Daily news

Blockchain Data Platform Chainalysis Integrates with Verification Provider Sumsub

Blockchain Data Platform Chainalysis Integrates with Verification Provider Sumsub
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Sumsub
  • Verification provider Sumsub announced a partnership with blockchain data platform Chainalysis this week.
  • The integration will bring automated crypto transaction monitoring and secure data storage, as well as ensure regulatory compliance.
  • Sumsub made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2020 in Berlin, Germany.

Full-cycle verification provider and FinovateEurope alum Sumsub announced an integration with blockchain data platform Chainalysis this week. The partnership brings Sumsub’s Transaction Monitoring and Travel Rule solutions to the Chainalysis platform. This will enhance regulatory compliance and secure data storage, as well as provide automated crypto transaction monitoring for Chainalysis’ clients.

In a statement, the companies suggested that the partnership will help encourage greater digital compliance for businesses in the crypto space with functionality like unified workflows and automated transaction monitoring. Sumsub’s Transaction Monitoring solution is designed to help firms deal with the estimated $48+ billion in total fraud losses last year alone. The solution gives fraud and risk teams a single tool to manage the transaction monitoring process with provides fewer false positives and more efficient case management.

Additionally, the technology enables real-time fraud detection, and users can connect KYC, AML, and KYB verification with transaction monitoring for further vigilance against suspicious activity. With Travel Rule, Sumsub automates data transfers with counterparties to make sure firms remain compliant with regulatory obligations in different jurisdictions around the world.

“This partnership enables us to offer access to over one billion mapped addressses across multiple blockchains to those customers who use Sumsub’s Transaction Monitoring and Chainalysis crypto risk solutions,” Sumsub co-founder and Chief Innovation Officer Jacob Sever explained. “Sumsub’s solution’s enhanced capabilities, integrated with Chainalysis’ analytics and key management model, are reshaping the landscape of crypto compliance and security in the digital realm.”

Sumsub made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2020 in Berlin, Germany. The company currently has more than 2,000 clients in fintech, crypto, e-commerce, transportation, gaming, and more. Businesses working with Sumsub have experienced 2.4x return on investment (ROI), $3.2+ million in net present value (NPV), and a payback period of less than six months.

So far in 2024, Sumsub has forged partnerships with B2B Gaming Services and embedded finance integrator AAZZUR. The company began the year teaming up with digital banking technology firm Plumery. In February, Sumsub launched its deepfake detection solution for video identification, an industry-first, and made its non-doc verification solution available in the U.S.

Headquartered in London, Sumsub – which stands for “Sum & Substance” – was founded in 2015. Co-founder Andrew Sever is CEO.

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The Harbor Bank of Maryland Partners with Account Onboarding Specialist Prelim

The Harbor Bank of Maryland Partners with Account Onboarding Specialist Prelim
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Prelim
  • The Harbor Bank of Maryland has partnered with digital account onboarding specialist Prelim.
  • Courtesy of the partnership, the Baltimore, Maryland-based financial institution will leverage Prelim’s technology and expertise to enhance its account opening services.
  • Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Prelim made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2022.

Digital account onboarding specialist Prelim and the Harbor Bank of Maryland have teamed up to bring digital account opening services to the customers of the Baltimore, Maryland-based financial institution.

Founded in 1982 with $2.1 million in assets, Harbor Bank of Maryland serves the Baltimore, Maryland metropolitan area with seven branch locations and a loan office in Silver Spring, Maryland. The bank offers a wide variety of banking services, including checking, savings, time deposits, credit and debit cards, and commercial real estate, as well as personal, home improvement, and other installment and term loans. With total assets of $377 million, Harbor Bank of Maryland is a designated Minority Depository Institution (MDI) and the first community bank in the U.S. to have an investment subsidiary, Harbor Financial Services.

San Francisco, California-based Prelim made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring in 2022 and returned again the following year for FinovateSpring 2023. Co-founded in 2017 by Heang Chan (CEO) and Chris Blaser (CTO), Prelim offers a white-label platform that empowers banks to digitize their business banking operations. Via API, Prelim enables financial institutions to automate their business account onboarding, as well as connect to third party providers to meet AML, BSA, and CIP requirements. The platform also helps FIs launch other financial services and banking products from lending to merchant services.

