SC Ventures, Standard Chartered’s innovation, fintech investment and ventures arm has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Yabx, a company incubated by Comviva and part of the Mahindra Group, to address a deep-rooted need for responsible consumer finance in Africa.

Africa has over 700 million mobile wallets, and about 450 million bank accounts but access to formal credit remain severely constrained due to poor credit infrastructure and the slowly evolving risk appetite of financial services players, especially traditional banks. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digitization in the financial sector and created a fertile environment for new and disruptive products to be taken to the market. The partnership between SC Ventures and Yabx is leveraging on this to create unique, Africa-specific products that will increase access of credit to the underbanked across Africa.

Nimble future-ready technology, data analytics combined with a deep understanding of banking will reduce the cost of delivery of innovative credit products, thereby widening inclusion across underserved segments in Africa where it is needed most. Given the scale and the complexity of the opportunity, SC Ventures and Yabx have taken a collaborative approach to jointly address the challenge. Loans will be provided to customers for specific purposes like education and skill development using an innovative data-driven scoring and analytics engine that has been built with rich experience from African markets. These loan products will be initially launched in Uganda and then subsequently expanded to other countries in Africa.

Jiten Arora, Member SC Ventures said, “We are excited at the prospect of using a data-driven, technology-enabled partnership model to serve the underbanked through purpose-driven loans in Africa, a continent for which we have a deep understanding and a strong commitment towards.” 

Manoranjan Mohapatra, Chief Executive Officer at Comviva, commented, “Yabx has seen exponential growth over the past one year, and we will continue to invest in its mission to serve millions of consumers and MSMEs in emerging markets who have limited traditional sources of funding available to them.”

Rajat Dayal, CEO at Yabx, said, “We have a lot of synergy with SC Ventures in Africa and together we are uniquely positioned to create a seamless embedded finance experience. This partnership further bridges the gaps in the current market, driving digital innovations and bringing significant benefits to the underserved population of Africa.”

13/02 – Weekly Investment & Fundraising News

Uber Alumni Startup Hatica Raises US$3.7M to Boost Developer Productivity and Well-being Using Engineering Analytics

Engineering analytics platform Hatica announced US$3.7 million in seed funding led by Surge, Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia’s rapid scale-up program. The round included participation from existing investor Kae Capital and from engineering leaders from Google, Uber, Twitter, Okta and Notion as angel investors. The SaaS platform has grown explosively in two years, helping over 20,000 engineering leaders and developers drive productivity and improve the developer experience.

Danish Neobank Lunar Raises $38 Million

Danish neobank, Lunar, has raised €35 million to invest in and develop the business in order to continue Nordic expansion and expedite its path to profitability. A press release from the bank states that the “vast majority” of existing shareholders contributed to the raise. Lunar’s last raise of 212 million DKK (approx. €28 million) in August 2022 came alongside a +500% increase in income during H1 2022.

Fintech Yatra to Offer $100 Million Capital to FinTech Startups with 25 VCs

The Fintech Meetup’s 5th edition of the annual Fintech Yatra is set to flag off in Mumbai. At least 25 VCs have tied up with Fintech Yatra 2023, which will offer $100 million in capital and identify and explore investments in the most promising fintech startups. The team this year shall undertake a 12,000 km journey across 20 cities, interacting with an estimated 400+ fintech startups. 

Coincover Announces $30M Funding to Fuel Growth and Foster Trust in Digital Assets

Coincover – the leading digital asset protection technology company – announced $30M in funding, led by Silicon Valley’s Foundation Capital. The fresh capital will accelerate recruitment, product updates, and partnerships to safeguard the crypto ecosystem – preventing, compensating, and protecting against crypto threats. Founded in 2018 and launched in 2019, Cardiff-based Coincover provides digital asset protection that addresses the biggest barrier to mainstream adoption: trust.

London Fintech kennek Raises $4.5 Million to Empower Lenders

London-based fintech firm kennek has raised a $4.5 million pre-seed funding round. The company has developed an end-to-end operating system designed to streamline the operations for lenders, credit investors, corporates, and servicers in the alternative credit sector. In its first year of trading, kennek has already hired 20 fulltime staff, and launched a plug-and-play operating system that caters for a broad variety of lenders and credit products.

Canoe Intelligence Raises $25M Series B Funding to Transform the Alternative Investment Data Ecosystem

Canoe Intelligence (“Canoe”), the financial technology company powering alternative investment intelligence for institutional investors, capital allocators, wealth managers, and asset servicing firms, announced the completion of its $25M Series B financing round. The round was led by F-Prime Capital with participation from Eight Roads Ventures and other strategic investors. 

