase to facilitate bitcoin payments. However, initially it limited the use of the service to digital goods transactions, like media, software and in-app purchases.

Today’s update means that any merchant that uses Braintree for credit card payments can accept bitcoin.

Button raises $12 million

New York City-based Button has raised $12 million in Series A investment less than a year after launch, Re/code reports.

The startup is working with deep linking technology that allows apps to talk to each other so users can tap from inside one app to access a specific point inside another app.

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