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Finovate Blog
Tracking fintech, banking & financial services innovations since 1994
Money transfer company Paysend has raised $65 million in funding. The round featured a strategic investment from partner Mastercard.
The investment adds to Paysend’s $125 million Series B round, which closed in 2021.
Paysend made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in London in 2016.
International money transfer company Paysend has secured $65 million in funding. The round included a strategic investment from Mastercard, which announced a partnership with Paysend earlier this year. That alliance helped enhance cross-border payments for SMEs by way of its Open Payments Network (OPN).
Existing investors Infravia Growth Capital, One Peak, and Hermes GPE Innovation Fund also participated in the round. This week’s investment follows the company’s $125 million Series B round, which closed in 2021.
A Finovate alum since its debut at FinovateEurope in London in 2016, Paysend provides fund transfers to more than 170 countries. The company’s platform ensures transparency by displaying currency rates, transfer fees, and the receivable amount before each transfer. Paysend users can make transfers via bank cards, accounts, and even mobile numbers. Money transfers are certified by Visa, Mastercard, China UnionPay, and are PCI DSS certified, as well.
“This significant investment is a testament to the strength of Paysend’s vision,” Paysend CEO and co-founder Ronnie Millar said, “to build the best-in-class cross border solutions for businesses and consumers, making money transfer simple for everyone.”
Paysend’s funding news comes just days after the company announced a partnership with CalQRisk. The company offers a governance, risk management, and compliance (GRC) solution that Paysend will use to enhance its current risk management processes. In October, Paysend teamed up with fellow Finovate alum Western Union. This partnership provided Western Union customers with a new direct to card payout option.
Paysend is headquartered in London, U.K. The company entered the Israeli market this summer after partnering with Israel-based fintech Okoora.
Digital identity verification company Mitekannounced a new partner today. The California-based company has teamed up with compliance, credit risk, and lending solutions company Abrigo to help the firm’s bank clients access technology to help protect themselves against financial crime.
Specifically, Abrigo is seeking to mitigate check fraud, which is not only prevalent among banks, but is also costly. While the technology behind paper checks seems antiquated, fraud techniques for the payment method are not. According to FinCEN, check fraud suspicious activity report (SAR) filings increased 94% over the course of 2021. Last year, the number of SAR filings exceeded 680,000. “The sophistication of fraud and synthetic checks has never been more concerning,” explained Mitek SVP and GM Michael Diamond.
Abrigo will offer its bank customers access to Mitek’s Check Fraud Defender to help them stop fraudulent activities around checks. Mitek’s Check Fraud Defender uses imaging science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to analyze the images of the checks and verify authenticity to reduce fraud losses.
“By combining Mitek’s cutting-edge technology with Abrigo’s industry-leading platform, we can provide our 2,400 customers with a powerful solution to help protect their institutions and customers from financial crimes,” said Abrigo CEO Jay Blandford.
Mitek was founded in 1986 and offers technology for mobile check deposit, new account opening, identity verification, and more. The company’s solutions are used by more than 7,900 organizations and its mobile check deposit and account opening tools reach more than 80 million consumers. Mitek is publicly listed on the NASDAQ under the ticker MITK and has a current market capitalization of $517 million.
Earlier this fall, Mitek partnered with Equifax to advance the company’s biometric authentication and liveness detection capabilities.
Core banking platform 10x Banking has formed a strategic partnership with B2B lending technology company Trade Ledger.
The two companies will offer banks and alternative lenders solutions to help them better serve small and medium-sized businesses.
10x Banking won Best of Show in its FinovateEurope debut earlier this year.
Cloud-native core banking platform 10x Banking and B2B lending technology company Trade Ledger announced a strategic partnership this week. The two fintechs will work together to offer banks and alternative lenders a composable banking solution to help them better serve their SME customers.
Specifically, the collaboration will enable FIs to introduce a variety of new, more complex, working capital solutions to market. These include invoice, receivables, and supply chain finance products. A real-time API connection between Trade Ledger’s data platform and 10x Banking’s SuperCore platform allows credit applications to be linked to the creation of a new 10x customer account. Trade Ledger manages the loan application, risk assessment, and the risk and collateral management operations. 10x Banking handles account opening and the credit account life cycle.
