The capitalist eco-warrior
Should companies have a purpose beyond profit?
Business-to-Consumer/B2C
US neobank Chime quadruples valuation to $5.8b, raises $500m Series E
Chime soars ahead of Brazilian challenger NuBank’s $400 million record fundraise.
Nationwide invests in charity app Percent to support local British communities
The investment is part of the UK bank’s £50 million venture fund.
CWB Financial Group selects Temenos Infinity for front office ops
The Canadian firm also deploys Temenos T24 in the core.
UK start-up StorkCard launches joint account for parents to manage childcare
Each carer is issued their own card linked to the joint account.
Mexican lendtech start-up Konfio bags $100m investment led by SoftBank
This is the Latin American start-up’s fourth financing round.
Banking app Monese launches “first” cross-border joint account in Europe
Monese wants to offer an alternative to traditional banks’ “red tape”.
China gears up digital yuan with potential digitisation of ID cards ahead of 2020 launch
Now the central bank could be entering phase two of its project.
Singapore’s FinAccel raises $90m to make financing more accessible in Southeast Asia
FinAccel hits $500 million evaluation.
Mike Cagney’s Figure Technologies set to raise $103m in Series C
Figure is also edging into the student financing space.
Canada’s neobank Koho secures extra $18.8m in Series B to diversify investors
The round was led by Drive Capital and National Bank of Canada’s VC arm, NAventures.
French start-up Pixpay raises €3.1m to tap younger banking generation
The funding round was led by seed and growth investor Global Founders Capital.
Reserve Bank anticipates cardless retail landscape in Australia
Merchant fees on card payments in Australia came to AUS $4.3 billion last year.
South Korea to launch open banking system this month
5.51 million open banking accounts have now been registered.
UK start-up Student Finance raises €1.15m to tackle university loans
The firm will cover fees and get a future share of students’ future incomes.
Private bank for YouTubers and high-net-worth youngsters 220 to launch for users next year
There is strict criteria to join the private banking community.
Four fintech & financial inclusion trends for 2020
A gap remains for women, rural residents, & other underserved communities.
Fibank first in Bulgaria to launch PSD2-compliant open banking platform
Fibank customers will be able to move all accounts to My Fibank app.
French fintech Virgil raises €2.1m to co-own homes with first-time buyers
The start-up offers future buyers a capital contribution – not a loan.
Argentine money manager Ualá raises $150m in round led by SoftBank and Tencent
Bloomberg says Ualá is close to a $1 billion valuation.
MoneyLive 2019: Banks have to be humble even if they’re everywhere, says ING exec
Banks tend to over-promise to customers through their adverts, says ING CIO
How paytech helps the gaming world tap the under-banked populations
Paysafecard and G2 Esports reveal how paytech taps underbanked gamers.
Brazil’s Pride Bank says it’s the first LGBTI+ bank in the world
Last year Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, tried to stop LGBTI+ films.
Brazil’s digital bank Neon raises $94m led by General Atlantic
Neon currently has 2 million active users.
Canada’s online brokerage Questrade plans banking licence
A trademark application was also filed back in October for Quest Bank.
Ex-Virgin Money execs’ venture Snoop gets FCA approval
It can now receive financial data from banks as a registered third party.
UK mobile-enabled credit card Tymit raises £4m
Users can bundle abroad purchases into one big repayment.
Swedish neobank Northmill appoints new chief analytics officer from Swedbank
Georges Mansourati spent eleven years at Swedbank.
Why has Lithuania become a key destination for licensing in Europe?
As part of its newly devised strategy, Lithuania put several tools in place.
Monzo’s COO quits to launch a grocery start-up
The departure of Foster-Carter is the latest in a few personnel changes at Monzo.
Japan’s elderly fight back against cashless wave
Tokyo wants to double the ratio of cashless settlements to 40% by 2025.
CSConnect UK 2019: Round-up of key cybersecurity trends
The conference brought together chief information security officers (CISOs).
CSConnect 2019: Lloyds head says tech firms don’t get enough heat for banking app glitches
Lloyds head: “We’re either in this together or we’re not”.
AI savings assistant Plum raises $3 million and launches Android app
This is in addition to its $4.5 million raised this summer.
Facebook Pay launches for US users on Messenger and Facebook
The social media giant says it’s a separate venture to the Libra project.
HSBC and RBS race to launch new digital banking platforms
HSBC Kinetic is in beta testing, RBS’ neobank Bó is to launch this month.
Investment firm Castle Trust to become UK challenger bank
The firm calls it the “natural next step”.
What does AI mean for the banking industry?
It’s beginning to look like the impact of AI on banking will be much more subtle.
Canadian AI search tool Coveo raises $172m to hit unicorn status
Coveo is now “well above” US $1 billion in valuation.
Ecommerce insurtech Cover Genius raises $10m in Series B round
The round will fuel further growth into the UK, the US and Asia.
