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Finovate Blog
Tracking fintech, banking & financial services innovations since 1994
Bilt is partnering with FIS to integrate Premium Payback, enabling members to instantly redeem loyalty points at checkout without additional apps or sign-ups.
Bilt Rewards members can now use points earned from rent, dining, rideshare, and travel purchases for immediate savings at participating merchants.
FIS’s Premium Payback network, which supports 7,000+ card loyalty programs, helps drive customer engagement by increasing point redemption and boosting cardholder spending.
Loyalty platform Bilt has selected payment, banking, and investment systems provider FIS to allow users to redeem their points directly at the point of purchase.
Bilt is using FIS’ Premium Payback solution, an engagement tool that connects participating issuers with participating merchants to allow point redemption directly at the point of purchase. By adding the ability to redeem their points at the moment of their transaction, users benefit from immediate savings. Premium Payback displays offers at checkout to provide cardholders with instant gratification on their point usage. It does not require users to sign up for new services, download a special app, or anything else that adds friction.
Bilt Rewards was founded in 2021 to offer a loyalty rewards program and credit card that allows renters to earn points when they pay their rent, building credit with every payment. With no annual fee, the Bilt Mastercard credit card also allows cardholders to earn points on select dining experiences, rideshare purchases, and travel purchases. These points can be redeemed for travel, fitness classes, home decor, and even a down payment on a future home.
Bilt anticipates that, with Premium Payback, customers will be able to see their money work more effectively and instantly.
“We are constantly looking for ways to give our members more ways to redeem their points,” said Bilt Chief Strategy Officer Brandt Smallwood. “FIS’ Premium Payback network will allow Bilt Members to redeem their Bilt Points to save on their purchases with some of their favorite merchants in their neighborhood.”
FIS’s Premium Payback solution has thousands of financial institutions representing more than 7,000 card loyalty programs enrolled in its ecosystem. Of the customers enrolled in Premium Payback, 50% redeemed points two-plus times in one year, and 36% increased their spending.
“The current economy is significantly increasing the demand for loyalty programs that maximize the utility of money, but inadequate technology can complicate the experience cardholders have when redeeming loyalty points, hindering the efficient movement of money,” said FIS Head of Products and Services for Loyalty Mladen Vladic. “Credit and debit cards continue to play a leading role in the payment experience as money moves between banks, consumers, businesses and beyond in a complex, never-ending cycle. In the fight for customer loyalty, every payment card program is a vital opportunity to seize competitive advantage and drive growth. We’re proud that FIS Premium Payback can help our clients—like Bilt—accomplish these goals.”
This week’s edition of Finovate Global looks at recent fintech developments in Canada.
Float Unveils Float FX to Help Canadian Businesses Save on Currency Conversion Costs
Toronto, Ontario-based business finance platform Floatunveiled a new solution for Canadian businesses this week. The new offering, Float FX, will enable Canadian companies to instantly convert funds at rates as much as 90% lower than with traditional banks. Float noted that the solution is part of the company’s broader goal to help support businesses that do business in the US as they navigate volatility in both currency markets and US trade policy.
“With the Canadian dollar under pressure and potential trade disruptions looming, we designed Float FX to give Canadian businesses an advantage when operating across the border,” Rob Khazzam, Co-Founder and CEO of Float, said. “Combined with offering high-yield interest on CAD and USD balances, Float provides material opportunities for companies to save on costs and protect margins—at a time when every dollar counts.”
Even before recent trade tensions with the US, businesses in Canada were facing significant challenges when it came to currency exchange. According to a recent survey—The Financial Outlook of SMBs in 2025—Float learned that more than half of the Canadian businesses queried said that they struggled to deal with high fees and poor exchange rates. In their report, Float pointed to legacy banking infrastructure and inefficient processes as the culprit, noting that many companies continued to patronize financial institutions that required time-consuming in-person visits and manual reviews, or long settlement times. This leaves businesses with exposure to fluctuations in potentially volatile exchange rates, as well as increasing their vulnerability to hidden fees.
Float FX will offer fees of 0.25% all-in, a figure that is up to 90% lower than that offered by Canadian banks. Companies will also benefit from seamless, built-in currency conversion within the Float platform, enabling them to convert, hold, and spend USD in a single location.
With more than 4,000 Canadian companies as customers, Float offers a business finance platform that helps businesses spend, save, and scale. Founded in 2019, the company provides corporate cards, automated expense management, next-day billpay, high-yield accounts, and more.
Float began the year securing $70 million CAD in Series B financing in a round led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives. OMERS Ventures, FJ Labs, Garage Capital, and Teralys also participated in the investment. The funding brought the company’s total funding to more than $120 million CAD in the past year. Float has used the capital to expand its product offerings and recruit talent.
Banco Santander, Kraken Secure Key Canadian Approvals to Fuel Expansion
Canadian regulators are in a “yes” mood of late when it comes to helping fintechs expand operations in the country. This week we learned that Banco Santander has secured a Canadian banking license as part of the financial institution’s effort to grow its footprint in the Americas. Also this week, crypto exchange Kraken reported that it had obtained a Restricted Dealer registration from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).
