Airtel and Axis Bank To Enhance Digital Ecosystem in India
Fintech Futures, Posted March 6, 2022
Bharti Airtel, India’s communications solutions provider, and Axis Bank, India’s third-largest private sector bank, announced a partnership “to strengthen the growth of India’s digital ecosystem through a range of financial solutions.”
In a bid to accelerate adoption of digital payments in India, over the coming months, Airtel and Axis Bank will “bring to market a range of innovative financial offerings and digital services exclusively for Airtel’s 340 million plus customers.”
#Digital Bank
Indian Fintech CredAvenue Secures $137M from Insight Partners, B Capital, Others
Tech Crunch, Posted March 6, 2022
Indian Fintech firm CredAvenue has achieved Unicorn status (valued at $1 billion+) after raising funds from Insight Partners, B Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, and others.
The Chennai-headquartered Fintech is now valued at $1.3 billion.
The Fintech company plans to use the proceeds to further expand its business operations across India as well as international markets. This will be done by acquiring various companies so that CredAvenue can add more services and integrate additional products.
#Fintech
Fintech Set to be the Most Active Sector in India for Venture Debt This Year: Report
Crowdfund insider, Posted March 8, 2022
India’s Venture Debt Report 2022, released by Stride Ventures, reveals that the year 2021 saw 111 firms acquiring funds via debt, of which 91 companies were categorized as unique.
Bengaluru reportedly saw the highest number of venture debt deals, making up 40% of all such transactions, and then followed by Delhi NCR at 27% and Mumbai at 18%.
#Fintech
Singapore’s Digital Banking Platform IN Financial Technology Acquires MyCash
Fintech Malayasia, Posted March 24, 2022
Singapore-based virtual bank IN Financial Technology (INFT) has now acquired MyCash Money, which is a money transfer company that is mainly focused on migrant workers (for an undisclosed amount).
INFT is an end-to-end, employer-to-employee Fintech platform that supports MSMEs operating in Asian markets in order to streamline their business banking processes from traditional to all-digital services.
This reportedly includes online business accounts, virtual debit cards, spend management tools and business cash line.
#Neobank
Europe
Nordic neobank Lunar snags €70 million in fresh funding
Finextra, Posted March 11, 2022
Daniosh neobank Lunar has raised €70 million in fresh capital as it prepares for the roll out of new crypto trading and B2B payments products.
The new funding round is a top up to the Nordic challenger’s €210 million Series D in July last year. The firm has now raised €345 million in total and now commands a valuation just shy of €2 billion.
Lunar now counts 500,00 customers and €1.3 billion in deposits across Denmark, Sweden and Norway, with plans to move into Finland afoot.
#Neobank
Lendable raises £210 million at £3.5 billion valuation
Finextra, Posted March 7, 2022
London-based consumer finance platform Lendable has bagged £210 million in a funding round led by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board.
Founded in 2014, Lendable’s proprietary technology platform connects global institutional investors with borrowers across all major products lines, including loans, credit cards, and car finance.
Consumer credit volumes in the UK and US alone are significant, with an addressable market of close to $3 trillion. The new investment from TIP will support Lendable in developing new products and drive the company’s ambitions for international growth.
#Fintech
State Street to enter digital custody business with Copper.co
Businesswire, Posted March 8, 2022
State Street, one of the world’s largest custodians, is to enter the digital asset safekeeping business using technology from London startup Copper.co.
The Wall Street giant says it intends to launch an institutional-grade digital custody offering where clients can store and settle their digital assets within a secure environment operated by State Street.
#Fintech
Italian banking platform for micro entrepreneurs launches
Finextra, Posted March 8, 2022
A new digital banking platform is launching in Italy to help micro enterprises and the self-employed with their administration and financial management.
Launching this month, Tot will initially offer a bank account and payment card, followed by the gradual addition of digital planning and monitoring tools that will help small companies keep track of their expenditure, accounts payable, earnings and provisions for tax purposes.
#Digital banking
USA
Mastercard invests in Zeta
Finextra, Posted March 7, 2022
Mastercard has joined a $30 million funding round in credit card processing vendor Zeta and signed a five-year go-to-market deal with the startup.
Zeta’s Tachyon Credit platform offers functionality that spans the entire credit card programme lifecycle including issuance, core, payments, BNPL loans, fraud and risk, and rewards. Issuers can tap into a suite of APIs to build new revenue lines by providing a complete credit Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) and embeddable banking platform to co-brands, fintechs, and affinity partners.
#Mastercard
Curve lands in the US
Finextra, Posted March 11, 2022
London-based fintech Curve has launched in the US, offering Americans the option to combine all their debit, credit and loyalty cards into one.
Launched in 2018, Curve is now live in 31 markets and has more than three million customers that can not only access all of their cards through one smart card, but also earn personalised cashback and stack rewards, go back in time to move past payments from one card to another, and access leading FX rates without fees.
#Fintech
Capchase raises $80m
Finextra, Posted March 11, 2022
Capchase, a US startup that helps company founders access non-dilutive capital, has raised $80 million in a Series B funding round led by 01 Advisors.
QED, Caffeinated Capital, Bling Capital, ScifiVC, Thomvest Ventures, Tusk Venture Partners, Invesco and Gaingels participated in the round.
Founded in 2020, Capchase helps companies unlock cash that is otherwise tied up in future predictable revenue payments. Since launch, it has worked with nearly 3000 companies across the US and Europe, making over $2 billion in funding available to founders and extending runways by over 5,000 months.
#Capchase
LatAm
Big names back Brazilian bill-splitting startup
Finextra, Posted March 9, 2022
Biz Stone and Tom Blomfield have joined a $3 million seed funding round for Noh, a Brazilian bill-splitting app led by one of the country’s few female fintech founders.
Kindred Ventures led the round for Noh, which is looking to tap into the $864 billion shared expenses sector in Latin America.
Noh’s first product, an app that functions as a shared digital wallet, will launch in mid-March. Users will be able to make payments by bank slip, Brazil’s Pix system, or a prepaid Visa card issued by the startup.
After registering and opening an account, users can create groups that can be fixed, for people who share recurring expenses, or temporary, for one-off purchases like a vacation trip or birthday lunch with friends.
#Start up
Brazil central bank picks digital real challenge partners
Finextra, Posted March 4, 2022
Brazil’s central bank has picked project proposals from nine firms – including Santander, Visa and Bitcoin Market – for a challenge investigating the development of a CBDC.
Late last year, the central bank outlined plans to carry out a CBDC pilot in 2022, with a final version of a digital real ready by 2024.
To help with this, it invited applicants for the ‘Lift Challenge Real Digital’, investigating various aspects of the project.
#Central bank