“Automating integration between credit applications and account creation allows banks to deliver a superior customer experience, while also driving operational efficiency,” 10x Banking’s VP and Global Head of GTM and Partnerships, Frederico Venturieri said. “This collaboration reflects our shared vision of leveraging technology to revolutionize the business banking landscape.”
The strategic partnership seeks to close what the company called in a statement “the global working capital credit gap.” A report by Allianz estimated this liquidity gap to be $30 trillion worldwide, with SMEs impacted the most. Among the culprits are high acquisition costs, which make lenders reticent to take on small business customers. Another issue is an overly complex and lengthy application process. The partnership between 10x Banking and Trade Ledger responds to both the challenges of account opening, as well as the problem of access to working capital.
“Combining our lending automation capabilities with 10x’s core banking expertise, we can redefine how financial institutions onboard customers and manage the lending process,” Trade Ledger VP of Channels Alan Walsh said.
Founded in 2016 and headquartered in London, U.K., 10x Banking made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in March. The company won Best of Show for its 10x SuperCore Cards solution that enables banks to build a card proposition in minutes. More recently, 10x Banking has forged partnerships with compliant open banking API technology company Ozone API and mortgage sales and origination software provider Iress. In August, the company introduced new Chief Product Officer Okan Ozaltin, formerly of Signifyd and Fiserv.
10x Banking has raised more than $252 million in funding according to Crunchbase. Antony Jenkins is CEO.
Looking to demo your latest fintech innovation? Applications are now being accepted for demoing companies at FinovateEurope in London, February 27 and 28, 2024. Visit our FinovateEurope hub for more!
Taulia is launching a virtual payment card solution for its users.
The company is partnering with Mastercard for the new offering, which will be integrated across major ERP solutions.
Degussa Bank and HSBC are piloting the launch.
Supply chain finance company Taulia is creating another payment option for its users this month. The California-based company is launching a virtual payment card in partnership with Mastercard and has integrated the new tool across major ERP solutions.
Taulia clients will be able to generate virtual cards through Mastercard upon request, which will save time and enable businesses to offer a better customer experience to their employees. In turn, the business itself will have more options to pay suppliers and control employee spending. Even suppliers will benefit, as they will see improved cash flow and better payments visibility.
The virtual payment card solution offers a unique, “bring your own bank” feature that allows Taulia clients to deploy virtual cards and extend the benefits already offered by their existing banks. This convenience comes thanks to Mastercard’s virtual card platform, which connects to more than 80 banks across the globe. Degussa Bank and HSBC are piloting Taulia’s launch.
“We’re pleased to be embracing innovation through our partnerships with Taulia and Mastercard, which will now provide our clients with an integrated virtual card payment solution within the Taulia platform,” said HSBC Global Head of Commercial Cards Product Management Arati Kurien. “Embedding HSBC’s financial services into the systems that our clients use day to day is a key focus for us.”
Taulia was founded in 2009 to help companies make use of cash tied up in their payables, receivables, and inventory. Taulia maintains a network of 3+ million businesses to fuel its clients with more working capital, support their suppliers with early payment, and help them build sustainable supply chains. Taulia processes more than $500 billion each year for its clients, which include Airbus, AstraZeneca, and Nissan.
In the coming years, we’re likely to see more of this embedded approach to supply chain financing. Fintechs will likely explore integrating supply chain financing tools into existing business solutions, as Taulia is doing within ERP solutions. We can also expect the inverse, as well, as fintechs embed other financial services, such as insurance, directly into existing supply chain platforms.
Taulia was acquired by SAP in 2022 for an undisclosed amount. Cedric Bru is CEO.
What are the biggest challenges facing banks when it comes to modernization and digital transformation? We checked in with Charbel Safadi, President, Modernization and Transformation, with Zafin, to hear his thoughts on what banks and other financial institutions are doing to future-proof their businesses and better serve their customers.
Zafin made its Finovate debut in 2017 at FinovateFall. The company offers a cloud-based product and pricing platform that simplifies core modernization for the world’s biggest banks. Zafin’s platform enables business teams to collaborate in the design and management of pricing, products, and packages. At the same time, the platform empowers technology teams to streamline core banking systems.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, and founded in 2002, Zafin includes Wells Fargo, HSBC, and CIBC among its customers.
When you look at the current landscape for banks, what is their biggest technological challenge right now?