First up, Banco Santander. The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), Canada’s banking regulator, authorized Banco Santander’s Santander Consumer Bank to begin operations in March. Banco Santander has been active in the Canadian market since acquiring car financing company Carfinco Financial Group in 2014. The firm applied for a Schedule II banking license in 2019, which allows subsidiaries of foreign banks to offer financial services including deposits, lending, wealth management, and credit cards. Santander Consumer Bank was incorporated as a federally regulated financial institution in 2024 by Canada’s Minister of Finance, with OSFI approval being the final step.
Second, cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has secured a Restricted Dealer registration in Canada that will enable the firm to better serve its customers in the country. As part of the announcement, the exchange announced that it would offer free Interac e-Transfer deposits to all of its Canadian clients.
“This achievement marks the culmination of a rigorous pre-registration undertaking (PRU) process, during which Kraken consistently enhanced its governance, security, and compliance protocols to meet the highest industry standards,” the Kraken blog stated this week. “As a result, our Canadian clients now benefit from a solid regulatory foundation, ensuring access to some of the most innovative and secure crypto products in the local ecosystem under the supervision of the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).”
In addition to securing its restricted dealer registration, Kraken also announced the appointment of Cynthia Del Pozo as the company’s new Canadian General Manager. With nearly 15 years of experience in corporate development, operations, and fintech consulting, Del Pozo will guide an operation that has grown significantly in recent years, including surpassing $2 billion CAD in combined client assets under custody and a doubling of both team size and the number of monthly transacting users during the PRU process.
“Canada is at a turning point for crypto adoption, with a growing number of investors and institutions recognizing digital assets as a vital part of the financial future,” Del Pozo said in a statement. “The Restricted Dealer registration is a testament to the high bar Kraken has always set for consumer protection, client service, and robust security.”
Founded in 2011, Kraken enables more than 10 million traders and investors to buy and sell more than 200 digital assets and six different national currencies including USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, CHF, and AUD on its platform. David Ripley and Arjun Sethi are co-CEOs.
Meet Finovate’s Newest Canadian Alums!
Over the past year, Finovate has been proud to host a handful of innovative fintechs headquartered in Canada. Below is a look at four firms, all Canada-based, that have demonstrated their fintech innovations live on the Finovate stage of late.
PromoComply – Montreal, Quebec – FEU 2025: Offers technology that automates compliance for financial promotions, reducing legal risks, and enhancing transparency for consumers in real time.
TRIYO – Toronto, Ontario – FS 2024: Offers a work intelligence platform that integrates with existing systems, processes, and workflows to bring visibility to high-value processes across financial services.
Brim Financial – Toronto, Ontario – FF2024: Works with financial institutions, fintechs, and brands to enable them to offer their customers an end-to-end credit card and payments platform.
ZayZoon – Calgary, Alberta – FF2024: Offers an embedded Earned Wage Access (EWA) solution to enable small and mid-sized businesses to offer EWA directly from their own platforms.
Next month at FinovateSpring, we’re happy to introduce our audience to one more Canadian fintech, Cinareo Solutions (Toronto). For more about our upcoming FinovateSpring conference, visit our FinovateSpring hub today!
Here is our look at fintech innovation around the world.
In today’s data-saturated world, the ability to visualize information in a meaningful way is no longer just a nice-to-have—it’s a competitive advantage. Financial institutions, fintechs, and large enterprises are increasingly turning to AI-driven data visualization tools to unlock insights, improve decision-making, and streamline operations.
In a recent conversation on Streamly, Plotly European Sales Director Andy Wisbey shared how organizations can harness the full power of their data using advanced visualization tools. The discussion touched on common pain points financial institutions face when scaling AI, as well as the benefits of enabling cross-functional teams to explore and communicate data insights more effectively.
“What we’ve seen over the last few years is really a move towards more things like GenAI, where perhaps with large language models we’re doing more analysis around predictive analytics. So, we’re trying to predict where the market might go if certain conditions are met. And that really is going to encompass both structured and unstructured data.”
Plotly, best known for its open-source graphing libraries and enterprise-grade data visualization platform Dash, helps organizations turn complex datasets into accessible visual insights. With its low-code capabilities, Dash enables data scientists and business analysts to build powerful, interactive dashboards using Python without needing to rely on front-end developers. Dash Enterprise supports secure, scalable deployments across large teams, making it a popular choice for banks, insurance firms, and governments.
Andy Wisbey brings nearly two decades of experience in enterprise software sales and has a deep understanding of the challenges financial institutions face when trying to operationalize AI. At Plotly, Wisbey focuses on helping clients across Europe use Dash Enterprise to enhance their data storytelling, improve regulatory compliance, and drive innovation. His passion lies in helping organizations bridge the gap between technical teams and business stakeholders through effective data visualization.
Money movement innovator Wise Platform has partnered with UK-based digital bank Zempler Bank.
The partnership will enable Zempler Bank to launch a new Outbound International Payments service that will allow its customers to make international payments in both USD and EUR.
Wise has 16 million individual and business users around the world. The London-based company made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2013.
Wise Platform has partnered with UK-based digital bank Zempler Bank, which helps small businesses, startups, entrepreneurs, and individual customers do business globally. Courtesy of the partnership, Zempler Bank will launch a new Outbound International Payments service that will empower more than 500,000 Zempler customers to send payments internationally in both USD and EUR directly within the Zempler app.
