Indian start-up Zaggle registers new fintech ZikZuk to offer SMEs credit
In the next two years, ZikZuk intends to take itself across the globe.
Business-to-Business/B2B
Brex raising at $8bn valuation following banking licence application
Tiger Global Management is reportedly backing the round.
Orenda plans BaaS shake-up with heavyweight banking execs at helm
Orenda says it’s as much as an “eighth” of the price of its competitors.
Supporting business leaders during COVID-19
Pressures have taken a toll on businesses and the mental health of their leaders.
Kalifa report says UK’s fintech crown at risk from waiting competitors
To mitigate the risks posed to UK fintechs, the report lists a number of recommendations.
India’s central bank to stop digital platforms from storing card details
It will affect players as large as Amazon, Google, and Flipkart.
Subway standardises its payments over all 42,500 restaurants globally
Subway claims it is one of the first in North America to standardise payments on this scale.
US corporate card provider Brex applies for banking licence in Utah
SVB’s former chief digital officer Bruce Wallace will head up Brex Bank.
AI fintech Earnix becomes Israel’s latest unicorn with “pre-IPO” round
The fintech’s $75 million raise marks its first funding round since 2017.
Russian challenger Tinkoff launches “one-stop shop” checkout product
“Some of our services can be activated within a day.”
Indian challenger Open buys Optobizz, banks another 800,000 SMEs
By the end of this year, Open wants to turn 1.8m into 5m customers.
UK Black-owned challenger Atmen to launch in March
The start-up is now looking to raise £5 million from institutional investors.
B2B financial software marketplaces: the bridge to market transformation
B2B financial software marketplaces connect players across the breadth of an industry.
Newly licensed UK bank Cashplus is raising £50m
It intends to raise the funds from growth investment firms.
Stripe valuation rises to $115bn according to investors
The $115 billion figure is more than threefold its $36 billion valuation.
Low-code fintech OutSystems bags $9.5bn valuation in $150m raise
It claims to tackle the shortage of developers across 22 industries.
Norwegian web browser Opera launches fintech “Dify” in beta
Opera made two fintech-focused acquisitions last year.
Marqeta files for IPO with SEC targeting $10bn valuation
The fintech’s current valuation sits at $4.3 billion.
Dutch unicorn Mollie expands to UK for post-Brexit opportunities
Molllie says it wants to help merchants with European growth post-Brexit.
Yolt Technology Services lands UK PSD2 licence
The fintech will no longer rely on ING’s licence.
UK government unveils digital identity plans based on wallet tech
The government likens a digital identity wallet to a bank card authorising a payment.
HSBC France sale to land this month, AnaCap goes back up against Cerberus
The French unit moved to the shelf back in September 2019.
Neobank hopeful 11Onze to offer Catalans a non-Spanish alternative
The start-up intends to be a true representation of the country’s 7.6m population.
Aussie challenger Cape bags ex-Funding Circle CRO Rahul Pakrashi
Pakrashi says his wants “to get back” to his roots at Cape.
UK challenger OakNorth faces £97m in defaults from ten borrowers
All but two are down to property development loans gone bad.
Introducing “it’s a matter of comms”
Welcome to #itsamatterofcomms! A new bi-weekly vlog!
Fintech funding deals globally 8-14 February 2021
Featuring Fraction, BharatPe, Agibank, Monzo, and Coinsquare.
Swiss start-up Valour recruits former HSBC exec Diana Biggs as CEO
Biggs began working in blockchain back in May 2015.
BNY Mellon to finance crytpo and signs Google Cloud deal
The bank cites “growing client demand for digital assets”.
US core banking vendor Nymbus lands $53m top-up led by existing backer
Nymbus is gearing up to launch “Nymbus Labs”.
Italian neobank illimity turns €16m loss into €31m profit in a year
The neobank’s best-performing arm, by a long way, was its NPL unit.
Raiffeisen Bank to buy Czech Republic’s consumer lender Equa bank
In 2020, Equa bank’s consolidated net profit fell by 55% to $8.5 million.
Huawei to acquire Xunlian Zhipay for its payments licence
The deal is yet to be officially announced.
Dublin’s ION Group snaps up New York trading tech firm Dash
ION Group has bought a handful of other firms to date.
Nordic API Gateway lands nine new bank partners in Bankdata deal
The deal prequels Nordic API Gateway’s European expansion plans for 2021.
Singapore’s central bank reviews BNPL regulation over debt fears
The MAS wants to ensure regulations are “risk-proportionate”.
NCR acquires digital onboarding start-up Terafina
Terafina marks NCR’s third acquisition this year.
Monzo confirms £50m raise with help of new US backer
Monzo is on the cusp of five million customers.
Bill.com edges closer to profitability, shares up 30%
Between last October and December, revenue was up 38%, to $54 million.
Nigeria’s central bank issues crypto shutdown throwing fintechs into disarray
Nigeria is one of the world’s largest users of virtual currencies.
