Ecommerce technology company Stripe announced over the weekend that it recently raised $600 million in funding. The Series H round brings the company’s total funding to $2.2 billion and boosts its valuation to $95 billion.

Investors in this month’s funding round include Allianz X, Axa, Baillie Gifford, Fidelity Management & Research Company, Sequoia Capital, and Ireland’s National Treasury Management Agency.

Stripe will use the funds to expand its Global Payments and Treasury Network and invest in its European operations to support increasing demand in the region. Specifically, the California-based company aims to boost its Dublin headquarters.

“We’re investing a ton more in Europe this year, particularly in Ireland,” said Stripe President and Cofounder, John Collison. “Whether in fintech, mobility, retail, or SaaS, the growth opportunity for the European digital economy is immense.”

Stripe has clients in 42 countries, 31 of which are in Europe. Among the company’s European clients are Deliveroo, Doctolib, Glofox, Klarna, ManoMano, N26, UiPath, and Vinted.

As Stripe pointed out in a blog post, only 14% of commerce happens online. That’s why, as the company’s CFO Dhivya Suryadevara notes, Stripe is “investing in the infrastructure that will power internet commerce in 2030 and beyond.” More specifically, the company is expanding its software and services and is making its technology available to millions more businesses in Brazil, India, Indonesia, Thailand, and the UAE.

“While Stripe already processes hundreds of billions of dollars per year for millions of businesses worldwide, the opportunity ahead is much larger for Stripe than it was when the company was started 10 years ago,” added Suryadevara.

Photo by Paweł Czerwiński on Unsplash

We noted the $200 million fundraising announced by cryptocurrency solution provider NYDIG earlier this week. Given the investors involved, the amount invested, and the potential implications for further popularization of digital assets, we thought the round was worth a closer look.

New York-based NYDIG is a leading provider of technology and investment solutions for Bitcoin. Founded in 2017 by Robert Gutmann (CEO) and Ross Stevens (Executive Chairman), NYDIG offers banks, corporations, insurers, and high net worth (HNW) individuals financing, custody, execution, and research and advisory services to help them manage their Bitcoin holdings. NYDIG also offers industry-leading expertise in the derivatives markets for institutional investors seeking customized opportunities, from generating yield to establishing hedges.

This week’s financing takes the company’s total funding to $305 million, according to Crunchbase. The strategic partners involved included Stone Ridge Holdings Group, Morgan Stanley, New York Life, MassMutual, Soros Fund Management, FS Investments, Bessemer Venture Partners, and FinTech Collective.

“These partnerships leave no doubt that institutional adoption of Bitcoin has arrived and, further, that NYDIG is the partner of choice for serious financial services firms with the highest fiduciary and diligence standards,” Gutmann said. He announced that the company plans to deliver “an explosion of innovation in Bitcoin products and services” over the balance of the year.

Gutmann also added that the round’s investors will help NYDIG on “strategic initiatives” ranging from investment management and banking to clean energy and insurance. To underscore the point, the company’s statement also reported that life, annuity, and property & casualty insurers currently own in aggregate more than $1 billion of direct and indirect Bitcoin exposure. This exposure is both facilitated exclusively by NYDIG and is held in the firm’s secure, audited, and insured institutional custody platform.

NYDIG has partnered with a number of Finovate alums in recent months. This year alone, the company teamed up with Best of Show winner Kasasa to bring bitcoin wallet functionality to community banks and credit unions. Also in February, NYDIG collaborated with NYMBUS to help financial institutions add Bitcoin products and services to their digital offerings.

“As a notable advocate for financial institutions, Nymbus stood out as a partner to take our vision for Bitcoin and banking to the next level,” NYDIG Head of Bank Solutions Patrick Sells said when the partnership was announced. “As a former banker and technology evangelist, I couldn’t be more excited to bring Bitcoin and banking together, and I see it as a win/win.”

In its biggest fundraising to date, U.K.-based challenger bank Starling Bank has secured ($376 million) £270m in funding. The Series D round was led by Fidelity Management and Research. Also participating in investment were the Qatar Investment Authority, RPMI Railpen, and Millennium Management.

Starling hopes to use the capital to grow its lending book and to expand throughout Europe. M&A activity is also on the table for the digital challenger. The fundraising, which remains subject to regulatory approval, will give the neobank a pre-money valuation of £1.1 billion.

Founded by Anne Boden and headquartered in London, Starling now has more than two million accounts, including 300,000 SME business accounts. Starling Bank says that it has 5% of the small business market in the country, as well as deposits of more than £5.4 billion. The firm has made loans valued at more than £2 billion – much of that while participating in the government’s COVID financial relief programs.

“Digital banking has reached a tipping point,” Boden said in a statement announcing the investment. “Customers now expect a fairer, smarter and more human alternative to the banks of the past and that is what we are giving them at Starling as we continue to grow and add new products and services. Our new investors will bring a wealth of experience as we enter the next stage of growth, while the continued support of our existing backers represents a huge vote of confidence.”

Starling reached profitability late last year. Since then, the company has forged partnerships with iZettle, Dingy Insurance, PensionBee, and Finovate alum SumUp. Boden has hinted recently that an IPO could be “two to three years” away for the digital challenger. “I didn’t do all of this to sell out to a big bank,” she said.

Photo by David Jakab from Pexels