The integration will give Zempler customers fast, secure international payments when sending money to USD accounts in the US and when sending funds to EUR accounts inside the SEPA region. The integration will also provide transparent pricing and no hidden fees; Wise relies on the mid-market exchange rate without mark-up. Lastly, all transactions are handled within the Zempler app—though a desktop-based online banking version of the technology is expected to be available soon.
“We know that the launch of Outbound International Payments will be a popular benefit for many of our customers, particularly the ambitious small businesses looking to develop relationships with overseas suppliers and partners,” Zempler Bank CEO Rich Wagner said.
The partnership comes as small businesses face significant barriers to global expansion. One of the challenges is the complexity and cost of cross-border banking. Based on a survey commissioned by Wise from international research firm Edgar, Dunn & Company (EDC), small businesses in the UK sent more than £485 billion overseas last year, with the amount expected to grow to nearly £530 billion in 2025. Yet, at the same time, small businesses are expected to lose more than £5 billion in hidden fees this year alone.
“We understand that even the smallest businesses might want or need to work internationally, whether that’s importing a key product or component or outsourcing a task to an overseas expert,” Wagner added. “Many of our business customers are already using Wise, so it was a natural choice to partner with them to integrate that familiar functionality within our own simple-to-use banking app.”
Making its Finovate debut in 2013 as TransferWise, the company rebranded to Wise ten years later. Today, the UK-based firm offers an account that individuals and businesses can use to hold more than 50 different currencies, transfer funds between countries, and spend money overseas. Co-founded by Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus and launched in 2011, Wise currently boasts 16 million users around the world. The company processes £9 billion in cross-border transactions every month, saving consumers £1.5 billion a year.
Wise’s partnership news comes as the company announces the opening of a new, larger office in Singapore. The new office comes as Wise notes that its Singapore team has doubled since 2022. Additionally, Wise’s local customer base in the region grew by 30% last financial year.
“Singapore is a cornerstone of our operations in Asia Pacific, and this new office is a key milestone in strengthening our regional presence,” Shrawan Saraogi, Singapore CEO and APAC Head of Expansion at Wise, said. “It reflects our continued investment in the country’s fintech ecosystem and our mission to provide the best way to move and manage money globally.”
Plaid raised $575 million in a down round valuing the company at $6.1 billion, which is less than half its 2021 valuation.
The funding will support employee restricted stock units tax obligations and provide internal liquidity.
Plaid’s delayed IPO likely reflects US open banking uncertainty, as the CFPB finalizes its data access rule. Waiting for regulatory clarity and consumer awareness could position Plaid for a stronger public debut down the road.
Financial data network Plaidannounced it has brought in $575 million in a round led by new investor Franklin Templeton, with existing investors NEA and Ribbit Capital, as well as new investors BlackRock and Fidelity, also contributing.
The Venture Round is a sale of common stock; Plaid has directly issued the new shares to raise capital. In a company blog post announcement, Plaid CEO and Co-Founder Zach Perret said that the funds will be used “to address employee tax withholding obligations related to the conversion of expiring restricted stock units (RSUs) to shares, and to offer some liquidity to our current team.”
While today’s funds increase Plaid’s total funding to $1.3 billion, the round revealed a decreased valuation for the California-based fintech. Once valued at $13.4 billion during fintech’s brief hype days of 2021, Plaid’s valuation is currently less than half that, at $6.1 billion.
In explaining the significant gap in valuation to the Financial Times, Perret said, “In 2025, tech multiples have massively compressed between the time that we raised last and today. What I will say is that the fundamentals of the business underneath are dramatically stronger than they were in 2021. Revenue is much higher.”
Plaid’s $575 million comes at a time of growth for the company. Not only did the fintech expand its product suite, but it also saw an increase in organizations building with its account connection tools. In 2024, Plaid boasted positive operating margins, saw a revenue increase of more than 25%, and experienced an increase in both the number companies and markets it serves. As a result, more than 1 in 2 Americans have used Plaid.
If you are wondering when Plaid plans to IPO, you’re not alone. A company spokesperson told TechCrunch that Plaid will not go public this year, but it plans to continue tracking towards a public listing. “An IPO is certainly a part of the longer-term plan. We have not attached a specific timeline to it,” Perret told the Financial Times. “As I’ve said in the past, it will not be this year.”
Plaid’s decision to hold off on an IPO may also be a strategic move given the evolving state of open banking in the US. Unlike regions such as the UK and EU, where open banking is well-established and governed by clear regulatory frameworks such as PSD2, the US market remains in flux. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is currently working toward finalizing its proposed Personal Financial Data Rights rule under Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act, but the lack of formalized standards has created uncertainty for data aggregators like Plaid.
By delaying its public debut, Plaid may be seeking to ride out regulatory headwinds and position itself on more solid ground once clearer guidelines are in place. In addition to regulatory clarity, Plaid may also benefit from a recognition and understanding from mainstream consumers, many of whom have never heard the term “open banking.” Once regulations go into effect, banks will slowly begin in educate consumers on the benefits of open banking, and the concept of the value that Plaid brings will come to light. This regulatory clarity, combined with consumer understanding, could improve investor confidence and support a stronger valuation when the company ultimately decides to go public.
SumUp announced the launch of a wide range of new products and solutions at its annual event this week.
The new offerings include a proprietary Tap to Pay on Android solution, an upgraded Business Account, as well as enhancements to its point of sale solution.
