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Finovate Blog
Tracking fintech, banking & financial services innovations since 1994
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are the hottest fintech trend that nobody saw coming. And today, payments infrastructure firm Circle is extending its services to help support NFT marketplaces.
Circle’s new payments solution enables NFT marketplaces to accept both traditional payment cards and crypto payments. The Masachusetts-based company anticipates that the support will not only offer a more seamless user experience for NFT marketplaces, but will also support engagement by offering more payment options.
“This is not only an important and valuable trend for marketplaces and creators, it represents incredible demand from customers – for collectibles, artwork, moments, and really anything that can be tokenized on the blockchain,” said Circle Co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire. “Circle looks forward to supporting the industry – creators, platforms, marketplaces, storefronts and customers – with our solution for enabling a user-friendly, mainstream payments experience with the power of crypto connectivity and USDC.”
In the coming months, Circle will also add support for BTC and ETH payments; allow for the storage, custody, and transfer of NFT assets; and provide treasury and yield services.
Today’s news comes at a time when public awareness of NFT marketplaces is at an all-time high. One such platform, NBA Top Shot, has seen a 400% increase in sales over the past 30 days. Overall, sales volumes across major NFT marketplaces grew nearly 800%, to more than $200 million last month alone.
Since it was founded in 2013, Circle has supported over 100 million transactions worth tens of billions of dollars. The company, which counts almost 10 million retail customers and almost one thousand business clients, stores more than $5 billion in digital currency assets.
Financial services technology provider Fiserv made its latest acquisition this week. The Wisconsin-based company has agreed to purchase payment processing and payment acceptance startup Pineapple Payments.
Financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close next quarter, were not disclosed.
Under the agreement, Fiserv will continue to provide processing services to Pineapple’s 25,000 merchants. Fiserv anticipates the purchase will expand the reach of its own payment solutions, including the CoPilot partner platform, Clover, and Clover Connect.
“With Pineapple Payments already operating as a key distribution partner of Fiserv, we expect to accelerate the delivery of new and innovative capabilities to a host of new merchant clients,” said Fiserv President and CEO Frank Bisignano. “Together, we will provide omni-channel payments technology and services to enable merchants to maximize the potential of electronic payment processing. We look forward to welcoming Pineapple Payments to the Fiserv family and continuing to provide the best-in-class solutions and service that merchants and their customers expect.”
Headquartered in Wisconsin and founded in 2016, Pineapple Payments provides payment processing and omni-channel payment acceptance solutions for integrated software vendors and SMBs.
Today’s deal is Fiserv’s 35th acquisition. Prior to today, the company most recently bought up digital card services platform Ondot in a deal announced last December.
On the heels of its FinovateEurope demo this week, digital banking player Meniga has raised $11.8 million (€10 million). The investment brings the company’s total funding to $55.7 million.
Velocity Capital and Frumtak Ventures led the round, followed by Industrifonden and Meniga customers UniCredit, Swedbank, Groupe BPCE, and Íslandsbanki.
“Meniga has established itself as a trusted strategic partner to top-tier banks around the world for Personal Finance Management and Business Finance Management tools, which are built on top of its market-leading data consolidation and enrichment technologies,” said Willem Willemstein, General Partner & Founder at Velocity Capital Fintech Ventures. “We’re extremely excited about the growing demand for the personalised banking experiences that Meniga delivers, such as its new product, Carbon Insights, which uses transaction data to measure a bank customer’s carbon footprint.”
Meniga will use the funds to increase its R&D efforts and further build its sales and service teams. The company also said it will use the funds to bolster its green banking products.
The latter point is notable because Meniga has been making a name for itself in the green banking arena since the launch of its Carbon Insights tool. While multiple digital banking providers, such as Aspiration and Treecard, have launched in an effort to promote ESG banking for individual consumers, there have not been many players helping incumbent banks to compete by offering their own green banking products.
Launched last year, Carbon Insights enables banks to inform customers about their carbon footprint based on their spending habits and offers them the ability to reduce or offset it. Earlier this month Iceland’s Íslandsbanki became Meniga’s first client for Carbon Insights.
During the company’s FinovateEurope demo, Meniga CEO and Co-founder Georg Ludviksson noted that the company is currently implementing Carbon Insights with banks in four separate countries. “The demand is growing fast,” he added. “Carbon-concious consumers are here to stay.”
Founded in 2009, Meniga powers banking apps used by more than 100 million people in more than 30 countries. The company is headquartered in the U.K. with offices in Reykjavik, Stockholm, Warsaw, Singapore, and Barcelona.
Germany-based digital bank N26 announced today it is bringing on Gilles BianRosa as its new Chief Product Officer.
In this new role, Gilles will be responsible for leading product teams in Berlin, Barcelona, Vienna, and New York. He will also define, guide, and implement N26’s product strategy. To support these efforts, Gilles will bring on new team members and build N26’s product innovation.
