FinTech
Digital payments alone could become a $100 trillion industry, according to PwC. And that’s just one component of the global Fintech industry. This channel tackles the lenders and buyers, the obstacles and achievements, and the trends and trend makers leading the ongoing technological evolution in global finance.
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Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) has launched its Crypto app in the European Union (EU), allowing eligible customers to engage in crypto trading with the added incentive of earning Bitcoin rewards. Customers stand to receive up to 1 BTC as a reward when signing up and can earn an additional 1 BTC for each successful referral. The platform claims to be the sole custodial crypto platform in the EU offering customers a percentage of their trading volume back every month, paid in Bitcoin.
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More Stories on FinTech
FinTech: Aussie NeoBank Xinja “Inundated” With Deposits
Australian digital bank Xinja launched Stash, its high interest savings account, on January 15. The remarkably successful product garnered deposits of $30 million within a week, jumped to $100 million in three weeks, and thereafter doubled to $200 million by the end of the month.
Digital Assets: First Digital Trust Flags Off Asia’s First Rapid Settlement and Clearing Network (RSCN)
Instant settlement 24/7. Irrevocable. No counterparty risk. No middlemen. That’s the promise from First Digital Trust’s Rapid Settlement and Clearing Network (RSCN) currently in testing but due to launch in Asia by May 2020.
FinTech: Revolut’s Valuation Surges to $5.5B in Latest $500M ‘D’ Round
Mobile-based neobank and a digital provider of financial services, Revolut just raised $500 million in its ‘D’ round led by TCV. Though it is yet to report a profit, Revolut now ranks as one of the most highly valued startups worldwide.
FinTech: QCash Signs Up Tropical Financial Credit Union For Small Loans
QCash Financial, the US fintech and digital loan marketplace gained a major new client in Tropical Financial Credit Union (TFCU). TFCU has $700 million in assets and 65,000 members. QCash Financial specializes in helping credit unions provide affordable credit to members.
FinTech: JPMorgan Plans Foray Into UK Digital Banking
JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE: JPM), the largest bank in the US and the sixth-largest bank in the world by total assets, is planning to throw its hat in the ring of the highly competitive UK digital banking market. The US banking giant will offer Chase-branded savings and loan products in the UK during this year.
Fintech: Intuit Looks to Buy Credit Karma for About $7 Billion, Says WSJ
Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU) – the firm behind Turbo Tax and QuickBooks – is buying tech portal Credit Karma. The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that the two companies could announce a roughly $7 billion deal today.
FinTech: Ralph Hamers is ING’s Loss, UBS’ Gain
UBS, the world’s biggest wealth manager, has appointed Ralph Hamers to succeed Sergio Ermotti as its chief executive. Hamers is currently CEO of ING, having worked for 29 years at the Dutch bank. Hamers will depart ING as of June 30, join UBS on September 1, 2020, and be designated the Swiss bank’s Group CEO with effect from November 1, 2020.
FinTech: Singapore’s Grab To Get $700M Investment From Mitsubishi UFG-Reports
Grab, one of the largest fintech apps used by millions of users to hail rides, order food and make payments, will receive a $700 million investment from Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (NYSE: MUFG), Japan’s biggest bank.
FinTech: The LendingClub-Radius Bank Deal Could be the Precursor to Many More
The tables have turned. There was a time when banks sought to acquire fintechs for their technology and customer reach. But the acquisition of Radius Bancorp by LendingClub (NYSE: LC) is the first case of a fintech, the largest of its kind in the country and listed, buying into a bank. And the acquisition makes eminent business sense. It could, therefore, set off a new trend in such deals.
FinTech: LendingClub Is The First Fintech To Acquire a Bank
Personal lending platform LendingClub has agreed to acquire FDIC-regulated, Boston-based online bank Radius Bancorp in a cash (75%)-cum-stock (25%) deal worth $185 million. This is the first time that a US fintech has bought up a bank.
FinTech: SoftBank Steps Up LatAm Focus With $1B Investment Plan
SoftBank steps up LatAm focus with $1B investment plan. SoftBank Group has upped the ante in its gambit to profit from financing promising startups in Latin America. Its $5 billion Softbank Innovation Fund, launched in March 2019, plans to spend $1 billion in 2020 to bankroll LatAm ventures in e-commerce, health care, and fintech.
FinTech: Digital Lending Startup BlockFi Raises $30 Million Series B
BlockFi Inc. provides consumer financing services. Its platform offers loans to crypto-asset owners who collateralize the loan with their crypto-assets. On the other hand, its BlockFi Interest Account (BIA) lets depositors put their crypto to work and earn monthly interest payments in the asset-type that deposited with BlockFi. The company raised $30 million in its Series ‘B’ funding round, led by Valar Ventures.