London-based SumUp won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2013.
Ecommerce and payments platform SumUp took the occasion of its annual Beacon event to announce the launch of a range of new products designed to address a variety of merchant pain points. These solutions include an in-house Tap to Pay solution for Android, and a number of new features to its platform designed to help merchants of all sizes improve cash flow, efficiency, and customer engagement as they scale.
“Each of the products we launched demonstrates how the SumUp product ecosystem has grown to cover the critical needs of businesses at each stage of operations, from micro businesses to established ones with complex operations and many employees,” SumUp Chief Product Officer Anna Kuriakose said. “We believe that SumUp’s integrated ecosystem—which brings together the different aspects of running a business—is incomparable in the value it delivers to our customers.”
SumUp’s Tap to Pay on Android enables merchants to accept contactless payments directly from the thousands of phone brands and models that are not iPhones. The size and variety of the Android market, relative to iOS, has given Android a larger market share in EU countries in particular. SumUp’s proprietary Tap to Pay solution will provide a faster, more streamlined, and more reliable experience for merchants and consumers who have opted for Android. Further, SumUp’s solution features enhanced card detection, PIN entry to boost security at checkout, and delivers higher transaction success rates thanks to SumUp’s payment infrastructure and the absence of upfront costs.
Tap to Pay is currently active in Europe and Brazil. The company plans to introduce the technology in Chile, Colombia, Peru, the US, and Australia “soon.”
SumUp also unveiled a handful of new tools for merchants. These include enhancements to its SumUp Business Account. With SumUp’s new Business Account Plus, merchants will benefit from new features for multiple balances, as well as the ability to issue and track several cards and bulk transfers. The new Plus accounts are slated to go live across core markets later this month.
Additionally, SumUp introduced an upgrade to its Point of Sale solution called POS Plus. Designed with retailers such as restaurants and beauty salons in mind, POS Plus offers features such as PIN-based employee profiles, one-tap promotions, kitchen order management, and the ability to flag out-of-stock items. POS Plus is expected to be introduced to select EU markets in April.
Along with these new solutions, SumUp also announced the release of its new Solo Lite card reader, a new Kitchen Display System (KDS) to help streamline restaurant operations, and more.
Founded in 2012, SumUp won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2013 in London. In the years since then, the UK-based fintech has become the partner of more than four million merchants in 36 markets around the world. With 3,000+ employees in 20 offices globally, SumUp offers payment acceptance solutions, tools to help merchants better manage and save money, and innovative technologies to enhance order management and sales. Co-Founder Daniel Klein is SumUp’s CEO.
Most recently, SumUp announced a partnership with FreedomPay to provide retail and hospitality businesses with a payment system with offline capabilities—including for remote merchants. The system will also feature the ability to access a payment processing service from a single provider, regardless of location.
“At SumUp, we are dedicated to empowering merchants with payment solutions that are as straightforward as they are secure,” SumUp Commercial Lead Joey Oliver explained. “With FreedomPay as our partner, we’re advancing our commitment to making top-tier payment technology accessible and effective for every business.”
This year’s FinovateSpring conference in San Diego (May 7 through May 9) will feature six separate streams that will enable attendees to participate in deep-dives and extended conversations about some of the most dynamic areas of fintech and financial services.
From AI, customer experience, and open banking to innovations in lending and payments, our stream sessions will help professionals in fintech and financial services take better advantage of the trends that are driving innovation in our industry.
Tickets for FinovateSpring are available now! Visit our registration page today and take advantage of early-bird savings!
Artificial Intelligence
This stream will feature a fireside chat on the real use cases for AI in banking and financial services. Theodora Lau of Unconventional Ventures and Arvind Ayyala of Geodesic Investments will discuss how smart players are using AI to solve real pain points for their businesses and their customers.
This stream will also feature a Power Panel on how financial institutions can better leverage generative AI. This panel, moderated by Lau, will include insights from Chad Smith of Better.com, Alisa Rusanoff of Crescendo Asset Management, and Tamara Zaichkowsky of Acrisure.
Customer Experience
The Customer Experience stream will include a keynote address from Sean Albertson, Founder and CEO of CX4ROCKS on the battle for customer trust and ways that banks can make every department responsible for customer experience. The Customer Experience stream will also feature a Special Address from Kyle Mack, CEO and Co-Founder, Middesk.
The Customer Experience Power Panel will examine how financial institutions can deliver outstanding omni-channel CX and move away from a siloed approach to blend human and digital CX. This panel will include Kaushal Pandia of U.S. Bank and Glenn Borok of Jump Capital. Beyond the Arc CEO Steven Ramirez will moderate.
Future Banking
The Future Banking stream will feature a keynote address from Tiffani Montez, Principal Analyst, Insider Intelligence, on “The Bank of 2030: How to move from a product-centric design to life-stage banking and compete with big tech companies that are already experience-led.”
Shining a spotlight on the issue of bank modernization, this Power Panel will examine how banks can modernize their tech estates to be fit for the digital future. The panelists will discuss the key questions—and answers—around technology, cloud, business and operational models, risk, talent, and culture. Moderated by JT Thykattil, VP & Research Director, Forrester Research, the panel will include Aditya Vikram Singh of Capital One and Katie Quilligan of BankTech Ventures.
