AlphaSense lands $150m Series E funding at $2.5bn valuation
The latest fundraise comes months after AlphaSense secured $100m in Series D funding led by Alphabet’s CapitalG.
Financial Services/Finserv
ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Mundi, Revio, Pontoro and more
Our weekly fintech round-up for you to get the latest funding news from around the world.
FinTech Futures: Top five stories of the week – 29 September 2023
Here’s our pick of five of the top news stories from the world of finance and tech this week.
UK fintech funding round-up: Apron, Vega and Mintago
A handy round-up of the recent funding endeavours of fintech companies in the UK.
Wealth management firm Farther more than doubles valuation following $31m Series B
The New York-based firm intends to invest the funding into its wealth management portal and talent.
Codebase partners Network International to launch BaaS solution in the Levant
The partnership intends to accelerate the pace of digital banking transformation throughout the Levant region.
DigitalAPICraft signs as Google Cloud vendor and appoints Marco Tedone as CTO
Marco Tedone, the firm’s new CTO, spent almost 12 years leading API strategy for HSBC.
UK fintech Traydstream lands $21m in Series B funding round
With the new funding, Traydstream plans to double down on its growth and enhance its AI-led platform.
Transforming the user experience: the dawn of dynamic knowledge rendering in financial services
With GenAI in financial services, we’re not just on the cusp of significant change – we’re in the midst of it.
UK mortgage lender Perenna raises $52m on the back of its unrestricted banking licence
The equity investment comes from IAG Silverstripe and the lender’s existing backers.
PortX raises $16.5m in Series B funding round
The investment follows one year after PortX raised $10 million in its Series A funding round.
B2B payments platform Slope secures $30m funding to build out AI tools
Slope plans to leverage new investor Sam Altman’s “extensive” AI experience to scale its platform.
Crypto exchange Kraken lands EU e-money licence, secures VASP registration in Spain
The San Francisco-headquartered exchange plans to leverage the approvals to power its European expansion.
GoTyme Bank taps Nice Actimize to fight financial crime
The bank aims to leverage Nice Actimize’s AI and analytics solutions in order to prevent financial crime and fraud.
Yes Bank appoints Pankaj Sharma as chief strategy and transformation officer
Prashant Kumar, managing director and CEO of Yes Bank, says Sharma’s appointment comes “at an important juncture”.
Small acts of resistance (aka the walk on Sibos)
At Sibos 2023, we went for a walk.
PayTech Awards USA 2023 winners announced
Celebrating exceptional achievements and talent in the US payments industry.
XYB resolves bank-building barriers with GenAI through Google Cloud partnership
XYB was launched by London-based banking services provider Monese back in May.
Standard Chartered strikes corporate multibank connectivity through Starfish Digital partnership
The bank’s new service seeks to benefit its corporate clients’ inter-bank connectivity and cash management processes.
Bright Money lands $62m debt and equity funding
The round consists of $50 million in debt funding and $12 million in equity.
AI and customer care: balancing automation and agent performance
Use cases for developing top-performing contact centre agents: AI simulation training, immersive learning & performance monitoring.
Switch2Zero appoints Galileo CEO Derek White as chairman
White is currently serving as CEO at Galileo Financial Technologies, a US-based payments and banking platform.
Raisin appoints former UBS chair Axel Weber as advisor and board member
Raisin claims to have experienced a “steep growth curve” amid interest rate hikes and a “savings rush”.
Funding Societies secures $27m debt funding to support SMEs across Southeast Asia
Funding Societies will channel the funding into its financing solutions to support SMEs in its five operating regions.
Digital euro still two years away as ECB president Christine Lagarde takes on conspiracy theorists
Lagarde has vowed to “address all the conspiracy theory that abounds” about the potential digital euro.
Report: Business resilience and continuity in financial services
How to establish a rapid and robust response to risks with access to the right tools.
Deutsche Börse set to take over wealthtech firm SimCorp
Deutsche Börse first announced the acquisition in April as a means of developing its investment management business.
Bahrain’s Bank ABC taps JP Morgan for blockchain-based cross-border payment service
The launch arrives in tandem with the bank’s documentary trade suite, ABC Trade.
Singapore’s Grab pulls the plug on investment services citing non-viability
Customers will have to withdraw their money by 13 October, after which the accounts will be permanently closed.
SEC hands $25m penalty to Deutsche Bank subsidiary for AML violations and ESG “misstatements”
DWS Investment Management Americas Inc. has agreed to pay the penalty without admitting or denying the SEC’s charges.
Mercedes-Benz drives in-car fuel payments through new Mastercard partnership
Drivers will be able to complete refuelling payments via an in-car fingerprint scanner.
Santander reorganises structure to streamline operations
The bank has merged its retail and commercial businesses and created a new digital consumer banking business.
Akber Jaffer named as SmartStream’s new CEO
Bringing more than 25 years of experience to his new role, Jaffer joins SmartStream from Finastra.
Why fintechs can’t afford to swipe left on ESG
Fintech companies are uniquely positioned to lead the way in integrating ESG.
Solaris reportedly struggling to raise funds to fulfil a major credit card deal – FT
According to the Financial Times, Solaris is looking to raise €100m to fulfil its credit card deal with ADAC.
Fujitsu launches joint trials with Hokuhoku Financial Group to explore generative AI use cases
The trials are being held with two subsidiaries of Hokuhoku Financial Group – Hokuriku Bank and Hokkaido Bank.
Rimes names Theo Bell as head of newly created AI product division
With a career spanning more than 15 years, Bell brings a “rare wealth of experience” to her new role, Rimes says.
Bluestone Group to part ways with Irish motor finance business following sale to Close Brothers
Following the completion of the sale, Bluestone intends to increase its focus on its fintech business Fignum.
CardsPal founder and CEO Saim Yeong Harng steps down three months after Utu acquisition
Utu acquired the Singapore-based lifestyle app in June following its $33 million Series B.
MoneyMasters goes live with Profile Software’s Axia Suite for digital wealth management
MoneyMasters intends to leverage the partnership to expand its services within the Caribbean region.