In addition to its partnership with the Harbor Bank of Maryland, Prelim last month announced a collaboration with Movement Bank. Headquartered in Danville, Virginia, Movement Bank was launched in 1919 by a team of African American doctors, teachers, farmers, and preachers. From humble origins in a church basement and $6,500 in capital, the financial institution has grown into a major community resource. The bank was among the first to reopen during the Great Depression after banks were forced to close. The institution was also one of the first banks in Virginia to issue Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans back in 1934. Movement Bank currently has $150 million in total assets.

Interested in demoing at FinovateSpring in San Francisco in May? We are happy to read applications from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateSpring hub today to learn more.

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Coconut Software, PayTic Earn Spots in the First Cohort of the UK Fintech CTA

Coconut Software, PayTic Earn Spots in the First Cohort of the UK Fintech CTA
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Alumni profile, Coconut Software, Daily news, PayTic

A pair of Canada-based Finovate alums – Coconut Software and PayTic – have earned spots in the first cohort of the UK Fintech CTA program. The program runs for eight-weeks, much of it conducted online, and includes a needs assessment and company analysis, participation in the Innovate Finance Global Summit, virtual market briefings, mentor-matching and coaching, as well as strategic business-to-business introductions.

In addition to the digital sessions, participants in the program will be invited to attend local events in the U.K. that will help the firms build and grow their in-market presence and their network. This will enable them to introduce their value proposition to key market participants, investors, as well as potential customers.

Joining Coconut Software and PayTic are a number of other Canadian startups including Symend, OneVest, VoPay, Four Eyes Financial, Octav, and Sibli.

“We are so excited to be selected for the first cohort of the UK Fintech CTA, proudly representing our country’s growing payments landscape as we expand our efforts in the U.K.,” PayTic noted on LinkedIn last week. “Thank you Canadian Technology Accelerators | Accélerateurs technologiques canadiens for this recognition and opportunity to scale!”

Headquartered in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, PayTic made its Finovate debut last year at FinovateSpring. The company offers a SaaS solution that manages all of the significant aspects of program management for card issuers and BIN sponsors in a single interface. PayTic’s technology serves as a central hub within the payments ecosystem, enabling users to automate reconciliation, network report generation, dispute submission, fraud detection, network fee analysis, and robust business intelligence.

At FinovateSpring, PayTic founder and CEO Imad Boumahdi and Director of Product Kate Firuz demoed how PayTic’s platform can help banks, card issuers, BIN sponsors, and fintechs save significant amounts of money by analyzing and optimizing network fees against program activity. The technology enables users to instantly reconcile data across the payments ecosystem from the program and account level to the transaction level. This empowers users to identify exceptions in real-time, generate accurate reports, and remain compliant.

Founded in 2020, PayTic has raised $4 million in funding. Visa Accelerator and Outlierz Ventures are among the firm’s investors.

More than 4,000 kilometers to the west via the Trans-Canada Highway (44 hours if you’re driving), Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based Coconut Software is the other Finovate alum that will be joining PayTic as part of the UK Fintech CTA program. Founded in 2007, Coconut Software offers a customer engagement platform to help financial institutions better schedule, manage, and measure customer, prospect, and employee interactions.

Coconut Software made its Finovate debut as part of our special all-digital FinovateSpring conference in 2021. At the event, Senior Solutions Engineer Andre Doucette demoed enhancements to the firm’s appointment scheduling and lobby management technology. These upgrades improved the platform’s online queuing and lobby management capabilities.

Named to the 2023 Technology Fast 50, Coconut Software counts a number of North American financial institutions among its customers, including RBC, Arvest Bank, Vancity, and Rogue Credit Union. The company has raised more than $35 million in funding from investors including Klass Capital and Information Venture Partners. Katherine Regnier is founder and CEO.

Interested in demoing at FinovateSpring in San Francisco in May? We are happy to read applications from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateSpring hub today to learn more.

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Tide Brings Business Banking Platform to Germany

Tide Brings Business Banking Platform to Germany
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news
  • U.K.-based business banking platform Tide is expanding into Germany.
  • Tide didn’t release an exact timeline, but said that customers on its waitlist will be able to begin using a limited release of the company’s business banking tools “in the coming months.”
  • Germany is Tide’s second international market. The company launched in India in 2022.

Business banking platform Tide is expanding across international borders for the second time. The U.K.-based fintech announced today it will soon begin serving clients in Germany.