Future Lending
The Future Lending stream will include a keynote address on capturing the opportunity of SME lending and how financial institutions can successfully engage this market.
The Future Lending stream will also feature a Power Panel on the rise of embedded lending. The panelists will discuss how embedded lending is moving beyond Buy Now, Pay Later and discuss ways financial institutions can participate in the growing ecommerce trend. The panel will include Diksha Gera of Bloomberg Intelligence, Ibrahim Al Suwaidi of DCM, Jamie Twiss of Beforepay, and Rob Seidman of U.S. Bank Avvance.
Future Payments
The Future Payments stream will include a keynote address from Lindsay Lehr, Managing Director, Payments and Commerce Market Intelligence (PCMI), titled, “Are Real-Time Payments Ready to Take Off?” Lehr’s address will answer the question “is faster always better?” and look at the challenges involved when building products on top of RTP and FedNow rails.
The Future Payments stream will also feature a Special Address: “Navigating Regulation Uncertainty While Gearing Up for Growth.” Patrick Dix, Vice President, Client & Association Engagement, SHAZAM, will share his insights on this topic and the importance of “picking the right payments partner.”
Moderated by Rutger van Faassen of InformationBanker, the Future Payments Power Panel will discuss how new technologies, new competitors, new business models, and embedded payments will shape the future of the payments market. Sharing their insights will be Ipsita Basu of Shopify, Jim Colassano of The Clearing House, and June Yuan of Wise Platform.
Open Banking
Our Open Banking stream features a keynote address on the future of open banking, a deep dive into Rule 1033, and a look at how open data will impact the US banking industry.
The Open Banking stream will also include a Power Panel on compelling use cases for open banking in the US and what financial institutions in the US can learn from the success of open banking in the rest of the world. Joining the Power Panel will be Nirvikar Jain of Woodside Capital Partners.
Rocket Companies has announced its second acquisition in as many weeks. The Michigan-based company is buying Mr. Cooper, one of the largest non-bank mortgage servicers and mortgage lenders in the US. The deal is expected to close in an all-stock transaction of $9.4 billion in equity value, based on an 11.0x exchange ratio.
Mr. Cooper, which demoed its mobile app at FinovateSpring 2018, was founded in 1994 to challenge the conventional mortgage experience to bring borrowers a better, more straightforward home buying process. With 9,000 employees, the Texas-based company serves more than six million homeowners with its refinancing and mortgage products.
“Mr. Cooper has been on a journey to transform the homeownership experience, and we have built the most advanced servicing platform in the mortgage industry,” said Mr. Cooper Group Chairman and CEO Jay Bray. “By combining Mr. Cooper and Rocket, we will form the strongest mortgage company in the industry, offering an end-to-end homeownership experience backed by leading technology and grounded in customer care. I am deeply grateful for the dedication of the Mr. Cooper team and look forward to our continued work as we lead our industry into the future of homeownership.”
Once finalized, Rocket Companies and Mr. Cooper will serve a combined 10 million clients with a servicing book of $2.1 trillion, which represents one in six mortgages in America. Rocket will leverage the acquisition to bring its mortgage recapture capabilities to this new, enlarged client base. This will help produce higher loan volume, drive long-term client relationships, and provide greater recurring revenue while lowering client acquisition costs.
Holding a significantly larger servicing portfolio will help Rocket sustain its retention and 83% recapture rate. And by attaching Rocket’s title, closing, and appraisal services to Mr. Cooper’s existing originations, Rocket anticipates it will generate $100 million in additional pre-tax revenue, as well as an extra $400 million in savings from streamlining operations, expense, and technology investments.
When the deal is complete, Mr. Cooper Group’s Chairman and CEO Jay Bray will become President and CEO of Rocket Mortgage, while Dan Gilbert will remain Chairman of Rocket Companies. The company’s board will consist of 11 members, nine from Rocket’s board and two from Mr. Cooper’s.
“Servicing is a critical pillar of homeownership—alongside home search and mortgage origination,” said Rocket CEO Varun Krishna. “With the right data and AI infrastructure we will deliver the right products at the right time. That’s how we build lifelong relationships, by proactively unlocking benefits and meeting needs before they arise. We look forward to welcoming Mr. Cooper’s nearly 7 million clients.”
Today’s announcement comes just two weeks after Rocket unveiled plans to acquire real estate brokerage website Redfin for $1.75 billion. Together, the two deals fuel Rocket’s vision of owning the entire homeownership journey—from search to close and beyond.
With Redfin, Rocket gains a home search platform and a network of real estate agents; with Mr. Cooper, it secures a large servicing portfolio and deep operational infrastructure. By consolidating core pieces of real estate and lending processes under one roof, Rocket is positioning itself not just as a mortgage lender, but as a full-stack digital homeownership platform with the potential to recreate how Americans buy, finance, and manage their homes.
Atomic has raised $10 million in a strategic round led by Capital One Ventures, Citi Ventures, and FNB Corporation, bringing its total funding to nearly $79 million.
Atomic provides APIs that connect payroll and HRIS systems to financial institutions, supporting services like direct deposit switching, income verification, and subscription management.
With backing from top banks and FNB as both an investor and a client, Atomic aims to fuel deposit growth and power the next wave of personalized, real-time financial services.
