Afterpay hires Mastercard exec Khoja to lead North American expansion
Zahir Khoja joins at a time of “rapid market expansion” for Afterpay.
Business-to-Consumer/B2C
Tinkoff picks Anodot AI solution to improve customer experience
Russian neobank seeks to monitor high volumes of data.
Low-code development and BaaS APIs: is this embedded finance’s hockey stick moment?
Low-code development and BaaS could combine to offer all (or parts of) the banking stack as-a-service.
LINE BK is “an elevation for the financial industry”, says CEO
“In today’s digital world, we are stepping towards a so-called singularity era.”
UK payments industry reacts to second SCA deadline extension
Many firms are still unhappy with “the disruption” SCA is presenting.
JS Bank unveils Pakistan’s “first ever” digital cheque service
It allows customers to write and issue a check “instantly”.
ICYMI funding round-up: OptioPay, Payslip, Mamo, Telda, StudentFinance, Algbra
An ‘In Case You Missed It’ (ICYMI) list of funding picks.
Vodacom launches “super app” in South Africa with Alibaba’s help
“We see this super-app as a precursor to M-Pesa’s evolution,” says CEO.
UK regulator fines AmEx over sending four million unsolicited emails
Subscribers “had not provided adequate consent” for a portion of the 50 million messages Amex sent in 2019.
FCA demands UK fintechs clarify non-bank status to customers
Companies have six weeks to write to their customers.
Safaricom mulls M-Pesa partnership with Amazon
A wider partnership with Amazon “is important”, says CEO.
Goldman Sachs plans UK app launch, robo-adviser for 2022
the UK makes up just under a third of Marcus’ $100 billion deposit total globally.
Stripe acquires card verification fintech Bouncer
Both Bouncer’s team and its technology will join Stripe.
ETX acquirer Guru Capital snaps up fintech start-up Oval Money
Launched in 2017, Oval’s mobile app claims more than 100,000 “active” users.
Cedar co-founder: Our biggest competition is status quo and inertia
Cedar acquired San Francisco-based OODA Health for $425 million last week.
Pockit customer forced to send bailiffs in battle for locked funds and rent money
Pockit owes the customer a total of £352.
Video: Top fintech stories this week – 14 May 2021
The FinTech Futures weekly round-up of the industry’s top stories and happenings from across the globe.
Facebook shifts crypto project Diem from Switzerland to the US
Diem says the partnership “is an important step in preparation for a Diem USD pilot”.
OpenWrks, Tully, Payplan and PayLink merge under private equity firm
All four firms span the debt advice, credit risk and collections industries.
US challenger for freelancers Lili lands $55m and passes 200,000 users
Lili wants to be a go-to app for freelancers in the US.
NAB lands approval for 86 400 acquisition despite competition concerns
86 400 bagged its own banking licence back in 2019.
HSBC on track to hire 1,000 wealth managers in Asia before year end
In 2020, the bank’s Asian business reported $12.8 billion in profits.
US start-up EarlyBird re-thinks gifts for kids with investment platform
EarlyBird launched four months ago.
What are the opportunities in open finance?
Envestnet | Yodlee hosted a discussion with FinTech Futures to find out.
UK P2P lender The House Crowd’s collapse a result of governance failings
The House Crowd had struggled to raise capital.
Curve goes crowdfunding five months after $95m Series C
Curve plans to grow its workforce by around 60% this year.
UK fintech Fronted raises £1m with backing from Monzo co-founders
The start-up launched back in February.
TSB COO: It’s easy to throw the rock at us and say ‘this guy crashed in 2018’
“Compare this company to the market,” says TSB’s COO.
Canadian fintech Wealthsimple raises record $610m at $4bn valuation
The fintech started off as a robo-advisor back in 2014.
Digital challenger Arrow pledges to save Americans $5,000 in five years
Digital challenger pledges to save Americans $5,000 in five years.
Lanistar secures FCA approval less than six months after regulatory warning
Lanistar also filed its unaudited accounts last month.
UK neobank hopeful Kroo partners with Bugni Labs for credit engine
Kroo underwent a brand revamp from B-Social last year.
Danish fintech Blocser launches Butterfly card for UK’s gig workers
“Think of us as a ridesharing service, but instead of rides, you sell your work,” says CEO.
Fintech funding deals globally 26 April – 2 May 2021
Featuring Brex, Paxos, Vena, Greenlight, and Current.
French watchdog says banks risk “marginalisation” by Big Tech payment apps
The paper focuses on Big Tech-associated threats to competition.
UK eco-banking challenger Tred lands £1m in Crowdcube raise
Tred partners with Forest Carbon to deliver on its tree planting promise.
São Paulo fintech brokerage Warren lands $55m led by Singapore’s GIC fund
The fintech intends to use the fresh capital to hire more employees.
Virgin Money Australia claims to “break new ground” with loyalty scheme
There is clear disruption already happening in the rewards space.
Caixa Econômica Federal signs 20-year payments deal with Fiserv
New merchants acquiring deal covers transactions online and in-person.
New fintech Wisely Money aims to connect lenders and borrowers
New start-up offers an “all-in-one” app for short term lending.
