UK credit fintech Pillar raises £13m pre-seed round
The round, led by Global Founders Capital and Backed VC, saw participation from a number of angels.
Europe
Paytech GoCardless hires former Mastercard exec Paul Stoddart as president
In his new role at GoCardless, Stoddart will oversee the strategy, sales, product, marketing and customer teams.
Salt Edge partners Azimut to launch investment app Beewise
The partnership will enable Beewise users to connect their existing bank accounts securely to the new app.
Italian BNPL platform Scalapay bags $27m in Series B extension
Scalapay has now raised $727 million in total funding to date.
Payments infrastructure start-up kevin. secures $65m Series A funding
The funding will be used to double the size of its team and develop new products.
NetGuardians tapped by Swiss bank LUKB to boost fraud prevention
LUKB will deploy NetGuardians’ AI-powered software as it looks to shore up its defences against payment fraud.
Payroll fintech Symmetrical.ai raises $18.5m in Series A funding
The round saw participation from Target Global, Global Founders Capital, Finch Capital and Partech, among others.
Fractional investment platform Investables readies for UK launch
Investables allows retail investors to purchase fractional shares in rare collectibles.
SEB lands first BaaS customer with Humla partnership
Fintech start-up Humla will be powered by a BaaS platform developed by SEB’s innovation studio SEBx.
Mobile tax app Taxfix lands unicorn status with $220m Series D funding
The round saw participation from Teachers’ Venture Growth, Index Ventures, Valar Ventures, Creandum and Redalpine.
Malcolm Leach joins SME financing marketplace Funding Options as CTO
The appointment comes after the firm experienced its strongest quarter since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Europe fintech funding round-up: Previse, Qonto, Volume, Tuum & Monspire
A handy round-up of the recent funding endeavours of fintech companies across Europe.
Banking Circle acquires German A2A payments firm SEPAexpress
Banking Circle expects more than 20% of e-commerce transactions in Europe will be made via A2A payments by 2023.
New paytech start-up Saltare launches in the UK
Saltare aims to give large organisations the tools to pay suppliers and partners more quickly.
Banque Saudi Fransi and DSK Bank tap Backbase to revamp digital customer experiences
Both financial institutions are set to implement Backbase’s Engagement Banking Platform.
Edtech start-up Gimi teams up with ABN Amro to launch kids’ financial literacy app
The co-branded app is aimed at parents and youngsters between the ages of seven and 13.
Norway’s Signicat buys UK anti-fraud firm Sphonic
The company aims to be the go-to provider for digital identity and anti-financial crime services across Europe.
Funding Circle founder bags $30m for new paytech
The funding was raised at a pre-money valuation of $60 million, according to Sky News sources.
UK challenger Starling secures £130.5m funding at £2.5bn valuation
The challenger plans to “build a war chest for acquisitions”.
Mirabaud selects Temenos and Wealth Dynamix for digital transformation
Mirabaud’s planned digital transformation programme will take several years to fully implement.
Tom Hamilton joins investment fintech Bite as new chief information officer
Hamilton has more than 20 years worth of experience in senior leadership and information technology roles.
Irish fintech Fenergo acquires AML transaction monitoring start-up Sentinels
The acquisition, for an undisclosed sum, is set to strengthen the firm’s client lifecycle management platform.
Kiwi regtech start-up First AML lands £15.6m Series B, makes UK debut
The company’s co-founder Bion Behdin is relocating to its new London office.
Tighten financial crime controls, FCA tells challengers
The FCA review found some UK challenger banks have “weaknesses” with regards to financial crime controls.
FinTech Futures: Top five stories of the week – 22 April 2022
Here’s our pick of five of the top news stories from the world of finance and tech this week.
SH Payments hires Irmantas Kamienas as new CEO to drive European expansion
Kamienas joins from financial group SEB and will be tasked with expanding the company’s European footprint.
Garanti BBVA International heads to the cloud with Temenos
GBI will deploy the vendor’s Temenos Banking Cloud solution.
Trading app Robinhood plots global expansion with acquisition of UK crypto firm Ziglu
Robinhood says the deal forms part of its mission to “democratise finance”.
Business financing platform Muse Finance hires Tarek AbdelKader as CTO
The tech veteran has previously worked at firms including The Co-Operative Bank and Think Money Group.
New UK fintech Frost to launch next month
The firm’s app currently has a waitlist of over 15,000 people.
UK paytech MYPINPAD merges with Singapore’s SmartPesa
The new combined entity will operate under the MYPINPAD brand and will double its global footprint.
BNP Paribas invests in fintech-focused VC firm Anthemis
BNP Paribas’ head of global markets Olivier Otsy says Anthemis has a “strong track record” in fintech investments.
New UK start-up Keyzy gears up for launch with rent-to-own solution
The firm promises hopeful homeowners the ability to “move in now, buy later”.
Anti-fraud platform SEON raises $94m Series B to fuel global expansion
The start-up will use the fresh capital to expand throughout North America, LatAm and APAC.
The Bank of London hires new deputy CEO for the UK
Tom Wood will also join the firm’s UK Bank Board, reporting to group chief executive and founder Anthony Watson.
FinTech Futures: Top five stories of the week – 15 April 2022
Here’s our pick of five of the top news stories from the world of finance and tech this week.
European fintech start-ups Montonio and Payaut secure funding
Montonio raised €11 million and Payaut secured €8 million, respectively.
Finnish expense management fintech Zevoy raises €15m Series A
The round was led by Blossom Capital and saw participation from Maki.vc and Brightly Ventures.
Microsoft teams up with Finastra to offer SME lending through Dynamics 365
Microsoft says the partnership will drive value for SMEs, “the backbone of job creation in the world’s economy”.
Wagestream secures $175m Series C funding to fuel expansion plans
The round is believed to be the largest ever raised for a social impact fintech.