FinTech: EasyEuro, the Platform for SMB Remittances Between China and Europe, Raises $4M
EasyEuro, the Platform for SMB Remittances Between China and Europe, Raises $4M. EasyEuro is fintech that focuses on digital banking and global B2B remittances, especially between Europe and China. This week, it raised $4 million in a pre-A funding round. (BusinessMole)
The round was led by Shanghai-based Ally Capital, with participation from seed investors SwiftPass, Geoswift, Huashan Capital and Unity Assets.
FinTech: N26’s Shock Announcement of its Departure From the U.K.
Challenger bank N26 asks UK customers to shut accounts by April 15.
N26 has announced its departure from the UK on account of Brexit in a blog post.
“With the UK now having left the European Union, we will in due course be unable to operate in the UK with our European banking license,” the Berlin-based N26 said. “As a result, we will be leaving the UK and closing all accounts in the coming months.”
In a press release, N26 blamed the “timings and framework outlined in the Withdrawal Agreement,” but said it fully respected the decision that had been taken.
FinTech: Australian Legislators Pass Law to Enhance ASIC’s Fintech Regulatory Sandbox
Australian Legislators Pass Law to Enhance ASIC’s Fintech Regulatory Sandbox. The amendments passed on Monday extend the scope and timeframe fintechs can spend on the existing ‘sandbox.’ The ‘Treasury Laws Amendment (2018 Measures No. 2) Bill 2019‘ allows more businesses such as fintechs to test a wider range of new financial and credit products and services without a licence from ASIC for up to 24 months.
FinTech: ASX-Listed, Buy Now Pay Later Startup Sezzle Notches Up 1M Customers
The Sezzle payments platform, which enables credit-starved shoppers to “buy now, pay later,” now boasts of one million customers across the United States and Canada.
Launched in 2016, it took Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) all of three years to build a base of 500,000 customers. However, between August 2019 and today, the fintech has doubled that number to a million.
FinTech: Real Estate Analytics Startup HouseCanary Raises $65 Million
Real Estate Analytics Startup HouseCanary Raises $65 Million. The funding will allow HouseCanary to develop the most accurate valuations in the property sector. The round was led by Morpheus Ventures, Alpha Edison, and PSP Growth, and it brought HouseCanary’s aggregate funding to $130 million.
FinTech: InterMex To Use Ripple’s ODL Solution For Cross-Border Transactions
International Money Express, Inc. (NASDAQ: IMXI), a cross-border remittances and payment services company operating primarily in Latin America and the Caribbean, announced its partnership with Ripple, the provider of enterprise blockchain solutions for global payments.
Community Banking: Reich & Tang Reaches Deal with Smiley Technologies
Fintech firm Reich & Tang has reached a deal with Smiley Technologies, a developer and provider of core banking solutions to U.S community banks.
Community banks typically struggle to keep up with their larger competitors on high technology solutions. Smiley Technologies has worked with smaller banks to modernize and streamline core banking applications and services. These services help improve the efficiency of data management.
FinTech: Visa and AirWallex Offer Card-based B2B Payment Solution
Card giant Visa and global fintech leader AirWallex announced a global partnership to offer the Airwallex Borderless Card, a B2B card-based payment solution.
Offered initially only in Australia, the card will be introduced in the UK and Hong Kong later this year.
The companies announced the card at Pause Fest 2020, a leading innovation festival held in Melbourne.
FinTech: Another Consolidation Among Legacy Payment Players; Worldline Buys Ingenico
With new-fangled fintech disruptors snapping at their heels, two legacy payment processor giants in Europe have joined forces in an $8.6 billion mega-deal. French payment company Worldline will acquire domestic rival Ingenico to create the industry’s number four player.
FinTech: Jenfi Has an Innovative Lending Model For SMBs in Southeast Asia
The Jenfi fintech targets small businesses that are underbanked…even in Singapore. It has an Innovative Lending Model For SMBs in Southeast Asia. Jeffrey Liu and Justin Louie, who worked together at the GuavaPass startup, started Jenfi.
FinTechs: UK the Epicenter of Fintech in Europe, says Report
UK the Epicenter of Fintech in Europe, says Report. The fintech sector in the UK raked in a record $4.9 billion in investments during 2019, despite political turmoil from Brexit.
FinTech: Online Insurance Marketplace and Insurtech Policygenius Raises $100 Million
Policygenius, an online marketplace for comparing and buying insurance products, announced the successful raising of $100 million via its Series D funding round.
Jennifer Fitzgerald and Francois de Lame founded Policygenius in 2014. Its digital platform connects consumers with reputed insurance carriers. It is the fastest growing life insurance distributor, having issued $45 billion in life cover till date. Policygenius has grown annualized revenues to $60 million, a 10 times increase since 2017 and the culmination of its C Round Funding.