IKEA buys 49% stake in financial services partner Ikano Bank
Lending to IKEA shoppers accounted for about a quarter of the bank’s total business.
Europe
DirectID hires David Freeman as new COO
Key to his new responsibilities at DirectID will be the emergence of a new data science team.
Introducing “it’s a matter of comms”
Welcome to #itsamatterofcomms! A new bi-weekly vlog!
Fintech funding deals globally 8-14 February 2021
Featuring Fraction, BharatPe, Agibank, Monzo, and Coinsquare.
Swiss start-up Valour recruits former HSBC exec Diana Biggs as CEO
Biggs began working in blockchain back in May 2015.
Is 2021 the year to inspire better banking?
Sanat Rao says the time is right to invest in back-end systems change.
Danish edtech Female Invest targets UK expansion with $1.6m fresh capital
“It makes a big difference when you see someone like you on a platform.”
Italian neobank illimity turns €16m loss into €31m profit in a year
The neobank’s best-performing arm, by a long way, was its NPL unit.
Raiffeisen Bank to buy Czech Republic’s consumer lender Equa bank
In 2020, Equa bank’s consolidated net profit fell by 55% to $8.5 million.
Goldman Sachs re-opens Marcus in UK with 0.5% rate
0.5% is the highest paying easy-access rate in the UK.
ICYMI funding round-up: Trade Ledger, Mesh, Safepay, Globacap & more
We round up some of the funding rounds that may have slipped you by.
How brands are becoming the banks of tomorrow
To understand what the bank of tomorrow looks like, we must first understand how they developed.
The core wars
This battle is for core banking software, challenging the likes of SAP, Finastra and Temenos.
Regtech insights from Accuity
Featuring Dalbir Sahota, VP Bankers Almanac KYC at Accuity.
Dublin’s ION Group snaps up New York trading tech firm Dash
ION Group has bought a handful of other firms to date.
Equifax acquires AccountScore to boost open banking capabilities
Equifax wants higher rates of automation and verification.
Klarna’s valuation set to triple to $30bln, says report
A report says Klarna is currently working on a half a billion new share issue.
TransferGo picks Thought Machine for core operations
Money transfer firm switches things up in the back office.
More than 90% of UK’s financial firms still rely on legacy tech, says FCA
Some 33% admit “most” of their technology is legacy.
Nordic API Gateway lands nine new bank partners in Bankdata deal
The deal prequels Nordic API Gateway’s European expansion plans for 2021.
Banking Technology February 2021 issue out now
The roaring 20s.
Findr launches first crowdfunding campaign
Findr was launched at the end of October 2020 by resident FinTech Futures expert, Greg Watts.
United Fintech announces acquisition of German regtech TTMzero
UK scale-up has taken 25% stake with a view to nabbing 80% soon.
BBVA sells Holvi business lender, invests $150m in VC fund
Spanish banking giant ditches Finnish business bank, sells back to founder
Monzo confirms £50m raise with help of new US backer
Monzo is on the cusp of five million customers.
Tandem Bank acquires £100m mortgage book from Bank and Clients
Private bank’s customers won’t notice the transition, claims challenger.
UK-Nigeria mobile wallet Sendit.Money goes crowdfunding
It has already exceeded its £100,000 target, having raised £146,006 at time of writing.
EXCLUSIVE: Wirex users hit by unexplained account restrictions and “disappearing” funds
A growing number of customers are fleeing Wirex.
Social impact app Tickr raises £2.5m
Tickr focuses on climate change, social impact and disruptive tech.
BlackRock-backed Scalable Capital closes UK consumer platform
The robo-adviser will focus on growing the business in Germany.
Boosting economic recovery by harnessing the power of payments
The other significant milestone the UK economy has to handle this year is life beyond Brexit.
Bottomline Technologies acquires TreasuryXpress
The US firm is expanding its treasury tools for corporates.
Hapi rolls out UK savings and investments app for parents
The start-up is backed by Entrepreneur First.
UK carbon impact challenger Creed set to launch this year
Former Bank of America, UBS and Barclays exec Roshan George heads up Creed.
Cashplus lands full banking licence after 15 years as an EMI
The ability to lend on its deposits pits Cashplus directly against Starling.
SumUp acquires Lithuanian core banking firm Paysolut
SumUp continues its acquisitive spree, buying its fourth firm since 2018.
Sync. signs deal with Railsbank to power premium accounts
The smart banking app is looking to expand following a 2020 launch.
Mastercard nabs UK market share with NatWest debit deal
Card issuer will now account for one in three debit cards in the UK.
Santander’s profits down 35%, but Botín bets on vaccine for 2021
“Vaccination is the most important economic policy for 2021,” says Botín.
Reinvention: the lessons banks can learn from Bowie and Madonna
Madonna or Bowie consistently reinvented themselves to adapt to change and stay relevant.