Tide did not offer an exact timeline for its expansion into Germany, but the wait list is currently open and the app will be available “in the coming months.” After Tide’s launch in Germany later this year, the company’s members will initially be limited to the app’s business account and card products. Access to Tide’s other features, including cash flow forecasting, will be rolled out in phases.

Among the reasons why Tide selected Germany as its next market is because large, traditional banks provide the bulk of services to small businesses in the region. Tide wanted to offer business owners a more simple, innovative platform to help them manage their business.

“Looking at what is on offer for SMEs in Germany, we believe there is a huge opportunity for Tide,” explained company CEO Oliver Prill. “Across all our markets, we continue to add to the services and products we offer to our members, as part of our mission to be the leading international financial platform for small businesses.”

Tide launched in 2015 to help small businesses save time and money on banking and administrative tasks. The business bank accounts offer accounting tools, expense cards, invoicing, payment collection capabilities, business loan comparisons, and cashflow insights. In 2022, Tide acquired lending marketplace Funding Options for an undisclosed amount. Tide currently counts more than 775,000 sole traders, freelancers, and limited companies as clients.

“Our success in the U.K. has been built on having a deep understanding of the pain points of small businesses, the self-employed and freelancers. Our goal is to help reduce the financial and administrative management burdens with our advanced business financial platform,” added Prill.

Today’s launch isn’t Tide’s first foray into international markets. The company expanded into India in 2022 and has since added more than 200,000 members in the region. Tide now employs 1,600 people in offices across India, Bulgaria, as well as its headquarters in London.

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Fundica and Visa Team Up to Help SMEs Secure Working Capital

Fundica and Visa Team Up to Help SMEs Secure Working Capital
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Fundica, VISA
  • Funding search engine Fundica announced a collaboration with Visa last week.
  • The partnership will make it easier for entrepreneurs to access government funding.
  • Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Fundica made its Finovate debut last year at FinovateSpring 2023.

A newly announced collaboration between North American funding search engine Fundica and Visa will democratize the process of securing government funding for SMEs, especially those founded and led by members of underrepresented communities. Together Fundica and Visa will offer an intelligent solution that helps SMEs and entrepreneurs find relevant government funding and private sector grants based on their individual business’ needs and goals.

“We are thrilled to be working with Visa to further democratize access to government funding for small businesses across North America,” Fundica co-founder and CEO Mike Lee said. “Visa and Fundica are both deeply committed to fostering accessibility and inclusion in business communities – making this collaboration a great fit.”

Fundica’s platform enables small businesses to identify and apply for relevant government and private sector funding, while giving financial institutions the ability to promote inclusion and serve as a more comprehensive financial advisor to its SME clients. The technology aggregates data from tens of thousands of funding programs, leveraging strategies from discovery and tracking bots to funders, collaboration partners, and its own internal research team.

The search experience for the business customer is straightforward; companies enter basic information about their business and Fundica displays appropriate funding options in order of relevance. The solution presents each opportunity in a detailed, one-page summary, making it easy for business customers to confirm their suitability for the funding and to begin the application process. Funding sources include grants, tax credits, government loans and loan guarantees from federal, state, provincial, and municipal entities – as well as the private sector.

On the backend, FIs can see the profiles of the companies looking for funding and make informed connections with qualified leads and clients. The platform also enables institutions to identify key business behavioral trends. Some of the largest FIs in North America license Fundica’s AI-powered funding search engine to help them acquire and retain business customers.

Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and founded in 2017, Fundica made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2023. At the conference, Fundica’s Lee demonstrated new enhancements to the platform’s front- and back-ends. These enhancements included a traffic augmentation solution, improved traffic conversion, and improved user engagement.

A Finovate alum for more than a decade, Visa made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2010 in San Francisco. The company is also an alum of our developers conference, participating in FinDEVr Silicon Valley in 2014.

Interested in demoing at FinovateSpring in San Francisco in May? We are happy to read applications from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateSpring hub today to learn more.

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BaaS Player Griffin Launches as Fully Operational Bank, Lands $24 Million

BaaS Player Griffin Launches as Fully Operational Bank, Lands $24 Million
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Funding
  • Griffin was granted approval from the U.K.’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to offer banking services in the region.
  • Along with announcing the banking approval, Griffin also unveiled it has secured a $24 million (£19 million) Series A extension round to fuel the launch of banking services.
  • Initially, Griffin does not plan to offer direct-to-consumer banking accounts, but will offer business bank accounts to help organizations manage their own finances and hold client funds.