Financial connectivity fintech Atomic is the latest fintech basking in this year’s fintech spring. The Utah-based company announced it has raised $10 million, adding to its $68.6 million previously raised, bringing its total funding to almost $79 million.
Today’s strategic round comes from Capital One Ventures, Citi Ventures, and FNB Corporation, which join Atomic’s previous investors Greylock, Portage Ventures, ATX Venture Partners, Mercato Partners, and Core Innovation Capital.
Atomic, founded in 2019, aims to connect consumer data with modern financial solutions. The company partners with eight of the top 10 US financial institutions, along with many leading fintechs, to provide seamless access to a suite of services—including direct deposit switching, income and employment verification, payment method updates, and subscription management—through integrations with payroll systems, HRIS platforms, and merchants.
Atomic said the new funding will fuel both innovation and expansion. The company plans to deepen its investment in existing solutions while also accelerating the development of new products to better serve its financial institution and fintech partners.
“We’re excited to have these industry leaders join us on our mission to champion upward financial mobility,” said Atomic Co-founder and CEO Jordan Wright. “Together, we’re building the infrastructure that will drive the next generation of financial products and unlock deposit growth, as well as improved experiences for our customers and the customers that work with them.”
In addition to investing in Atomic, FNB is also a client of the fintech. FNB tapped Atomic to lower acquisition costs, increase lifetime value, and become consumers’ primary financial hub.
“Through our omnichannel Clicks-to-Bricks strategy and eStore, FNB is driven to remain a banking industry leader in client engagement and innovation. We will continue to invest in and develop creative technology solutions that bring the full array of banking products and services to our digital platform and branch system,” said FNB Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Vincent J. Delie, Jr. “Our investment in Atomic is another investment in the future of banking. By integrating their solutions with eStore, we can offer our customers more personalized, real-time financial services that meet their needs in today’s fast-paced world.”
Atomic most recently demoed at FinovateSpring 2024, where the company showcased PayLink, a tool to simplify subscription management by allowing consumers to manage, modify, and optimize their recurring payments and subscriptions within their bank.
Tennessee-based paytech Transcard has brought generative and agentic AI capabilities to its vendor network management solution, SMART Exchange.
The new capabilities will automate onboarding and Know Your Business (KYB) processes to modernize B2B payments.
Founded in 2005, Transcard made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2016.
Payments technology company Transcard has enhanced its vendor network management solution, SMART Exchange, by adding generative and agentic AI capabilities. The new capabilities will automate onboarding and Know Your Business (KYB) processes, modernizing B2B payments with an improved user experience and transforming the way buyers and suppliers integrate and orchestrate payments.
“I’m excited about the modern enhancements and agentic AI capabilities we are adding to our SMART Exchange payment solution,” Transcard CEO Greg Bloh said. “The new streamlined onboarding process and dedicated portals are set to revolutionize how businesses interact, pay, and manage their vendors.”
Transcard’s AI-powered solution removes the need for using call centers for vendor onboarding and enablement. In addition to streamlining and automating the supplier KYB process, the technology benefits buyers by making vendor information and payment instructions easier to manage, and integrates seamlessly with ERP or systems of record to ensure data synchronization with updates in near real-time. The enhancements provide suppliers with a streamlined onboarding process that enables them to validate business information, choose payment preferences, receive payments, and more. Suppliers also can access early financing options to boost cash flow and leverage a self-service portal that helps them manage business information, historical transactions, documentation, and payment preferences.
“We crafted these enhancements to address the struggles daunting buyer and supplier payments today and we’re excited to provide our customers with a modern, digital B2B solution powered by AI,” Bloh added.
Thanks to the addition of generative AI and agentic AI capabilities, Transcard’s SMART Exchange platform will provide proactive recommendations on trends and ways that companies can optimize cash flow and automate manual tasks. The solution can be embedded within a customer’s ERP or core system and connects to existing bank accounts to support payment orchestration for businesses regardless of size. Part of Transcard’s SMART Suite family of embedded payment solutions, the technology supports disbursements, receivables, account-to-account (A2A) payments, cross-border payments, AI insights, and supply chain financing.
Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Transcard made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2016. Today, Transcard has served more than 500 companies and offers 50+ separate payment functions. The company began the year announcing an expansion to Canada and, shortly afterwards, unveiled its multi-party lienholder payment solution, which streamlines the multi-party payment process when a lienholder is involved.
“Designed in collaboration with major insurers, mortgage servicers, and banks, we look forward to transforming the current lienholder endorsement process to an improved digital experience that reduces weeks to minutes,” Transcard EVP and Global Head of Insurance Hodgen Mainda said.
The challenge of third-party risk in financial services was one of the biggest stories in 2024. From the fallout from the Synapse bankruptcy to the data breaches at firms such as Fidelity and Finastra, banks, fintechs, and financial services alike have been put on notice to put greater scrutiny on whom and how they forge partnerships.
These challenges have only become more intense this year. While regulations are tightening in Europe and the UK, a more permissive regulatory environment is developing in the US. How can banks, fintechs, and financial services companies navigate this emerging landscape to bring new products and services to customers while ensuring that their data and finances are safe?
We interviewed Jenna Wells, Chief Operating Officer with Supply Wisdom, to talk about the issue of third-party risk management in financial services in 2025. Wells talks about how third-party risk in financial services is evolving, and what companies need to do in order to better manage it.