Mazepay, the Fintech Platform Simplifying B2B Payments, Raises €4M

Mazepay, the Danish fintech platform that simplifies long-tail procurement and B2B payments, has raised a €4M growth round, led by Scale Capital. Participants in the round include international investment firm Hambro Perks, and London-based early-stage venture capital firm Outward VC. Mazepay will use the latest funding to expand further across Europe.

Build38 Raises €13M Series A Funding to Expand its Mobile App Security Business and Threat Intelligence Platform

Build38, a leading provider of mobile application protection solutions that combine AI-powered threat intelligence and the strongest app shielding technology, announced today it has closed €13 million in Series A funding. Tikehau Capital, through its European Cybersecurity Growth Fund, led the round with participation from existing investors eCAPITAL Entrepreneurial Partners and Caixa Capital Risc. 

Inkle Raises $1.5M to Power Tax & Accounting for US Cross-border Companies

Inkle announced a $1.5 million pre-seed funding round to help these companies handle bookkeeping, tax, and compliance filings through its software solution for US cross-border companies. Picus Capital, Saison Capital and Force Ventures participated in the funding round. Cross-border companies with a US parent holding company often struggle with back-office administration.

Borderless Super Wallet – Cenoa – Raises Us$7 Million In Seed Funding

Cenoa, the borderless super wallet improving access to dollar-based products in emerging markets, announced it has raised US$7 million in Seed funding. The fundraise was led by San Francisco-based venture capital firm Quiet Capital – an early backer of Robinhood; and Underscore VC – a Boston-based firm focused on backing the next generation of iconic companies at their earliest stages.

Tazapay Raises $16.9M in Series A Funding 

Tazapay, a leading fintech company specialising in cross-border payments, announced that it has raised USD 16.9 million in its Series A funding round. Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia led the round, with EscapeVelocity (escp.vc), PayPal Alumni Fund, as well as renowned angel investor Gokul Rajaram, joining as new investors. Existing investors Foundamental, January Capital, RTP Global and Saison Capital also participated in this round.

Moonfare Raised $15M in Series C Round 

Moonfare, the leading global digital private equity investment platform, has capped the extension of its Series C financing round at c.a. $15 million, achieving a record valuation. MThis brings the total capital raised in the Series C funding round to over $130 million. Following Insight Partners’ investment in November 2021, Vitruvian Partners and Swiss private bank Bordier & Cie became Moonfare shareholders in March 2022. 

Partnerships 

American Express Taps Microsoft AI for New Expenses Tool

American Express is expanding its decades-long relationship with Microsoft to develop a suite of solutions built on Microsoft Cloud and AI technologies focused on reducing business travel friction for employees and businesses. The first solution developed through this collaboration will enhance the expense management process by addressing some of the pain points business travelers and expense processors face.

Prizeout and UK-Based Fintech Pockit Partner to Give Customers Added Purchasing Power

Prizeout Corp. (Prizeout), the ad-tech company that turns cash withdrawals into growth solutions, announcesthe launch of a partnership with Pockit, a financial services app based in the United Kingdom. Pockit customers will be able to instantly increase their purchasing power on everyday items — from petrol to groceries to fashion and restaurants — directly from their Pockit account, making their money go even further.

FC Bayern Munich Enlists Adyen to be Exclusive Payment Solution Partner

Adyen, the global financial technology platform of choice for leading businesses, has been announced as the exclusive payment solution partner of FC Bayern Munich. Adyen will handle the club's payment processing across all sales channels. Adyen continuously helps to empower businesses to achieve their ambitions faster. Now, thanks to Adyen's technology, FC Bayern can accept payments on any device anywhere, offering fans the payment methods they value and trust.

Xsolla Partners with Mastercard to Shape the Future of Commerce in Gaming

Mastercard and global video game commerce company Xsolla announced plans to collaborate on frictionless, secure, and rewarding payments for gamers – from enhanced checkout experiences using credit card loyalty points to simple in-game currency gifting to improved creator payout processes and more. The partnership will combine Mastercard's technology, network-level expertise, global scale, and trusted connections with Xsolla's platform to create customizable and more accessible payment experiences for players, developers, and creators.

SNB Capital Begins Saudi Securities Lending Journey with Broadridge

To address recent regulatory changes, SNB Capital has chosen global Fintech leader, Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR), to help build its local securities lending and borrowing business. As the largest broker and asset manager by market share in 2022 and a leading custodian in Saudi Arabia, SNB Capital will leverage Broadridge’s Securities Finance and Collateral Management (SFCM) solution to grow the coverage of its Securities Services offering on local assets.