Charbel Safadi: The predominant technological challenge facing banks in the current landscape is the accumulation of legacy technology platforms that impede adaptability and innovation. These platforms, built over several decades, create a significant tech debt, hindering banks from promptly responding to changing market demands. This stands in contrast to agile fintech startups, unburdened by such legacy systems.
For banks, the challenge lies in modernizing these deeply entrenched platforms to enable transformative experiences and stay competitive in the rapidly evolving financial landscape. Despite significant time and financial investments, the traditional “rip and replace” approach has proven unsuccessful. This tech debt, rather than a lack of inherent competitiveness, is the primary obstacle for banks in delivering compelling value propositions, necessitating a forward-looking, progressive modernization strategy.
You just recently joined Zafin and are part of the company’s new transformation and modernization division. Tell us about why you joined the company and what this new division is all about.
Safadi: Zafin’s mission is to empower banks in reshaping their business models and updating technology platforms. As a leader in our organization, my role is to align our vision with clients’ business goals, fostering a cohesive team that mirrors banks’ transformation strategies. With a background in financial services consulting and experience with global banks, I recognize the market’s strong focus for the next decade and Zafin’s potential impact.
Being part of Zafin’s journey excites me, given its pivotal role in contributing to clients’ transformation agendas. Zafin’s strategic position emphasizes technology and business platforms, distinguishing it in the market. This allows us to provide significant value, aiding clients in kickstarting technology modernization while transforming their business models.
I am confident in our ability to guide clients through this journey, making a substantial impact and offering the necessary tools for success. Zafin’s forward-thinking strategy, coupled with our cohesive team and inclusive culture, solidified my decision to be part of this transformative organization.
Tell us about the launch of Zafin Studio. What challenge will it help Zafin customers resolve?
Safadi:Zafin Studio represents a significant advancement in the modernization of technology platforms, specifically addressing the challenge of crafting forward-looking propositions tailored to each client’s unique values and needs. Unlike existing solutions in the market, Zafin Studio adopts a comprehensive approach to banking propositions. Leveraging the Product and Pricing Index (PPI) tool, it rapidly gathers, filters, and segments data and insights for analysis from leading global banks, bridging a crucial market gap. This empowers various stakeholders within a bank, from business users to product managers and department heads.
Our goal is to equip them with the tools to comprehend market dynamics, enabling swift research on top banks worldwide and insights into their product designs and rate structures. The collected information is entirely external and does not involve customer data. Through Product Explorer, Zafin Studio unravels the intricacies of product offerings, merging external market research with an internal product explorer. The drag-and-drop feature of Proposition Canvas in turn empowers banks to seamlessly design and implement cutting-edge functionalities. Essentially, Zafin Studio acts as a governing methodology and framework, revolutionizing banks’ transformation approaches. We eagerly anticipate our clients utilizing Zafin Studio to elevate co-created value propositions to new heights.
Zafin is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. What are some of the top concerns for Canadian banks that might differ from those of banks in the U.S., the U.K., or Europe?
Safadi: In Canada, the banking landscape differs significantly from the U.S., U.K. and Europe due to population size and the number of institutions. Canadian banks are primarily concerned with population dynamics, competition, and the regulatory framework. The evolving regulatory landscape indicates that open banking is on the horizon in Canada. This, combined with the rise of innovative fintech firms free from legacy technology constraints, compels banks to prepare for the coming years.
While fintech companies lack the technological burdens of traditional institutions, they also lack the established customer base of incumbents. To capitalize on this, banks must pivot towards a more horizontally aligned approach to product development and proposition modeling. This involves adopting a holistic view of the Canadian customer, encompassing their entire financial journey and value chain. By consolidating data from diverse systems, including mortgages, lending, and deposits, banks can craft compelling value propositions that genuinely resonate with consumers. Prioritizing strong relationships over sheer customer volume is crucial. This means tailoring pricing, offers, and incentives to match the customer’s entire banking journey. This forward-thinking approach ensures sustained delivery of substantial value and the preservation of loyalty within the existing client base, thereby upholding a competitive edge rooted in customer trust.
Speaking of international activity, Zafin recently announced a new operational center in Dubai and the upcoming release of various AI-based solutions for the Middle Eastern market. Tell us about some of the top trends in fintech in the Middle East?