Headquartered in New York and founded in 2017, Supply Wisdom made its Finovate debut at FinovateFall 2022. The company helps businesses better manage risk and build operational resilience. Supply Wisdom provide continuous full-spectrum third-party and location risk intelligence and risk actions in real-time to prevent disruptions, enhance risk management efficiency, and lower costs. Tom Thimot is CEO.
Our conversation with Jenna Wells is also the final installment of Finovate’s commemoration of Women’s History Month for 2025. Previous interviews include our Q&As with Tracy Moore of Fenergo and with Stav Levi-Neumark of Alta.
What are the current challenges your customers are facing?
Jenna Wells: The biggest challenge our customers face today is the sheer complexity and speed at which third-party risks are evolving. As a whole, companies are under immense pressure to monitor their vendors, suppliers, and other third parties more effectively across financial, cyber, ESG, geopolitical, and operational risk domains without adding significant costs or delays to their business processes. Traditional risk assessment methods, which rely on periodic reviews and self-reported questionnaires, are no longer sufficient in an era where threats emerge in real time and rarely any warning.
Additionally, companies are struggling with regulatory compliance, particularly with new frameworks like DORA in the EU, new AI risks and regulations, and emerging cyber risk mandates. Many organizations simply lack the tools, resources, or expertise to stay ahead of these challenges.
Lastly, the evolving geopolitical landscape and regulatory environment require companies to keep an eye out for location-specific risks on top of the traditional domains. Monitoring third parties alone is no longer sufficient—you must monitor the locations that they are operating from!
Can you talk about the challenge of third-party risk specifically, which became a major concern in 2024?
Wells: Third-party risk became a critical concern in 2024, exposing just how fragile global supply chains can be. This was starkly evident in global events like the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore and earthquakes in Taiwan, which disrupted key transportation routes and severely impacted businesses dependent on the affected port. Companies with suppliers, logistics partners, and critical infrastructure tied to these regions faced massive operational slowdowns, financial losses, and regulatory challenges. These disruptions reinforced a key lesson: risks stemming from a single geographic point of failure can have widespread consequences across all industries.
Static, periodic risk assessments are no longer enough. The new standard is continuous, real-time risk monitoring that provides visibility into financial stability, cybersecurity, compliance, and operational resilience—not just for direct suppliers, but across the entire supply network.
This shift is particularly crucial in industries reliant on complex, geographically dispersed supply chains, where a localized disaster—whether infrastructure failure, geopolitical instability, or extreme weather—can ripple outward, affecting entire markets. The challenge is no longer just about assessing third parties. It’s about identifying vulnerabilities deep in the supply chain.
How does Supply Wisdom help companies manage these risks?
Wells: Supply Wisdom provides real-time, AI-driven continuous monitoring across seven critical risk domains: financial, operational, compliance, cyber, sustainability, Nth party, and location-based risks. Instead of relying on outdated, self-reported assessments, or the need to use multiple tools to monitor single domains, we aggregate and analyze data from hundreds of thousands of open sources, giving our customers a live, always-on view of their third-party supplier and critical ecosystem.
By leveraging AI to turn massive amounts of data into actionable intelligence, we enable organizations to identify emerging risks early, mitigate issues proactively, and avoid costly disruptions. Our platform reduces the manual burden of risk management, allowing teams to focus on strategic decision-making rather than chasing data.
Supply Wisdom recently published its top 10 predictions for third-party risk management in 2025. Of those predictions, which do you think is the least conventional?
Wells: One of the more unconventional predictions is the rise of “Nth-party accountability” as a regulatory and business priority. Until now, companies have focused primarily on direct third-party risks, but regulators and stakeholders are increasingly scrutinizing deeper layers of the supply chain. This includes fourth, fifth, and even sixth-party risks.
As supply chains become more interconnected and reliant on subcontractors, understanding who your third parties depend on and where they are located has become just as critical as assessing the vendors themselves. Geographical risks like political instability, natural disasters, regulatory changes, and ESG concerns can have cascading impacts throughout the supply chain, even if they originate at the Nth-party level.
We anticipate that in 2025, organizations will be expected to not only monitor but also take responsibility for the risk posture of their vendors’ vendors. This requires real-time visibility into where these extended third parties operate and the regional risks that may affect them. This shift demands an entirely new approach to risk visibility, and Supply Wisdom is already helping companies address this challenge with location-based monitoring, real-time risk intelligence, and deep Nth-party insights.
What role do technologies like AI and strategies like predictive risk modeling play in Supply Wisdom’s approach to risk management and intelligence?
Wells: AI and predictive risk modeling are foundational to how we help companies stay ahead of emerging threats. Our AI-powered platform continuously scans and analyzes millions of risk signals across financial, cyber, ESG, geopolitical, and operational domains, detecting anomalies and trends that may indicate potential threats before they materialize into full-blown crises.
Predictive risk modeling and trend analysis takes this further by using historical data, machine learning algorithms, and real-time signals to forecast risks before they impact business operations. For example, we can predict financial distress in a vendor before it becomes public knowledge or identify early signs of operational instability in a supplier’s key locations.
In short, Supply Wisdom stands for proactive risk management and innovation. We’re known in the industry as the only full-stack risk intelligence platform that provides real-time, continuous monitoring with actionable insights.