ThetaRay and Piie Collaborate in AI Technology for Insurance Payments

ThetaRay, a leading provider of AI-powered transaction monitoring technology, and Piie, Inc., an insurtech providing an intelligent payment engine, announced a collaboration to implement an advanced AML solution for insurance claim payments. Through the agreement, Piie (Payments Intelligent Integration Engine) will integrate ThetaRay’s AI-driven SONAR transaction monitoring AML solution to monitor and detect anomalies pointing to suspected financial crime on its payments-as-a-service platform that includes mobile application support.

InvestCloud Partners with 55ip to Integrate Tax-smart Technology on the InvestCloud Financial Supermarket

InvestCloud, the global leader in digital transformation for the financial industry, and 55ip, the tax-smart investment platform, announced a breakthrough partnership to integrate 55ip’s tax-smart investment technology into the InvestCloud Financial SupermarketTM. The integrated offering expands the products, strategies and tax optimization options available to advisors to seamlessly discover and add to client portfolios, optimizing for tax at a time when maximizing returns is paramount.

APEXX Partners with CarTrawler to Boost Payments Acceptance

APEXX Global, (“APEXX”), the multi-award-winning global payments platform, has partnered with CarTrawler, the leading B2B car rental software provider for the travel industry, to transform the company’s legacy payment software system. CarTrawler works with some of the biggest names in travel including United Airlines, easyJet, Uber, Emirates and Hotels.com. APEXX will provide CarTrawler’s full payment orchestration package and process most of its volumes through one single API.

iwocaPay Becomes the First Invoice Checkout Integration with Buy Now, Pay Later Option for Businesses that Integrate with QuickBooks

iwoca is announcing the integration of its B2B payment solution iwocaPay with Quickbooks’ leading accounting software package – this makes it the first invoice checkout integration with a BNPL option for businesses that integrate with QuickBooks. Quickbooks supports UK businesses with their accounting needs via a cloud-first approach that allows them to run their finances on the go from mobile devices. iwocaPay makes invoice checkout seamless, allowing buyers to settle via either Pay Now or Pay Later.

AppTech Payments Corp. Expands SaaS Offerings Through Strategic Partnership with Nuvei

AppTech Payments Corp. (AppTech), a Fintech company powering commerce experiences announced a strategic partnership with Nuvei (NASDAQ: NVEI), a global payments technology company. This partnership strengthens AppTech’s Software as a Service (SaaS) offering to deliver continual innovation and growth, extends its global reach, and expands the company’s footprint by supporting integrations with its patent-based portfolio in text-to-pay and geolocation-based solutions.      

Pismo and Drona Pay to Boost Security in Digital Payments

Fraud management has become a massive headache for banks and fintechs worldwide. As digital payments become more popular,  projected to grow 12%, reaching US$ 14.8 trillion by 2027, payment frauds are also expected to rise. India follows the international trend. UPI transactions increased by 91% last year. Meanwhile, complaints on the NCRP rose by 34% between Q1 and Q2, 2022.

Banxa and MetaMask Partner to Make it Easier to Access Web3

BANXA Holdings Inc. ("Banxa'' or "The Company"), the leading on-and-off ramp solution for Web3, announcedan integration with ConsenSys’ leading self-custody Web3 wallet, MetaMask, to simplify on-and-off ramping fiat to crypto. On top of global users being able to purchase crypto via standard methods such as credit cards and Apple Pay, this partnership will now allow MetaMask users in Canada to purchase crypto through interbank network Interac with less friction.

Afterpay Reduces Fraud Risk with Cloudera While Managing Data at Scale

Cloudera, the hybrid data company, today announced that ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ (BNPL) leader, Afterpay, is using the Cloudera Data Platform (CDP) to run streaming analytics and advanced machine learning for real-time fraud detection. CDP helps Afterpay identify, access and reduce business risk relating to fraud for its 3.6 million customers, delivering on the company’s mission to power an economy which offers consumers better financial access, inclusion and experiences.

ING and vc trade Join Forces to Digitise Lending Business

ING announced that it has spun out Loan Optics to vc trade GmbH, the leading digital platform in the market for private placement and promissory note loans. Loan Optics technology enables all stakeholders in the syndicated loan market (banks, borrowers, lawyers, advisers and agents) to cooperate on one central platform to originate, structure, document and negotiate digitally native loans – creating digital loan data in the process.

WeTransfer Partners with Blockchain Company Minima in a World First for Digital Content Creators

Minima, a revolutionary blockchain platform, announced a unique collaboration with WeTransfer, the world's most trusted platform for sharing digital content.Together, the two companies are deploying non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Minima network to empower creators all over the world with Digital Rights Management for their intellectual property.