Safadi: Zafin is making significant investments in Generative AI, with Zafin Copilot serving as a central component in our technology portfolio. This tool is pivotal for both external client interactions and internal team processes. We’ve dedicated significant efforts to explore how AI can enhance product and pricing modeling, effectively harnessing continuously generated data, including customer details, transactions, and relationship data. We’ve made it a priority to equip our clients with the technological capabilities needed for full access to the rich data set within our platform.
Globally, AI forms a fundamental part of our strategy, with a notable emphasis on the Middle Eastern marketplace. This region’s substantial investments in AI makes it an ideal ground to explore dynamic pricing, especially in comparison to markets with stricter pricing regulations.
Our core principles of trust, transparency, and fairness in banking guide all AI development initiatives. We ensure strict adherence to regulatory frameworks across global markets. AI is viewed as an intrinsic element of our entire platform, offering benefits to our customers, end consumers, and internal teams while aligning with our commitment to ethical and regulatory standards.
What trends in fintech and financial services are currently being underestimated in terms of their potential impact in the next few years?
Safadi: Many organizations are considering the adoption of Generative AI technologies. The central question revolves around how AI can effectively be utilized to reassess and improve product design, customizing offerings for each individual. This transition not only poses a challenge but also presents an opportunity. AI has the potential to centralize and grant access to the everyday data encountered by most organizations. The focus should now pivot towards creating dynamic product offerings that align with the unique value of each individual, taking into account the customer’s current life stage, priorities, and preferences.
In addition to well-explored areas like AI, another crucial emphasis lies in the design of the next-generation product architecture. Through global discussions and collaborations with banking clients, trailblazing organizations such as Zafin are actively shaping a horizontal model for the next generation of product architecture in financial institutions. This architecture should span the entire spectrum of banking, delivering a tailored and dynamic experience precisely meeting the customer’s needs at any given moment. Banks should persist in prioritizing depth and loyalty in customer relationships, recognizing their significance in the forthcoming years.
What can we expect from Zafin over the balance of 2023 and into 2024?
Safadi: Zafin is firmly dedicated to executing its strategy, aiming to provide substantial value to our clients. This dedication empowers them to not only modernize their technology platforms but also to transform their business models. Our intense focus revolves around delivering the essential technology, capabilities, and skills required for both these endeavors. Through robust partnerships within our deep ecosystem, our goal is to offer comprehensive customer modernization journeys.
We strive to spare our clients from spending excessive time — potentially three to four years or even longer — struggling to overhaul their technology landscape without having the capacity to contemplate new product architectures and business models. Everything we undertake is geared towards facilitating a low-risk approach to modernize their technology platforms, unlocking the potential to construct next-generation product architectures promptly.
Simultaneously, we remain committed to upholding trust, transparency, and fairness in how our clients deliver products and services to their client base.
Crastorehill is acquiring two Germany-based open banking players, ndgit and Qwist.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Crastorehill has appointed Matt Colebourne as CEO.
Fintech Capital-owned Crastorehillannounced this week it has acquired two German open banking players, ndgit and Qwist (formerly known as finleap). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Warsaw-based Crastorehill builds data analytics products for financial services. The company’s strategy hinges on acquiring other open banking providers to help enhance its product suite, geographical coverage, as well as its big data and artificial intelligence capabilities.
Crastorehill is making the acquisition in anticipation of the European Union’s pending PSD3 regulation. PSD3 is an advancement of PSD2 and is expected to accelerate the proliferation of open banking based products.
As part of today’s announcement, Crastorehill unveiled it has appointed Matt Colebourne as CEO. Colebourne is Chair of ecommerce technology company Visii and former CEO of Searchmetrics.
“Open standards, in almost any technological or regulated area, create the opportunity to solve previously insoluble problems, to do things faster, more easily and more cheaply,” said Colebourne. “Much as the internet ushered in a previously inconceivable plethora of new ways to interact, transact and research, the rise of open banking will enable new ways to assess risk, verify identity, understand macro-economic behaviour and enable faster, easier interaction for consumers. I’m excited to join Crastorehill at a time when we have the opportunity to lead this transformation and grow.”
Apiture received $10 million in funding, bringing its total raised to $79 million.
The round was led by funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price with participation from existing investors.
Apiture offers credit unions access to a digital banking platform that ties in partnerships with more than 300 fintechs.
Digital banking solutions provider Apiturelanded a $10 million funding round this week. The Venture round was led by funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price with participation from existing investors Live Oak Bank, Truist Ventures, and Pinnacle Financial Partners. The fresh funds boost Apiture’s total funding to $79 million.
