May 2024: Top five funding rounds of the month
Despite fluctuating market conditions, fintech firms across the globe have landed various levels of funding this month, ranging from significant raises for multinational corporations to seed rounds for start-ups.
Here, we run through five of the top funding stories of the month, featuring Monzo, SumUp, Iwoca, Alpian, Colendi and more.
Monzo secures additional $190m funding from new and existing investors
Monzo secures additional $190m for new growth
The challenger’s latest funding round was supported by UK-based VC firm Hedosophia as a new investor, and closed at a post-money valuation of over $5.2 billion.
CapitalG, the independent growth fund of Google’s parent company Alphabet, also participated in the round, after leading Monzo’s previous $430 million raise in March.
In a statement, TS Anil, CEO of Monzo, claims the additional funding exemplifies “the momentum and strength of our business model”, and hints that “with even more rocket fuel for our ambitions” the “best of Monzo is yet to come”.
The digital challenger plans to leverage its latest funds to satisfy its ongoing growth initiatives. Some of its new products to have hit the market include instant access savings accounts, a retail investment service, cashback rewards, a mortgage tracker and a call status fraud prevention tool, among others.
Iwoca lands £270m debt funding package from Citibank and Barclays
The UK-based SME lender says it will utilise the funding to increase its presence in both domestic and international markets amid the “mounting demand for finance from small businesses”.
The package is comprised of a joint £150 million commitment from Citibank and Insight Investment, which the lender intends to leverage to strike growth in Germany, alongside a further £120 million arrangement with Barclays and US-based Värde Partners, which it will put towards scaling its operations in the UK.
“This investment will enable us to keep up with the high demand from small businesses,” states Christoph Rieche, CEO and co-founder of Iwoca, citing the flexibility and speed of its Flexi-Loan service as a key advantage.
Launched in 2012, Iwoca operates an embedded lending solution that enables small businesses to access loans through third-party platforms and neobanks.
Alpian’s $83m Series C round sees Intesa Sanpaolo’s Fideuram become majority shareholder
Fideuram to become the majority shareholder in Alpian
The Swiss neobank’s latest funding round includes a CHF 40 million (around $44 million) investment led by Intesa Sanpaolo’s private banking and wealth management unit Fideuram and supported by “other existing investors”.
This investment will see Fideuram become a majority shareholder, with Alpian stating that the move will be “executed upon regulatory approvals”.
The challenger has maintained a partnership with the unit since 2022 when it received an initial CHF 19 million (around $20 million) investment. Alpian has since collaborated with the firm to assist with the digitisation of its wealth management services.
Turkey’s Colendi reportedly raises $65m Series B funding led by Citi
The round was led by Citi Ventures and supported by Hedef Holding, Sepil Ventures, Re-Pie Asset Management, Finberg and Turkish retailer Migros Ticaret AS, according to Bloomberg.
Bloomberg reports that the new funding round values the digital banking start-up at $700 million.
CEO Bulent Tekmen, who co-founded Colendi in 2017, tells Bloomberg that the round was “oversubscribed” and that the funds will be put towards “the establishment of Colendi Bank”.
SumUp lands €1.5bn private credit debt deal led by Goldman Sachs
UK fintech SumUp raises €1.5bn
Led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, the round drew support from BlackRock, Crestline Investors, Liquidity Capital, Oaktree Capital Management, Sentinel Dome and Singapore state-owned investment firm Temasek.
AllianceBernstein, Apollo Global Management, Arini, Deutsche Bank AG, Fortress Investment Group, SilverRock Financial Services and Vista Credit Partners also participated as new investors.
According to its latest statement, the London-based SME fintech plans to use its new funding to “refinance existing debt and seize global growth opportunities” and “take advantage of organic and inorganic growth opportunities in the future”.