A wave of new regulatory policies is coming, particularly in the EU. Are you optimistic about the new policies? Do you feel as if organizations are ready to comply?
Wells: I am optimistic about these policies because they are pushing organizations towards a higher standard of operational resilience and risk management. Regulations like DORA in the EU are reinforcing the idea that businesses cannot afford to be passive when it comes to third-party risk—they need real-time, continuous oversight. However, I don’t think most organizations are fully prepared for these changes.
A majority of organizations do not have a complete inventory of their third parties or outsourced services and, without this, they cannot ensure compliance with these regulations. Unfortunately, it’s most likely that these companies still rely on outdated, static assessment models that won’t meet compliance requirements.
The good news is that regulatory clarity is driving investment in solutions like Supply Wisdom, which help organizations not only meet compliance mandates but also improve their overall risk posture in the process.
In the US, there is more uncertainty about which direction regulations are likely to go. What do you see happening with financial services and fintech regulation in the US this year?
Wells: If US firms want to compete and do business in Europe; they need to comply with those specific mandates. But unlike the EU—which has taken a structured approach with DORA—the US regulatory landscape is evolving in a more fragmented manner. However, we expect to see increased scrutiny from agencies like the SEC, OCC, and CFPB on third-party risk, particularly in areas like cyber resilience and AI disclosures.
The financial services and fintech sectors will likely see more pressure around vendor risk management, with a greater emphasis on continuous monitoring, and incident reporting requirements. As regulatory guidance increases, companies will need to be proactive in adopting best practices that align with global compliance trends, rather than waiting for enforcement actions to dictate their next steps.
What are your near-term goals for Supply Wisdom?
Wells: My immediate focus is on accelerating customer adoption of continuous risk monitoring. We want to ensure that organizations not only understand the importance of real-time risk intelligence through continuous monitoring, but also have the tools to integrate it seamlessly into their existing workflows.
Additionally, I’m prioritizing scaling our operations to meet the growing demand for proactive risk management solutions. That means enhancing our AI capabilities, monitoring for AI as an emerging risk, expanding our risk intelligence coverage, and strengthening our partnerships with other industry leaders.
What can we expect from Supply Wisdom in 2025?
Wells: 2025 will be a transformational year for Supply Wisdom and the third-party risk management industry as a whole. We are investing heavily in AI-driven risk prediction, enhanced regulatory compliance automation, and planning ways to go deeper and wider into Nth-party risk visibility.
You can also expect to see more partnerships with technology and service providers to create a more integrated risk management ecosystem. Our goal is to make continuous risk monitoring the new standard, so that businesses can operate with greater confidence, resilience, and agility in an increasingly complex world.
Chime Enterprise launched Chime Workplace, offering employers a single platform with financial wellness tools and an aggregated view of employee financial health.
The suite includes tools for income management, savings, credit building, and an employee rewards program modeled after airline miles programs.
Chime is expanding its fintech offerings significantly, having recently launched premium memberships, instant micro-loans, and free tax filing to attract underbanked users and enhance financial inclusion.
Chime Enterprise, the enterprise division of the neobank Chime, announced the launch of Chime Workplace, a financial wellness services suite available to employers and employees.
Chime Workplace offers free financial tools with workforce financial health insights for employers. The newly launched platform takes existing Chime tools and brings them to employees via the employer portal. Among the tools included are pay and income management tools, a high-yield savings account, credit health and credit building tools, and an employee rewards program that is modeled after airline miles loyalty programs.
“Employers have told us their biggest frustration with existing financial wellness programs is that they don’t make an impact or empower employees to get to the next step in their journey,” said Chief of Chime Enterprise Jason Lee. “Multiple vendors, logins, and endless apps only compound this problem and, ultimately, hinder effectiveness. Chime Workplace works with employers to solve these challenges by delivering one trusted app that meets employees where they are and gets them to where they want to be.”
While the financial wellness capabilities launching within the employer portal are not new, the employer visibility piece is. The financial health insights piece shows employers aggregated insights into their employees’ financial health, including their savings growth, credit health improvement, and engagement with the tools. These stats can be important for employers, as two out of three workers consider financial health the top area where they seek employer support, and nearly three-quarters of financially stressed employees prefer an employer that genuinely cares for their financial well-being.
Chime Enterprise was formed in 2024 after Chime acquired employee rewards and loyalty platform Salt Labs. Chime simultaneously unveiled news of its own today. The company is launching a premium membership tier called Chime+ that will offer a higher savings rate, custom cashback offers from retailers, and expedited customer support.
These changes come in addition to the California-based company’s launch last week of Instant Loans, a micro-lending product offering up to $500 instantly with a fixed interest rate. Additionally, the company announced a fee-free tax filing service in partnerships with April and Column Tax in January.
Chime is obviously working hard to become a robust competitor in the challenger banking field. Deeper than that, however, the fintech is positioning itself to capture the attention of underbanked individuals. By offering a seamless user experience, financial wellness solutions, and tailored financial products such as micro-loans and workplace financial wellness tools, Chime is strategically aligning itself to attract both employers and employees alike. As Chime continues to diversify its offerings with premium memberships and enhanced app functionality, it’s clear the company aims not only to expand its footprint but also to solidify its role as a trusted partner in helping underserved communities achieve financial stability.