The Wilmington, North Carolina-based company will use the $10 million to accelerate product development initiatives. It will also expand its sales and marketing efforts for its Apiture Digital Banking Platform. Launched last year, the company’s Digital Banking Platform serves more than 300 banks and credit unions.
“Apiture is relentlessly focused on delivering best-in-class digital banking solutions through continuous innovation and integrations with best-of-breed fintechs,” said company CEO Chris Babcock. “This additional funding enables us to further accelerate development initiatives that will help our clients thrive in a highly competitive market.”
Founded in 2017, Apiture helps credit unions compete with larger banks and credit unions when it comes to digital banking experiences. The company’s solutions, which work with more than 40 cores, offer both consumer and commercial banking experiences, along with account opening, embedded banking, and data intelligence tools. Powering these capabilities are Apiture’s network of more than 200 pre-vetted fintech partners, including Glia, Deluxe, MX, Mambu, and DefenseStorm, which signed with Apiture earlier this month.
Iceland-based Landsbankinn has selected Meniga to help it offer open banking amenities to its customers.
With Meniga’s help, the bank will offer both Payment Initiation Services and an Aggregation Service.
Meniga is calling the offerings a “breakthrough” when it comes to open banking developments in Iceland.
Iceland’s largest bank, Landsbankinn, is embracing open banking in its newest partnership with Meniga. The bank has tapped the digital banking platform to offer Payment Initiation Services (PIS) and an Aggregation Service (AIS).
The PIS will help the bank’s customers initiate funds transfers to other Icelandic banks without having to leave the Landsbankinn app. With the AIS, customers can use the bank’s app to see an aggregated view of their accounts across other banks in Iceland. Since the AIS places all of a customer’s financial information in one location, it makes it easier for them to manage their finances.
“By collaborating with Meniga, we are not only simplifying and enhancing the banking experience for our customers but also contributing to the modernization of banking in Iceland,” said Landsbankinn CEO Lilja Björk Einarsdóttir. “The launch of PSD2/Open Banking services reinforces our commitment to delivering the best financial solutions and options to our customers.”
Introducing Icelandic citizens to open banking seems like a big step for such a small nation. However, Iceland has a leg up over other regions because of its small size. The country has only three commercial bank and one investment bank, making it easier for all banks to agree on a communication protocol.
Meniga notes Landsbankinn’s offerings as a “breakthrough” when it comes to open banking developments in Iceland. Björk Einarsdóttir agrees. “We are excited to offer our customers these innovative services, which mark a pivotal moment in the Icelandic banking industry,” she said.
London-based Meniga, which was originally headquartered in Iceland, said that the partnership broadens its global reach. The fintech was founded in 2009 and powers banking apps for more than 165 banks across the globe, reaching more than 90 million people in 30+ countries. Among Meniga’s other offerings are tools such as data management, PFM, and cashflow analysis; as well as cashback rewards, carbon footprint tracking, and market insights.
Meniga’s current CEO Raj Soni took the reins from Simon Shorthose last year. Shorthose was brought in in August of 2022 to replace Co-founder Georg Ludviksson, who had served as CEO for 14 years.
Digital conversations platform Eltropy has integrated with Fiserv’s account processing platform Portico.
The integration will enable credit unions using Portico to use Eltropy solutions such as advanced Text, Video, and co-browsing.
Eltropy most recently demoed its technology last year at FinovateFall.
Digital conversations platform for community financial institutions (CFIs) Eltropyannounced an integration with Fiserv’s full-service account processing platform Portico today. The integration will enable credit unions using Portico to leverage a variety of Eltropy communications solutions. These include advanced Text, Video, Secure Chat, co-browsing, screen sharing, and chatbots. And all of this functionality is contained within a single platform.
“This partnership with Fiserv allows us to boost efficiency and improve communications capabilities and security – including two-factor authentication – for even more community financial institutions,” Eltropy VP of Strategic Partnerships Jason Smith said. “This integration has the potential to elevate member engagement across all channels, equipping credit unions with the tools they need to thrive in today’s competitive landscape.”
Eltropy’s technology empowers credit unions to sync contacts, send promotional texts, and offer personalized, one-on-one conversations with members. The Portico integration will support communications between departments, facilitating secure and efficient interactions between lending, collections, sales, marketing and other internal sources.