Paymob and Khazna Partner to Expand Access to Digital Financial Services in Egypt

Paymob, the leading financial services enabler in the Middle East, North Africa, and Pakistan (MENA-P), and Khazna, an Egyptian financial super app, announced a new partnership that will expand access to digital financial services, benefitting merchants and consumers in Egypt. Merchants in Paymob’s network can now offer Khazna’s services via their integrated point of sale (POS) devices to Khazna’s customers.

UK Credit Management App Incredible Introduces Variable Recurring Payments with TrueLayer

TrueLayer, Europe’s leading open banking platform, has announced a partnership with the UK credit management app Incredible, which will now provide variable recurring payments (VRPs) for its customers. Using open banking Data APIs, Incredible consolidates their customers' account information in one clear, comprehensive dashboard where they can see, track, forecast and repay their borrowings.

Launches 

Eton Solutions Selects Singapore for its International Headquarters and Launches New Administrative Family Office Solution Worldwide

Eton Solutions, developer of the cloud-based AtlasFive® enterprise resource platform (ERP) for the family office of the future, announced the launch of its Administrative Family Office solution and the establishment of its international headquarters in Singapore. Eton Solutions' international headquarters in Singapore will enable the organisation to streamline its access and support to international markets without relying on North American resources. 

Banks Accelerate Move to the Cloud with New Oracle Banking Services

With transaction volumes, customer expectations, and competitive threats at an all-time high, banks must adapt quickly to keep pace. To address these challenges, Oracle launched Oracle Banking Cloud Services, a new suite of componentized, composable cloud-native services. The six new services available today provide banks with highly scalable corporate demand deposit account processing; enterprise-wide limits and collateral management; real-time ISO20022 global payment processing; API management; retail onboarding and originations; and new self-service digital experience capabilities.

US Fintech Unicorn Alloy Launches in UK

US fintech Alloy has launched in the UK, strengthening its presence in EMEA with key senior hires and office space in London. Alloy’s Identity Decisioning Platform helps banks and fintech companies to make smarter and faster decisions about the risk profile of each customer, and keep them safe from financial crime. The platform connects to more than 170 data sources, enabling financial institutions to automate customer approval and account opening and monitor transactions in real-time.

Flutterwave Expands into North Africa with New Egypt Payments Licenses

Flutterwave, Africa's leading payments technology company, has announced that it has received its Payment Services Provider and Payments Facilitator licenses in Egypt. The licenses will enable Flutterwave to act as an official payment service provider in the country, collect payments on behalf of its customers and settle payments locally and globally. These licences will allow Flutterwave to deploy Flutterwave for Business suite of products including store, payment links, invoices, checkout in Egypt.

Monument Bank Introduces Member Services – a Contemporary Lifestyle Platform to Support Time Poor Clients

Monument (or the “Bank”) has officially released its new Member Services proposition to the market. Available through the Monument app, Member Services is designed to save the UK’s ~7.5 million busy professionals and entrepreneurs and their families time and money searching for ways to reach their wealth-creation potential and enjoy life to the fullest.

Forward Bank Launches Larky’s nudge® to Improve Personalization, Mobile-First Communication

Larky, a fintech provider helping financial institutions proactively connect with their audience in the right place and at the right time, announced its launch with Marshfield, Wis.-based Forward Bank. The bank has launched Larky’s nudge® push notifications to offer its account holders more personalized, timely communications. With more than $930 million in assets, Forward Bank is a customer-owned, independent community bank that services central Wisconsin residents and surrounding areas.

Mondu Launches MonduSell A New Payment Solution for B2B Multichannel Sales

Mondu, the fast-growing B2B payments company, has announced MonduSell, a new solution for B2B merchants offering flexible payments on every sales channel: field sales, tele-sales or email orders. MonduSell provides the most popular B2B payment methods and flexible terms while conveniently processing orders from any sales channel in real-time. It is estimated that 56 percent of B2B buyers feel there is a gap between the existing experiences offered by B2B sellers and their evolving needs for purchasing.

Nucleus365 Launches European Instant Payments - Rapid Transfer

Nucleus365, a UK-based payment institution offering a centralised platform for global payment processing, FX and connected banking, has launched Rapid Transfer payment options for its European merchants. Rapid Transfer allows customers to pay merchants instantly using their online banking details, providing same-day settlements of funds.

Merger & Acquisition

FNZ to Acquire ifsam, the Luxembourg-based B2B Fund Platform, to Strengthen Global Client Proposition for Asset Managers and Distributors

FNZ, the global wealth management platform, has agreed to acquire International Fund Services & Asset Management SA (ifsam), a Luxembourg-based B2B fund platform.  The acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval, will strengthen FNZ’s global client proposition for both asset managers and distributors, adding advanced product, research, data and service solutions to its existing end-to-end wealth management platform. 

