BillFloat announced that it has raised $21 million courtesy of Investor Growth Capital, which led the financing round along with previous investors Venrock, First Round Capital, and Baseline Ventures. New investor Bronze Investments also participated in the round.

The new funding comes as the company focuses on its More-Time-to-Pay (MTP) platform, which provides customers with real-time payment flexibility. Consumers can access MTP online, in stores, and through mobile thanks to the company’s partnership with more than 2,500 billers – from cable companies to utilities.

Founded in 2009, BillFloat has raised more than $36 million. On the agenda for 2013 according to CEO and co-founder Ryan Gilbert, are the following:

• Expand team by two-thirds, mostly through new developers
• Drive more than $400 million in loans 
• Raise up to $100 million in debt financing to fund loans

BillFloat offers loans up to $200 to its more than 700,000 registered users. See BillFloat in action at its most recent Finovate demo here.

The New York Times Bucks blog recently featured BillFloat, a startup that provides short-term loans to help consumers pay bills. 

The metrics cited in the article: 

• Registered190,000 users in the past year
• Provided 80,000 loans in past year
• Total originations were nearly $13 million in past year
• Average loan amount was $160
• Works with over 2,500 companies across the U.S.
• Loan default rate around 10%

Consumer costs: 

• Maximum interest rate is 36% APR (not including service fee)
• Service fee ranges from $9 to $18 per loan

To learn more about BillFloat, watch its FinovateSpring 2011 demo.

BillFloat announced earlier this week that it added Florida-based Lee County Electric Cooperative to its list of providers:

“Lee County Electric Cooperative (LCEC) enabled residents in the Southwestern region of Florida to add up to 30 more days to pay their monthly electric bill when finances are tight.  LCEC is the latest electric company that BillFloat has added to its list of nearly 1,000 utility billers across the country.”

LCEC anticipates this service will decrease late payments and improve customer satisfaction.

To learn more about BillFloat, watch its FinovateSpring 2011 demo.