The ability to sync contacts was a particular highlight of the integration. Eltropy’s sync-up feature enables credit unions to integrate member data with Eltropy’s Digital Conversations Platform. Unveiled last month, the Digital Conversations Platform unifies Eltropy’s Video Banking, Enterprise Texting, and Digital Contact Center solutions, and adds AI capabilities, as well. This integration will give credit unions comprehensive member insights that can drive member segmentation and make more personalized products and services possible.
“Integrating Eltropy’s innovative messaging capabilities into our Portico core banking platform allows credit unions to streamline communication and enhance member engagement,” Fiserv VP of Product Management & Strategy for Credit Union Solutions Vanessa Stock said. “Messages can now be sent directly from the application, cutting call center wait times and building stronger member relationships.”
A Finovate alum since 2017, Eltropy made its most recent Finovate appearance last September at FinovateFall. At the event, the company demoed Eltropy One, the firm’s all-in-one omni-channel solution that enables FIs to manage both inbound and outbound communications from a universal console. Eltropy has forged a number of new credit union partnerships this year, including alliances with InRoads Credit Union and Cyprus Credit Union. The company has also partnered with a number of fintechs, including fellow Finovate alums Akuvo, Q2, and Alkami.
Real-time data platform Hazelcast has appointed a new Chief Technology Officer. Adrian Soars, a professional with more than 25 years of experience in financial services, will bring to the company his expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) and the implementation of high-performance data platforms.
“Adrian’s passion for solving complex problems and his experience designing real-time architectures for some of the world’s largest tech programs is a wealth of information we cannot wait to share with our customers,” Hazelcast CEO Kelly Herrell said.
Soars comes to Hazelcast after serving as Chief Technology Officer of AI company Napier. Previously, Soars held senior leadership positions at major investment banks and financial services companies. These firms include TD Securities, Standard Chartered Bank, and Deutsche Bank, among others. At Hazelcast, Soars will lead research and development (R&D) efforts to ensure the company’s continued strong technical leadership, as well as its ability to deliver competitive advantage to the firm’s customers. Soars will also lead enhancement initiatives on the Hazelcast’s platform. One major goal will be to lower the total cost of ownership of building, deploying, and maintaining real-time apps.
“The Hazelcast Platform is seriously impressive software and delivers true, real-time capabilities for enterprises,” Soars said. “And, when you factor in the platform’s unified architecture, it will make life easier for application development teams by mitigating the headaches all too common with a do-it-yourself approach,”
Hazelcast made its Finovate debut last year at FinovateEurope 2022. At the event, the company showed how its real-time data platform enables businesses to leverage a resilient and elastic memory resource for both data at rest and data in motion. Hazelcast’s technology provides real-time inventory and shipping data, detects fraud, and derives insights that enable innovations in products or services in microseconds – among many other use cases.
Founded in 2012, Hazelcast is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. This fall, the company was recognized in the Gartner Market Guide for Event Stream Processing (ESP) as a unified, real-time data platform. The recognition comes in a new category for Gartner, within the cohort of event stream processing technologies.
Hazelcast has raised more than $63 million in funding. Bain Capital Ventures and Earlybird Venture Capital are among the company’s investors.
Looking to demo your latest fintech innovation before an audience of bankers, investors, and financial services professionals? The application window for demoing companies for FinovateEurope 2024 is now open. Visit our FinovateEurope 2024 hub for more information.
Open banking innovator Plaid announced a new initiative to enable lenders to leverage consumer-permissioned cash flow data on prospective borrowers.
The new entity will serve as a consumer reporting agency that will build solutions that deliver ready-made credit risk insights using this information.
Founded in 2013, Plaid made its Finovate debut at our developers conference, FinDEVr, in 2014.
Is cash flow data the missing piece of the puzzle when it comes to completing the picture of a person’s creditworthiness? A new initiative from open banking innovator Plaid suggests that the answer is “yes.”
“Lenders and consumers alike know that traditional credit scores don’t tell the full story of someone’s financial life,” Plaid Head of Credit Mike Saunders noted at the Plaid blog on Monday. “Information on savings, income, or on-time rent payments is often left out of the picture, even though this data is critical to understanding someone’s ability to pay back a loan.”
The new entity, announced by Plaid today, will create solutions for customers who want to leverage consumer-permissioned cash flow data to access ready-made credit risk insights. It will serve as a consumer reporting agency, according to Saunders, that will help Plaid’s customers make smarter decisions on risk throughout the lending process.