Tide Acquired Funding Options Following FCA Approval 

Tide, the leading digital business banking platform, has completed its purchase of Funding Options, a UK marketplace for business finance, following FCA approval. The proposed acquisition was announced in November 2022. Funding Options will operate as a separate brand within Tide, with work underway to merge Tide’s existing credit intermediation business with Funding Options. This part of the business is being led by Funding Options CEO, Simon Cureton, and is now called Tide Partner Credit Services.

Job Moves

Bibby Leasing Announces New Appointments to Drive Growth Strategy

Bibby Financial Services’s (“BFS”) asset finance division, Bibby Leasing, has announced a series of new hires and a refocused growth strategy to increase lending throughout the UK. With over 50 years’ combined experience in asset finance, the new team will support the business’s strategy, led by Managing Director, Sean Neville. The new hires follow the appointment of Brian Cartwright as Director of Strategic Partnerships & Market Expansion last year and the return of Rebekah Middleton as Head of Corporate & Structured Transactions, after almost two years with Time Finance.

John Woods Appointed Chief Revenue Officer at Zenus Bank

John Woods has been appointed Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Zenus Bank, the U.S. Bank that allows people and businesses around the world to open a true U.S. bank account without the need to be a U.S. citizen or resident. In the newly created position, John will take responsibility for driving client acquisition and revenue growth for the Retail, Corporate and Banking-as-a-Service business units within the bank.

Corserv Announces Payments Industry Veteran Anil Goyal as New CEO

Corserv, a company that empowers banks and fintechs with payment card issuing programs, announced that Anil Goyal has been appointed as the new CEO of the company. Former CEO, Jerry Craft will now serve as Chairman of Corserv and will continue to be actively involved in strategic decision-making and leadership for the company. Goyal co-founded Corserv in 2009 with Craft and others. He was named President of the company in 2020.

BankiFi Adds Banking Veteran Steve Ellis to Board of Directors

BankiFi, a leading provider of embedded banking solutions, has selected Steve Ellis as the board’s newest member. Ellis’ addition to the team is just the latest in BankiFi’s recent dedication to the North American market. Ellis has over 35 years of experience in banking, leadership and financial services. Ellis was formerly the executive vice president and head of the innovation group at Wells Fargo, having previously spearheaded the group of their wholesale service.

Tuum Appoints New Chief Revenue Officer to Accelerate Global Growth of its Next-generation Banking Technology

Tuum, the next-generation core banking platform, has announced the appointment of Edgardo Torres-Caballero as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). The company is seeing strong demand for its technology with an Annual Recurring Revenue of almost 400% on last year. The appointment is part of Tuum’s wider strategy to support continued and accelerated growth which also includes setting a strong focus on strategic partnerships as a key strategic pillar for expansion.   

Pipe Names Seasoned Fintech Leader Luke Voiles as New Chief Executive Officer

Pipe, creator of the world's first trading platform for revenues, announced Luke Voiles will become the company’s next Chief Executive Officer and will join its board of directors as of February 20, 2023. The company has also appointed Albert Periu, the CEO of Zilch USA Inc, to its board of directors. 

Drawbridge Continues to Prioritize Software Innovation, Appoints New Chief Product & Technology Officer

Drawbridge, a premier provider of cybersecurity software and solutions to the alternative investment industry, announced the appointment of Nick Pastoressa as Chief Product & Technology Officer. Pastoressa will oversee the company’s technology strategy and platform evolution, product innovation and lead the product and technology teams.  

MAP Welcomes New Members to its Executive Leadership Team

Member Access Processing (MAP), the nation’s leading provider of the Visa DPS Debit, Credit, ATM, Prepaid, and Mobile Processing platform to credit unions, announced it has promoted two officers to its Executive Leadership Team. Jeff Sims has been named Chief Financial Officer and Tim Bornemeier has been named Chief Implementation Officer. The two will serve as strategic leaders and provide new insights as part of the company’s eight-member Executive Leadership Team.  

Conferma Pay Announces Appointment of Jason Lalor as Chief Executive Officer

Conferma Pay and Sabre Corporation announced the appointment of Jason Lalor as Chief Executive Officer of Conferma Pay.  The appointment follows Sabre’s acquisition of Conferma Pay in August 2022, and its announcement of a new partnership and minority investment by Mastercard in November 2022 – which was completed on January 31, 2023. 

Tide, the leading digital business banking platform, has completed its purchase of Funding Options, a UK marketplace for business finance, following FCA approval. The proposed acquisition was announced in November 2022.

Funding Options will operate as a separate brand within Tide, with work underway to merge Tide’s existing credit intermediation business with Funding Options. This part of the business is being led by Funding Options CEO, Simon Cureton, and is now called Tide Partner Credit Services.