“Gilles has a track record of delivering consumer-facing innovation that truly engages, excites and entertains customers,” said N26 co-founder and CEO, Valentin Stalf. “Today, N26 has revolutionized how people relate to their banking experience on an everyday basis. With Gilles on board, we will expand our experience further to being banking that easily connects an account with one’s lifestyle in an even more tangible way.”
Gilles brings with him decades of experience as CPO at tech companies including SoundCloud and Samsung Electronics. He also has entrepreneurial roots, having served as the co-founder and CEO of two Silicon Valley startups.
N26 is one of the most well-known players in the ever-growing digital banking realm. Founded in 2013, the startup offers its digital banking services in 25 countries, including the U.S., where it launched in 2019 and has since accumulated 500,000 customers in the area.
Today’s news comes about a month after N26 received a $35 million (€30 million) investment, bringing its total raised to $819 million. And it’s not the first C-level hire that N26 has initiated this year. In January, the company brought on Jan Kemper as Chief Financial Officer. Kemper holds experience in leading companies to go public, which may be an indication of N26’s intentions. In fact, Bloomberg expects the startup to IPO within the next two years.
Online small business insurance company Huckleberry announced a partnership with Berkshire Hathaway GUARD today.
As part of the partnership, Huckleberry joins Berkshire Hathaway GUARD’s curated network of independent agents and brokers across the U.S. For Huckleberry, it’s the largest partnership with an insurance carrier the company has inked since it was founded in 2017.
Huckleberry offers a range of coverage for U.S. small businesses in need of insurance. Coverage types include general liability, workers’ compensation, business owners’ policies, business interruption, liquor liability, and more. Five of its policies, including including cyber, automotive insurance, and umbrella insurance, were added just last year.
What’s unique about Huckleberry, which offers coverage in 45 U.S. states, is its paper-free application experience that offers an estimate in a matter of minutes. And because the startup doesn’t charge brokerage fees, it not only provides a streamlined approached, but also a more competitive rate. instant coverage
The San Francisco-based company is in the process of moving its headquarters across the country to New York and also has plans to open a second headquarters location in Columbus, Ohio. As part of this growth, Huckleberry aims to boost its workforce to 100 people by the start of next year.
Founded by Bryan O’Connell , Huckleberry has raised $22 million. Its most recent investment was a $22 million Series A round led by Tribe Capital.
Here in the U.S., it’s tax season. And even though the IRS has extended the filing deadline by a few weeks, it’s still a stressful time for both individuals and businesses. In an era of changing benefits, everyone is on the lookout to minimize their tax burden.
Enter MainStreet, a company founded in 2019 that helps qualify tech startups for tax credits that most accountants don’t check for. The California-based company works with startups’ accountants to check for more than 200 potential unclaimed tax credits.
MainStreet works by integrating the startups’ payroll and scanning the data on a monthly basis for potential federal, state, and local tax credits. If MainStreet finds a tax credit, the company will advance 80% of the credit amount to the startup so that they can use the funds right away instead of waiting on their tax refund. The client is responsible for repaying that amount, with no interest incurred, after they receive their credit from the government.
MainStreet does not charge a fee for this monthly service. Instead, the company keeps the remaining 20% of the startups’ tax credit amount. However, MainStreet only receives payment if it successfully finds a refund for the client.
In the event of an audit, MainStreet offers support through the auditing process. And if MainStreet makes an error with the paperwork or credit claim, the client is insured for up to $1 million.
So far, MainStreet has found more than $80 million for over 1,000 startups. The company’s clients include Rally, Newfront Insurance, LedgerX, Pave, and more.
In the long term, MainStreet plans to expand its operations beyond serving tech startups to include small businesses, as well.
MainStreet has received almost $63 million from investors including Gradient Ventures, Sound Ventures, and Signal Fire.
Peer-to-peer lending platform and digital bank Zopa landed some extra funds this week, now that its new banking platform is starting to take off.
The U.K.-based company pulled in $28 million (£20 million) from existing investors, bringing its total raised to $465 million.
Investors in today’s round include IAG Silverstripe, which led the round, as well as Augmentum, Alternative Credit Investments, Venture Founders, and others. The company will use the funds to support the growth of its digital bank.
Zopa secured its banking license last June and has since transitioned its platform from a peer-to-peer lending operation to a digital bank with a peer-to-peer lending option. Since that time, Zopa began offering savings accounts, which have reached $346 million (£250 million) in customer deposits, and a credit card product that has made Zopa a top 10 credit card issuer in the U.K. based on new customers.
The new funding comes at a time when competition among digital banks is at an all-time high. Zopa is poised to do well in the battle for new clients and deposits, however. The company has built a well-established client base, resources, and relationships since it was founded in 2004 as a peer-to-peer lending platform.