Plaid is joining a growing cohort of fintechs that have determined that while there remains a place for traditional credit scores, there is much that these scores leave out. This undermines the ability of lenders to serve otherwise qualified borrowers. It also creates hurdles for potential customers – from the “thin-file” recently-arrived immigrant professional to the young adult struggling to rebuild their credit. “Putting cash flow insights to work unlocks opportunities for lenders to grow their business while managing risk,” Saunders wrote. “This fosters inclusion, expands credit access, and serves a broader set of consumer needs.”
The new initiative is still being fleshed out. But Plaid is confident that it can make a significant difference with cash flow data in two specific ways: availability and usability. With regard to making consumer-permissioned cash flow data available, Saunders pointed to Plaid’s existing relationships with lenders and property management companies like Mission Lane and Funnel, respectively. These firms have leveraged Plaid’s technology to source clean income and assets data on prospective borrowers.
Usability, the ability of businesses to integrate data into their decision models, is the second component. And this is where the new entity in particular comes in, building solutions that enable lenders to leverage cash flow data for credit risk insights. “Many lenders simply don’t have the time, money, or technical resources to develop insights on top of this detailed, transaction-level data by themselves,” Saunders wrote.
The company admits that it is still “in the early innings” of what Saunders called “the future of cash flow underwriting.” To this end, Plaid presently is offering its new cash flow insights as part of a limited release via the consumer reporting company.
News of Plaid’s new entity comes just days after the company reported that it was working with European payments company Adyen. The partnership will enable Adyen to introduce its pay-by-bank offering in North America by early next year. Last month, Plaid announced partnerships with cryptocurrency infrastructure platform Zero Hash and fraud and risk intelligence specialist Riskified. Plaid also introduced its first Chief Financial Officer last month: former Expedia CFO and Chief Strategy Officer Eric Hart.
Peer comparison PFM Status Money is shutting down and has transferred its users to Quicken Simplifi.
Starting November 10, the Status Money website and app will no longer be available.
Status Money’s closing comes a week after Mint announced it will close its doors at the end of the year.
While many in the fintech industry are still processing Mint’sdeparture from the fintech scene, there appears to be more shakeup in the PFM world this morning. Budgeting service and social personal finance app Status Money has notified its users that it is shutting down.
“As part of our ongoing commitment to providing you with the tools you need to get ahead financially, we will be transitioning our member accounts, including yours, over to Quicken Simplifi,” the company said in an announcement on its website.
Status Money was founded in 2016 to help users aggregate, track, and manage their entire financial lives and compare their financial standing with their peers. This peer comparison capability stood out as Status Money’s differentiating factor. The feature allowed users to compare their spending in specific categories to others by age, zip code, and income level.
The New York-based company’s other tools allowed users to set goals and participate in discussions with other users. In 2020, the company launched a $20 per month premium tier that allowed users to chat with a financial advisor on a monthly basis.
Starting November 10, however, the Status Money website and app will no longer be available, but users will be able to use their existing credentials to log into Quicken’s Simplifi budgeting tool, which costs around $3 per month. Status Money has transferred each user’s personal information and data associated with their account to Quicken. The Status Money Rewards program, which paid users in cash and Bitcoin for referrals and for engaging in product recommendations, is no longer available.
Status Money, which demoed at FinovateSpring 2019, hasn’t released much more information regarding the transition. There is currently no word on whether Quicken acquired the entire company or just its users, nor has Status Money disclosed transaction details.
One thing is clear, however. This appears to be yet another nail in the coffin of PFM. In his recent piece in Forbes titled The Demise of Intuit Mint and Personal Financial Management, Cornerstone Advisor’s Ron Shevlin goes into detail of why PFM is a dying fintech subsector. He notes that consumers are looking for more than just tracking, but are instead drawn toward tools such as those that help them optimize the return on their savings, save money, and mitigate monthly bills.
As someone who still uses an offline Excel spreadsheet to budget each month, I would argue that there may still be a market for simple PFM tools. However, the consumer-facing fintech market is crowded. In order to survive, standalone PFM companies may fare better with a B2B approach by embedding their tracking tools within larger fintechs or financial services organizations. This meets the consumer where they are already are instead of imposing an additional app to keep track of.