The addition of Funding Options will give Tide’s more than 475,000 members (representing approximately 9% of the UK market share of SMEs) access to more credit options. Over time, members will be able to use Funding Options’ panel of more than 120 lender partners, creating a major new marketplace for SME credit in the UK.

Founded in 2011, Funding Options is a leader in SME credit intermediation. Since 2013, companies have accessed more than £700 million in vital funding via Funding Options. Businesses can raise from thousands to millions of pounds for a variety of purposes - including working capital, growth finance or even just to help them through a difficult trading patch.

Oliver Prill, CEO, Tide, said: “With challenging macroeconomic conditions driving a wave of business consolidation in the market, the addition of Funding Options to Tide means we can provide our members with more ways of accessing credit. Working with Simon and his team, our plans to scale our credit intermediation business will serve this real and rising need for funding. As Tide grows in the UK and globally, we’re looking at further acquisitions to accelerate our growth and add to the services and products we offer our members.”

Simon Cureton, CEO, Funding Options, said: “The combined capabilities of Tide and Funding Options as it relates to SME finance is phenomenal. As part of Tide, our ability to do what we do best - help businesses gain access to finance - is going to be turbo-charged, not only in the UK but also as we move into new markets. We’ll be at the forefront of the sector, driving innovation in technology, new products, new services and new features that will make a huge difference to our customers.”

Moonfare, the leading global digital private equity investment platform, has capped the extension of its Series C financing round at c.a. $15 million, achieving a record valuation.

MThis brings the total capital raised in the Series C funding round to over $130 million.

Following Insight Partners’ investment in November 2021, Vitruvian Partners and Swiss private bank Bordier & Cie became Moonfare shareholders in March 2022. With the extension of the Series C financing round, Moonfare now welcomes 7 Global Capital (7GC) as an additional institutional investor. 7GC is a leading cross-border venture capital firm investing in capital-efficient internet and consumer technology companies with market-leading potential. Previous investments include Jackpocket, Roofstock, Jio, Hims & Hers and more.

CEO and Moonfare founder Steffen Pauls said, “We’re excited by this investment, particularly considering valuations of the most valuable VC-backed companies have fallen by half over the past few months.* We experienced overwhelming demand from shareholders and institutional parties wanting to participate in this extension round, demonstrating that Moonfare is solidifying its mission to democratise access to private equity.”

He added, “Individual investors and their advisors are increasingly seeking refuge in private equity, especially in current volatile public markets. We aim to meet this demand by giving an even broader range of like-minded investors access to our curated low-minimum private market funds. We will offer new products, expand into new markets and strengthen our senior management team with seasoned private equity experts. We are well equipped to meet our growth plans for this year.”

Moonfare makes it possible for qualified individual investors to invest in top-tier private equity and venture capital funds from firms like KKR, Carlyle, EQT and Insight Partners at low minimums and via a fast and user-friendly digital experience.

The company increased its assets under management by almost 60% to over $2.3 billion in the 12 months to end December 2022. In this same period, the number of Moonfare investors grew by 40% to 3,393 and the community of registered users more than doubled to over 48,000. To meet this exceptional growth in demand, Moonfare has increased the funds offered on its platform from 40 to 69 (up 73%) and entered into two new asset classes, Impact and Philanthropy. In 2022 the company launched in nine new jurisdictions including Scandinavia, Portugal, Israel and the US, and set up four new offices in Singapore, New York, Zürich and Paris.

Intellect Global Transaction Banking (iGTB), the transaction banking arm of Intellect Design Arena, a cloud-native, future-ready, new-gen multi-product FinTech company for the world’s leading financial and insurance institutions, has been awarded World’s Best in Virtual Accounts management at the Global Finance Treasury and Cash Management Systems Awards 2023. 

The winning award recognises iGTB’s product innovation in Virtual Account management and the extent to which iGTB has successfully differentiated its Virtual Account management capabilities from its competitors.

According to Joseph Giarraputo, President & Editorial Director, Global Finance, “A market leading global transaction banking platform, iGTB provides global coverage for its Virtual Account Management (VAM) solution across 5 continents and 18 countries. iGTB’s Virtual Account Management offers corporate banking clients a seamless customer journey and user experience across multiple business segments”.

Manish Maakan, CEO, iGTB commented “This global win is a tribute to our team’s incredible dedication in driving meaningful change by listening to our clients, understanding their needs and providing technology that creates enhanced efficiencies and scalability. iGTB’s Virtual Accounts solution has brought innovation to the centre stage by helping banks integrate closely with their customers’ financial value chain. The iGTB platform has allowed virtual accounts to be deployed as part of a broader sub-accounting platform that supports reconciliation, cash management & in-house banking, client money management & escrow, and also Banking-as-a-service.”