Zopa CEO Jaidev Janardana echoes this. “Less than a year since launching our bank, we have exceeded our plan for growth, both in terms of customers and balance sheet,” he said. “This capital injection will enable us to continue on this accelerated path. Our strong entry to the U.K. savings and credit card markets shows the organic appeal of our products and we are happy to have investors who share our excitement at the opportunity to serve more customers across more product categories.”
Phone-based fraud prevention company Pindropacquired Next Caller this week. Terms of the deal were undisclosed.
Pindrop anticipates the purchase of NextCaller, a call verification and fraud detection solution for contact centers, will position the company for growth, expand its client base, and position it as an industry leader.
“Our two companies will now be able to service the market in its entirety with the right solution for whatever stage of voice security and authentication they are in,” said Next Caller Co-founder and CEO Ian Roncoroni.
The deal comes at a time when demand for call centers is expanding. In a recent report, Forrester found that 42% of brands surveyed saw an increase in year-over-year call center call volume since the pandemic began. Additionally, 65% of companies reported they struggle to manage the high call volume and 80% of firms reported that fraud is a very serious issue in the call center.
Given this, Pindrop CEO Vijay Balasubramaniyan has a positive outlook for the fraud prevention industry. “We couldn’t be more bullish about the future,” he said, “The need for our combined solutions will only continue to grow as brands across multiple industries not only look to better secure their voice channel, but also improve the customer experience. Understanding who you are speaking to is the most effective way to build a better relationship with customers, resulting in a higher NPS and subsequently more profitable exchanges.”
As for what’s next, Next Caller will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary under Pindrop.
Founded in 2011, Pindrop debuted an IVR solution as well as the availability of its voice authentication technology for use in OTT streaming devices. Headquartered in Alabama, Pindrop is privately held and has raised a total of $213 million from investors including Andreessen Horowitz and Citi Ventures.
Digital lending platform Blend has agreed to acquire Mr. Cooper-owned Title365 for $422 million.
Blend will leverage Title365 for its title, escrow, and settlement services. Integrating this technology into Blend’s platform will allow the company to automate title commitment upon loan application submission, digitally reconcile settlement fees in real time, and streamline communication among parties. Ultimately, Blend anticipates that Title365’s industry expertise will help minimize costs by integrating title and settlement into the loan process.
Title365 was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in California. The company fits nicely with Blend’s approach of offering a modern experience with its mission “to be the most technologically advanced title insurance and settlement services provider.”
Title365 will be part of Blend’s title marketplace that allows lenders and consumers to choose their preferred title and escrow partner. The tool will be similar to Blend’s insurance marketplace that allows consumers to shop for competitive rates from more than 25 insurance carriers.
“We’re really excited about the agreement to add Title365 to our team as we continue our work to build the full consumer homebuying journey into our platform,” said CEO Nima Ghamsari. “With Title365, we will be able to expand our ability to put lenders at the center of a vastly improved homebuying journey that delivers new levels of efficiency, speed, convenience, and cost savings to everyone.”
Founded in 2012, Blend recently received $300 million in new funding, bringing its total funding to $665 million and boosting its valuation to $3.3 billion. The company facilitated $1.4 trillion in loans last year and counts 285+ lender partners, which together are responsible for around 30% of all mortgage volume in the U.S.
ESG investing is no longer the only environmentally conscious aspect of the financial services world. Recently, we’ve seen an explosion of fintechs– both new and incumbent players– going green.
Here’s a roundup of who’s who in sustainable fintech:
Ando Money
Ando Money is a California-based digital bank that uses client deposits to support green initiatives.
Ant Group
Ant Group, the fintech subsidiary of China-based Alibaba Group, has pledged to go carbon neutral by 2030.
Aspiration
Aspiration is a digital bank that won’t use consumer deposits to fund fossil fuel projects like pipelines, oil drilling, and coal mining. Additionally, the fintech plants trees in collaboration with reforestation partners when users round up their purchases.
Atmos Financial
California-based Atmos Financial offers a savings account that uses client deposits to exclusively finance climate-positive projects at scale.
Carbon Chain
Founded in 2019, CarbonChain offers organizations visibility into the emissions of their supply chains to identify the highest polluting transactions.
Carbon Collective
Carbon Collective offers roboadvisory services that help users divest from fossil fuels and invest in stock market funds that are low-carbon and don’t depend on fossil fuels for their core business.
Carbon Zero
Carbon Zero offers a credit card that rewards users’ purchases by using merchant-paid fees to buy carbon offsets.
Cloverly
Cloverly integrates with existing fintech apps, financial institutions, and payment processing services to assess their carbon impact and determine offsets needed.
Cooler Future
Still in beta, Cooler Future is a Finland-based startup that enables users to invest in a sustainable portfolio.
