Robinhood hires two execs from US regulator Finra
Former Finra execs Anthony Cavallaro and Josh Drobnyk join the fold.
Business-to-Consumer/B2C
Plaid launches incubator FinRise for fintech founders of colour
The incubator is looking to accept just three-to-five start-ups.
New York cash advance app Brigit reveals $35m Series A
Brigit’s CEO is a former Deutsche Bank and Infosys executive.
Biden reshuffles US financial regulators to reign in corporates
Consumer protection fines against financial corporates have declined under Trump.
Capital One’s “wilful” AML failures land the bank a $290m penalty
Some $16 billion in reportable transactions passed through the bank’s platform.
Goldman Sachs mulls acquisitions to bulk up Marcus
Goldman’s CEO intends to make Marcus a pillar of the US bank’s growth.
PAYMYNT Financial buys crypto e-wallet LettucePay
LettucePay operates on top of Stellar Network, an open source blockchain platform.
BBVA shutters Simple after paying $117m for it in 2014
The bank is cutting out standalone entities which no longer make sense to operate solo.
SoFi set to go public via merger with Palihapitiya’s fourth Spac
The IPO will value SoFi at $8.65 billion.
Customer service start-up Glia lands $78m to help banks and credit unions
The round was led by Shopify and Checkout.com backer Insight Partners.
Trump bans transactions through Chinese apps including Alipay
The applications have 45 days to prepare for the ban.
2020 review: A year which saw fintechs cut jobs, pay & business arms
A number of fintechs have still been tested during COVID-19, some to the brink of collapse.
2020 review: Top 10 fintech and bank M&A deals
Despite COVID-19, the financial sector has still enjoyed some notable M&A deals.
Former JP Morgan execs launch wealthtech Vestrata with $4m
Vestrata has already signed up a number of investment managers and solution partners.
Mozper lands $3.55m to launch kid debit card in Mexico
In August, Mozper – with the help of partner Visa – launched its closed beta with 500 families.
The Fintech Review: 2020
We cover embedded finance, competition, open banking, and CBDCs.
Capital One takes swipe against “risky” BNPL firms
“These kinds of transactions can be risky for customers and the banks that serve them.”
Paysafe to list via Bill Foley-backed Spac at $9bn valuation
Blackstone and CVC acquired Paysafe back in 2017 for £3 billion.
Web Summit 2020: A fintech summary
Stripe is looking at products around digital identity.
Libra and Facebook exec joins rental insurtech LeaseLock
The fintech removes the need for renters to pay a deposit for a rental property.
Banking Tech Awards 2020 hosted online by Tom Ward
Join comedian Tom Ward for the 2020 Banking Tech Awards. Broadcast online on 10 Dec, 3:30pm GMT and is free to attend.
Facebook’s Libra could launch as early as January 2021
Novi’s digital wallet is “ready from a product perspective”.
Credit Karma secures $7.1bn Intuit acquisition, sells tax ops to Square
Square enjoyed a 4% jump in stock market value following the announcement.
San Fran alternative lender Oportun applies for banking charter
Oportun currently has licences in 12 states.
HMBradley lands $18.25m Series A led by Chime investor Acrew Capital
To date, the fintech claims it has surpassed $90 million in customer deposits.
Google Pay unveils integrated banking challenger Plex
Plex will sit in the wider, revamped Google Pay app.
App for US landlords NestEgg lands $7m Series A
Alongside its fresh capital injection, the start-up has also launched NestEgg Pay.
How real are real-time payments?
Incumbents and fintechs face the same challenges when scaling real-time payments.
MSU Federal Credit Union built its own app in 2009 – where is it now?
MSU holds around $5.5 billion in assets and is America’s 48th largest credit union.
Mastercard to help Canada build its new real-time payments rails
RTR marks a big step in modernising Canada’s payments system.
Uber plans return to financial services with hires “across the board”
The firm is “not ready to announce anything yet”.
HSBC launches Global Money account in US to rival fintechs
The bank’s aim behind the new service is to create “one global account”.
Chime’s app goes down for a day as users complain of rejected purchases
“We are currently experiencing intermittent outages,” Chime said.
TradingView makes UK switch as COVID-19 boosts global users
TradingView has landed six funding rounds totalling $40.8 million.
JP Morgan launches QuickAccept smartphone card reader to take on Square
QuickAccept was developed by the team from WePay.
PayPal brings crypto further into mainstream with wallet update
PayPal landed the first conditional crypto licence from the NYSDFS.
Mexico’s credit alternative challenger Klar lands $15m Series A
“We help people build credit by looking at how and where they spend their money.”
Canadian robo-advisor Wealthsimple lands unicorn status with $87m raise
Wealthsimple serves some 1.5 million users.
JP Morgan Chase partners with Greenlight for kids account
The JPMorgan Chase app has around 39 million ‘active’ customers.
US rapper Killer Mike unveils Black and Latino-focused challenger bank Greenwood
Each month, the digital challenger promises to gift $10,000 to Black or Latinx businesses.