He added, “This prestigious recognition from Global Finance, one of the most respected financial media publications, just further substantiates our credentials in transaction banking. We remain committed to helping banks deliver innovative products to support their clients' treasury requirements. This solution is an important component of our broader Corporate Treasury Exchange (CTX) offering that holistically brings together a bouquet of solutions on a cloud-native architecture. Corporate treasurers on CTX can now manage cash and liquidity in a manner that delivers a higher return on cash capital, while simultaneously protecting the bank and providing incremental value to its shareholders.”

The award highlights iGTB’s Virtual Accounts Management capability, including: 

1. comprehensive sub-accounting platform technology designed to transform corporate treasury operations - with the enablement of straight-through reconciliation, sophisticated payment factory and a robust client money management solution. 

2. self-service functionality delivers to the banks’ customers flexibility and control by allowing the customers to open/close virtual accounts, transact using these accounts, manage limits and interest on inter-company positions and conduct account reconciliations.

Nets, part of Nexi Group, the European PayTech, will establish Nexi Digital Finland as a hub in Espoo, Finland, to drive technological innovation within Nexi Group. The new hub will recruit over 50 new software engineers to develop digital payment products and services. As the first of its kind in the Nordics, it will leverage the strong expertise of Nexi Group daughter companies and the wider region.

“Finland is one of the most digitised societies in the world, with Finnish payment technology expertise leading the way in Europe," said Alexandre Bove, Nexi's Head of Digital. "We want to harness this talent for the entire Nexi Group. By investing in know-how, cloud technologies and innovation, we can create cutting-edge technological solutions, such as advanced POS acceptance terminals, which accept all kinds of digital payments and support the evolving needs of merchants and businesses. Nexi Digital Finland will be a key part of our accelerated growth plans in Europe."

Suvi Ruoppa, Country General Director of Finland at Nets, part of Nexi Group, said: "Nexi Digital Finland is testament to the strong expertise that we have within the payment technology space.  We have specialised experience that will allow us to continue driving forward the advancement of European payments for businesses and consumers alike. This initiative confirms the ambition of Nexi Group to boost our company presence locally and, in particular, to invest in innovation in Finland."

Payments that scale globally

Digitalisation is accelerating worldwide and payments technology is becoming a global industry where scale is key. Payments are becoming easier and faster regardless of whether they are made by card, mobile or even initiated via biometric identification methods such as fingerprint readers and facial recognition.

"Nexi Digital Finland creates a strong innovation platform to the benefit of our customers across Europe," said Ossi Korhonen, Director of Nexi Digital Finland. "We will double the number of our application developers in Finland and offer them the opportunity to drive world-leading payment technology forward.”

Payment solutions company Nets is part of the Nexi Group. The development of the company reflects the evolution of the payments industry in recent years, which is rapidly becoming more international as companies are consolidating to attain further scale. Nets Group and Nexi Group merged in 2021 to form Europe's leading PayTech. Nets Group had already expanded into Finland in 2012 with the acquisition of Luottokunta.

With retail banking and customer behaviour continually evolving, adaptation is the name of the game, and staying abreast of market trends is more important than ever

Ongoing service helps banks and suppliers understand challenges and opportunities

Retail banking is changing, as consumer payments habits evolve and banks reshape their physical distribution networks. Banks face a multitude of choices to ensure they offer the right services in the right places. How many ATMs are needed? Where? Of what type? What software and services support them? And do they even need to operate the ATMs themselves?

Financial institutions are defining future business and operational models for the ATM channel, and suppliers are assessing how to meet banks’ evolving requirements. If change is the only constant, then the power to adapt has never been more important. RBR’s Global ATM Intelligence Service helps clients to continually assess challenges and identify opportunities.

News, data, insights and support brought together in a unified offering

The Global ATM Intelligence Service leverages RBR’s international expertise and unparalleled primary research programme, and incorporates its comprehensive ATM market report and database.

RBR’s monthly research newsletter, Banking and Payments Bulletin, provides coverage of ATMs, alongside the developments in cards, payments and digital banking that influence the future of self-service.

Regular videos explore key industry trends – the first of the series will analyse the evolution of ATM pooling and evaluate its potential for further industry disruption. Subscribers can connect directly with sector and country experts at any time, to dig deeper into topics of interest, and assess what wider industry changes mean for their organisations.

Deeper engagement builds on unmatched ATM expertise

The Global ATM Intelligence Service builds on RBR’s 30 years of experience delivering insights to banks and their suppliers. Rowan Berridge, who leads the firm’s work in the banking automation sector, remarks “We are looking forward to deepening our engagement with clients. This service will be invaluable for banks as well as suppliers of ATM hardware, software and services, as they seek to navigate a changing landscape”.