Doconomy
Doconomy is a Sweden-based digital bank that wants to inspire behavioral changes and reduce unsustainable consumption and carbon emissions.
Ecocart
Ecocart is a browser extension that works with merchants to help customers offset the environmental impact of their online purchase.
Helios
Founded in 2019, Helios is a France-based fintech that offers a digital bank account that helps users offset their carbon footprint.
Joro
Joro connects to users’ payment cards to analyze their carbon footprint and determine the biggest drivers of their carbon footprint.
Meniga
As part of its digital banking platform, Meniga provides a Carbon Insight tool that offers end users visibility into their carbon footprint based on their spending.
NetZero
NetZero connects to users’ bank accounts to determine the carbon footprint of their purchases. The fintech also helps users reduce their emissions and offset their footprint.
Nori
Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Nori is developing a marketplace for carbon removals.
OpenInvest
OpenInvest helps advisors offer their clients ESG investing that align with their values.
Raise Green
Raise Green offers a marketplace where users can invest in local, impactful projects.
ReGal
Headquartered in the U.K., ReGal offers alternative financial services based on Green Blockchain.
Ripple
Payments network Ripple pledged to be carbon net-zero by 2030 and to decarbonize public blockchains.
Stripe
U.S.-based ecommerce and mobile payments company Stripe offers a tool called Stripe Climate. The offering enables businesses to direct a portion of their revenue to help scale emerging carbon removal technologies.
Tomorrow
Tomorrow offers a digital bank account that uses customer deposits to fund sustainable initiatives. The startup’s premium account, Tomorrow Zero, offers a payment card that is made of wood.
Treecard
Treecard offers a free payment card made of wood. The company donates 80% of its profits to reforestation.
Trine
Trine is a Sweden-based company that allows firms as well as private and professional investors to crowdfund solar energy products.
Tumelo
Tumelo helps investment platforms and pension providers engage investors by showing them the companies in their portfolio and empowering them to vote on ESG issues.
Payments ecosystem giant PayPal announced a collaboration with Flutterwave, a leading payments technology company in Africa, this week. Through the collaboration, PayPal will enable its users to pay African merchants using Flutterwave’s platform.
The partnership will not only connect Flutterwave’s African merchant clients with PayPal’s 377 million accountholders, it will also help them work around the fragmented and complex payments infrastructure in Africa. To use the new functionality, online shoppers across the globe simply select the Pay with PayPal option while checking out at an African merchant’s page online.
Flutterwave launched to help businesses and individuals make payments across the continent flexibly and affordably. This comes at a crucial time for Africa. The ecommerce sector on the continent is expanding and is expected to grow from $16.5 billion in 2017 to $29 billion by next year.
“The collaboration reinforces our vision of creating a seamless digital payments system for Africa’s business communities that can now transact with international consumers,” said Flutterwave Founder and CEO Olugbenga Agboola. “By working with PayPal, we can further strengthen our commitment to our customers and service users as we will be enabling them to transact and expand their business operations to reach new markets.”
Flutterwave was founded in 2016 and has since processed over 140 million transactions worth over $9 billion. Today’s news comes just a couple of days after the company closed a $170 million round at a $1 billion valuation.
Social trading and investment marketplace eToroannounced today that it is making the leap to go public. In true 2021 style, however, the Israel-based company isn’t pursuing an IPO. Instead, eToro is merging with FinTech Acquisition Corp. V, a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), in a deal worth $10 billion.
When the deal is finalized, the combined company will operate as eToro Group Ltd. and is expected to be listed on the NASDAQ.
The move to go public comes after a period of growth for the Israel-based company. Last year, eToro added more than five million new users and brought in $605 million in revenue, 147% higher than the revenue it saw in 2019. Additionally, average monthly registrations have grown from 192,000 in 2019 to 440,000 in 2020. In January 2021 alone, eToro added more than 1.2 million new registered users. Similarly, the number of trades executed on its platform has grown– from eight million average trades per month in 2019, to 27 million in 2020, and 75 million in January 2021 alone.
“We founded eToro with the vision of opening the global market for everyone to trade and invest in a simple and transparent way,” said eToro CEO Yoni Assia. “Today, eToro is the world’s leading social investment network. Our users come to eToro to invest, but also to communicate with each other; to see, follow, and automatically copy successful investors from all around the world. We created a new category of wealth management – social investing – and we are dominating the market as evidenced by our rapid expansion.”
eToro is the seventh fintech to use a SPAC to go public in the past few months, joining SoFi, BankMobile, Payoneer, MoneyLion, Apex, and OppFi.
eToro was founded in 2007 and has offices in Cyprus, the U.K., Australia, and the U.S. The company is among Finovate’s earliest alums, demoing at the very first FinovateEurope conference in 2011.
