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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.
IT services provider NTT Data announced today it has acquired NETE, a Virginia-based digital design services firm.
The deal, which marks NTT Data’s 19th acquisition, is set to close for an undisclosed amount later this year. The company will bring on NETE’s 300 employees and will leverage NETE’s expertise in public healthcare to build out its services in that sector. NETE will maintain its branding but will now be known as NETE, an NTT Data Company.
“NETE clients and employees will benefit from access to the vast resources of a top 10 technology and business services provider, including global R&D, infrastructure and investments in digital transformation and innovation,” said Sandeep Somaiya, Managing Director of NETE. “The depth and breadth of NTT DATA’s commercial experience among healthcare providers, health plans and life sciences, as well as its strong reputation in the public sector, will open the door for additional opportunities for NETE customers.”
Somaiya will be a part of the NTT Data public sector leadership team.
A well-established player in the industry, NTT Data was founded in 1988 and has 120,000 employees. At FinovateFall earlier this year, the Japan-based company demoed Mirror, a new service that leverages AI to help caregivers make financial, medical, and lifestyle decisions on behalf of their clients.
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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.
EQ Bank, the digital subsidiary of Canada’s Equitable Bank, has signed a partnership agreement with TransferWise which will see the latter underpin EQ Bank’s international payments, reports Alex Hamilton of Fintech Futures, Finovate’s sister publication.
EQ Bank has integrated TransferWise’s API directly into their infrastructure. EQ Bank customers will be able to send money from their Savings Plus account at “the real exchange rate,” paying a “small, transparent TransferWise charge.”
Kristo Käärmann, CEO and co-founder of TransferWise, said that Canadian consumers stand to lose a “staggering” $330 per person to hidden fees when exchanging currencies.
“This needs to stop,” he said. “We ultimately want to ensure that everyone has access to fast, cheap, and transparent international money exchange. We’re thrilled to have found a like-minded partner in EQ Bank.”
EQ Bank recently completed the move of its Temenos core banking system into the cloud. The digital bank utilizes Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform, using software hosted by HP.
“From hidden mark-ups in the exchange rate, to paying multiple fees and lengthy delays, for too long Canadians haven’t been getting the best value for their dollar when sending money abroad,” said Andrew Moor, president and CEO of Equitable Bank.
“At EQ Bank we continually seek ways to remove unnecessary complexities and fees from outdated banking structures to put more money back in the hands of our customers. As TransferWise shares these important values, they are the perfect partner to help us achieve our goal.”
Transferwise, which most recently demoed at FinovateEurope 2013, was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in London. The company has raised more than $770 million.
To celebrate the season of giving, digital currency wallet and crypto management platform Coinbase announced a partnership that will create a way for its users to donate their crypto.
Coinbase has chosen to integrate with micro donations platform DustAid to provide its users in the U.K. with an option to donate to their choice of three charities:
Donations are facilitated through Coinbase Commerce, Coinbase’s service that allows merchants to accept multiple cryptocurrencies and maintain full control of their own digital currency. Coinbase Commerce launched in early 2018 and integrates directly into a merchant’s checkout screen. Since then, the company has amassed more than 2,000 merchants on the service.
“We firmly believe that by using blockchain technology we can help charities positively impact people all over the world. DustAid’s mission is to make giving a simple, easy and transparent part of our daily lives,” said Duncan Murray, Managing Director of DustAid. “We are really proud to be working with leading organizations like Coinbase and NSPCC to make this a reality and to help children be heard this Christmas.”
After its most recent funding round of $300 million, Coinbase’s total funding reached just under $550 million. Recently, the company launched its Coinbase Pro trading platform on mobile and added five new currencies to the Coinbase Card. Coinbase demoed InstantExchange at FinovateSpring 2014.
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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.
Updated 12/20/2019: Finovate alums raised more than $876 million in the fourth quarter of 2019. The amount takes the total raised by Finovate alums this year to more than three billion. It is both the second year in a row our alums have topped this milestone, and the biggest Q4 fundraising for Finovate alums to date.
Previous Annual Comparisons
The fourth quarter of 2019 is also the fourth Q4 in a row in which alum funding has climbed above the $500 million mark.
Previous Quarterly Comparisons
The top equity investment of the quarter was the $200 million raised by Ripple, followed by the $182 million raised by Zopa and the $102.5 million raised by BlueVine the previous month. Given the relatively small number of fundings this quarter, it is little surprise to find that our top ten equity investments for Q4 make up the vast majority of the reported spending total (note that the sums involved in two of our fourteen fourth quarter investments were undisclosed).
Top Equity Investments
Here is our detailed alum funding report for Q4 2019.
October 2019: More than $104 million raised by four alums
November 2019: More than $311 raised by six alums
December 2019: More than $461 million raised by four alums
If you are a Finovate alum that raised money in the fourth quarter of 2019, and do not see your company listed, please drop us a note at [email protected]. We would love to share the good news! Funding received prior to becoming an alum not included.