Leading global identity verification provider ID-Pal, today announced the appointment of Tim Murphy as the new independent Chairperson of its Board of Directors. An early investor in ID-Pal, Murphy has sat on the Board as a non-executive member since 2017 and his current position is Principal Director at mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisory firm, Guacamole Partners Limited. 

Murphy has accrued widespread experience investing in and advising start-ups along with serving as an Executive and Independent Director in several financial services firms. A qualified accountant, Murphy oversaw the expansion of BNY Mellon in Ireland before holding several executive roles, with a predominant focus on M&A in the fintech space.

At Waystone (formally DMS Offshore Investment Services Ltd) Murphy was the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer during the firm’s successful management buyout, before becoming an independent non-executive Director there. Murphy is also currently the independent chair of Geneva Ireland Financial Trading.

Murphy’s previous roles also include serving as Director on the board of NBCGF, the National Bank of Canada’s Irish subsidiary, for nine years; and being a member of the Social Care Workers Registration Board for the past seven years, including his current tenure as Chairperson.

As Chairperson of ID-Pal’s Board of Directors, Murphy will oversee governance requirements at ID-Pal - a fast-growth company that is pioneering new standards in KYC and AML screening for organisations globally. The appointment comes just six months after ID-Pal’s successful €7 million Series A funding round, led by Inspire Investments.

Murphy brings a wealth of industry expertise to his appointment, as ID-Pal meets global demand across over 30 sectors for its industry-leading identity verification solution.

On being appointed as the new Chairperson of the Board of Directors in ID-Pal, Tim Murphy, said: “As an early investor in ID-Pal, I am a firm believer in the market-leading proposition it has to offer and look forward to supporting and advising the team in my new role, as it continues to deliver on its international expansion plans.

“I am excited to be part of the journey ID-Pal is on as it continues to exceed the goals it set out to achieve and look forward to working more closely with the Executive team.”

On the appointment Colum Lyons, CEO and founder of ID-Pal, comments: “ID-Pal has always focused on having the best technology and people in place to deliver and scale – and this has been a key factor in our record growth. Since 2017 Tim’s contributions have been invaluable, given his insights and expertise from across the fintech sector and financial services space.

“I am confident that his appointment will drive the expansion of our identity verification solution to more markets worldwide.” 

Omnio, a leading innovator in Banking-as-a-Service, has completed a 9m Euros equity funding. Omnio will keep the round open for selected investors, targeting a total of 12m Euros. Omnio is a fast-growth pre-IPO banking infrastructure leader based in London, England.  

Omnio builds on its pioneering Banking-as-a-Service offering, including its loyalty platform Domec and the Sercle business, the credit union platform, serving 135 financial institutions and over 1.5 million members of its credit unions, consumer brands and banking customers. The impressive growth continues with significant clients wins which were recently signed in the travel, transportation and sports/entertainment sectors in UK and Italy.

Omnio supports other financial institutions and non-regulated enterprises with its Banking-as-a-Service model, which manages the complexity of offering retail financial products for leading consumer brands and financial institutions.  Omnio delivers a modular end-to-end solution that supports the accounts of record all the way through to operations, regulatory reporting and compliance.   It means that smaller financial institutions can compete with the big banks, and financial services can be embedded in customer journeys of leading non-financial brands allowing customers to transact, obtain financing or be rewarded for their loyalty.  This innovation delivers FinTech for all and supports diversity in the supply of financial services. 

Jörgen Durban, Omnio's Chairman commented on the transaction "this fundraise will secure the working capital for Omnio to complete some exciting strategic plans, which include the imminent merger with Nordiska and Swiss Bankers as well as a listing this year." More info on the previously announced merger can be found here: https://omnio.global/omnio-to-be-combined-with-swiss-bankers-and-nordiska-to-create-a-pan-european-financial-solutions-group/

He continues, “Embedded finance is one of the most significant trends we have seen in consumer finance as it provides financial products where they are most needed, as part of the consumer journeys of the leading brands. Despite a difficult market environment for fintech fundraisings, Omnio managed to demonstrate that is remains a strong competitor in the high-growth area by closing this significant round with commitments from existing investors and Opentech as a new investor. Opentech develops full-stack solutions currently adopted by Financial Institutions in Italy, Switzerland and Austria. We welcome Stefano Andreani, Opentech's founder, who will join Omnio's Board and Executive Team."

Stefano Andreani declared: "We are building an outstanding embedded finance platform that will effortlessly allow plugging-in Financial Services into the digital channels of retailers and banks. I am aware of the great responsibility this equity funding entails; I have decided to put my experience as an entrepreneur and software engineer at Omnio's disposal in order to do my best to achieve this ambitious, yet achievable goal."