Digitization and innovation company ti&m and wealth management technology provider aixigo have come together in a partnership this week that will help improve and digitize the wealth management experience.
The partnership will combine ti&m’s channel suite with aixigo’s Wealth Management & Investment Advisory platform’s digital suite. The press release highlighted how the flexibility of ti&m’s services are well-suited to enhance aixigo’s platform, noting that “any solution can be designed and integrated “out of the box” into core banking systems.”
“You meet customer expectations in digital competition and at the same time reduce costs per customer. This in turn means that customers are more willing to pay despite regulatory requirements and cost transparency,” said Christian Friedrich, CBO of aixigo. “And in the end, the goal is for the bank to become an integral part of daily digital habits. And it is precisely these added values that we want to bring out into the banking world together with ti&m.”
aixigo most recently demoed at FinovateFall 2018 in New York where it showcased Digital Portfolio Management Backoffice, a tool to manage portfolios flexibly and with a limited workforce. The Germany-based company raised an undisclosed amount of funds in a single private equity round earlier this year.
ti&m demoed its digital onboarding suite module at FinovateEurope 2017. Thomas Wüst is founder and CEO.
In 2020, banks will spend about $2.3 billion on core modernization just to satisfy customers and keep fintechs at bay. In the age of apps and the platform economy, do you know how to ensure your bank is ready to compete?
Watch this on-demand webinar to explore:
UK-based Metro Bank has partnered with Canadian technology firm Sensibill to launch a receipt management beta for SMEs, reports Alex Hamilton of Fintech Futures, Finovate’s sister publication.
The new feature, available via the Metro Bank app in 2020, will allow users to capture receipts using a smartphone camera and have them be automatically added to their transaction history.
According to the bank, the new pilot is the first in a “long list of innovations” that it is set to test out in the 2020. Metro states that it plans to “take the essential daily tasks of invoicing, receipt management, bookkeeping and VAT returns, and embed them intuitively into the Metro Bank mobile app.”
Paul Riseborough, chief commercial officer at Metro Bank, said of the new pilot: “Accounting tasks, along with chasing invoices and staying on top of receipts, are major pain points for SMEs.”
“By partnering with Sensibill we’re offering an innovative, digital solution that solves real problems for our customers, saving them time spent on admin and allowing them to focus on running and growing their business. And this is just the first piece in the puzzle as we set about developing a major new digital ecosystem of services to help SMEs,” Riseborough said.
Co-founder and CEO of Sensibill, Corey Gross, added: “Metro Bank is building a suite of compelling tools that will help transform the small business banking experience in the UK.”
“Our partnership with Metro Bank demonstrates our shared focus to deliver customer-centric solutions that improve the financial well-being of banking customers. We’re excited to support Metro Bank’s commitment to strengthening its relationship with their customers through digital innovation,” Gross said.
In October Metro Bank announced that it would be partnering with a number of fintech firms following the £120 million funding it secured from the Capability and Innovation Fund in February.
Sensibill demonstrated its Receipts for Microbusinesses solution at FinovateEurope 2018 in partnership with NatWest. The Toronto, Ontario, Canada-based company was founded in 2013, and has raised more than $50 million in funding. Sensibill includes Radical Ventures, First Ascent Ventures and National Bank of Canada among its investors.
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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.
Mobile payments for parking company Passport just landed $65 million in funding, bringing its total raised to over $125 million.
The Series D round saw participation from Rho Capital Partners, H.I.G. Growth Partners, and ThornTree Capital Partners. Habib Kairouz from Rho Capital Partners and Scott Hilleboe from H.I.G. will join Passport’s board of directors.
The funding will be used enhance Passport’s software platform and expand its digital parking ecosystem.
Founded in 2010, Passport offers mobile payment solutions for parking, transit, permits, and tolling. The company’s solutions serve more than 1,000 clients and have been adopted by more than 450 agencies in over 5,000 locations worldwide, including Chicago, London, Toronto, Boston, Vancouver, Portland, Montreal, and Miami. To date, Passport has processed more than $1.5 billion, processing 100+ million transactions each year.
“We envision a world where mobility is seamless,” said Bob Youakim, Passport co-founder and CEO. “To bring this vision to life, we are creating an open ecosystem where any entity – a connected or autonomous vehicle, a mapping app, or a parking app – can leverage our transactional infrastructure to facilitate digital parking payments.”
At FinovateEurope 2016, Passport demoed its Mobile Ticketing for Transit solution.
This year, Passport launched a pilot for micro-mobility companies, including scooter fleet company Spin. In August, the company moved on to phase two of the project to enable cities to charge scooter companies for parking. The city of Charlotte will move forward with its pilot and the company anticipates that other cities will follow.