U.K.-based BaaS fintech Griffin has been granted approval to launch as a fully operational bank. The company announced yesterday that the U.K.’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) granted Griffin approval to offer bank services in the U.K.

Fueling the launch is a $24 million (£19 million) Series A extension round. Crunchbase reports that the investment will boost Griffin’s total funding to $66.7 million (£52.1 million), while TechCrunch stated the total as $52 million (£40.6). The new round was led by MassMutual Ventures, NordicNinja, and Breega. Existing investors Notion Capital and EQT Ventures also participated. Griffin will use the funds to scale the bank and enhance its infrastructure.

With the proper approvals in place, Griffin can now offer banking, payments, and wealth management accounts to third party organizations. Interestingly, Griffin is not launching direct-to-consumer bank accounts, but will offer business bank accounts to help organizations manage their own finances and hold client funds.

The authorization comes after Griffin’s year-long mobilization period during which it was allowed to test and refine its products, build banking integrations, and develop its systems in preparation for the debut as a full bank.

“Today’s announcement is a culmination of years of hard work by the incredible team at Griffin,” said company CEO David Jarvis. “I’m particularly grateful to our pilot customers for placing their trust in us, and look forward to helping them continue to scale innovative products at the intersection of technology and finance.”

Founded in 2017, Griffin offers BaaS tools that include client onboarding, regulatory compliance safeguards, client money accounts, and payments. The company plans to launch branded debit, prepaid, and digital cards soon. Griffin’s direct banking tools, launched this week, include operational accounts, credit, and lending.

“As the UK’s first full-stack BaaS platform with a banking license, Griffin is the partner of choice for fintechs and brands to build innovative financial products with a seamless client experience,” said MassMutual Ventures Managing Partner Ryan Collins.

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Sila Teams Up with Trice to Enhance Real Time Payments

Sila Teams Up with Trice to Enhance Real Time Payments
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news
  • Sila has partnered with Trice to leverage the company’s safeguards for instant payments.
  • Trice will help Sila’s customers eliminate insufficient funds and unauthorized debit for ACH transactions.
  • Sila combines FedNow and The Clearinghouse’s RTP to allow ACH transactions to be settled in seconds.

There has been some movement in the instant payments world this week. Banking and payment infrastructure-as-a-service company Sila has partnered with instant payments platform Trice.

Under the agreement, Sila will leverage Trice’s built-in safeguards for instant payments. Founded in 2022, Trice offers the ability to eliminate ACH return codes R1 and R5. For those unfamiliar with ACH return codes, R1 typically refers to “insufficient funds,” while R5 refers to “unauthorized debit to consumer account using corporate SEC code,” meaning the accountholder did not authorize the transaction. By eliminating these return codes, Trice will help Sila lower costs, reduce losses, decrease fines, and ultimately improve the customer experience.

“This partnership reflects our dedication to simplifying financial transactions and making money movement more accessible, reliable, and cost-effective for businesses of all sizes,” said Sila Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Shamir Karkal. “Trice’s innovative instant payment solutions align perfectly with our mission, and together, we aim to set new industry standards for secure and efficient money transfer services.”

Oregon-based Sila launched its ACHNow product in 2018. The tool combines The Clearing House’s RTP, the U.S. Federal Government’s FedNow, and Sila’s own instant settlement product that allows all ACH transactions to be settled in seconds. When businesses submit a standard NACHA file, ACHNow routes each transaction to either RTP or FedNow. In the event the transaction cannot be routed on either of those rails, Sila uses its own instant settlement product to clear the transaction. 

“With new faster payment systems becoming available, Sila is currently in a great position to create excellent payment experiences to surprise and delight their customers,” said Trice Co-Founder and CEO Doug Yeager. “Together with Sila, we’re excited to bring these groundbreaking solutions to businesses and financial institutions, further enhancing the financial ecosystem with the promise of smarter, faster, and more secure money movement.”

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Finovate Global Latin America: Investment and M&A Drive Innovation in Payments and Lending

Finovate Global Latin America: Investment and M&A Drive Innovation in Payments and Lending
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Finovate Global

This week’s edition of Finovate Global takes a look at recent fintech developments in Latin America. The region was one of the few places in the world to see significant fintech funding in Q2 of 2023. Further, fintech in Latin America will be the focus of a special panel at FinovateSpring in May.

Here are a handful of headlines to help you get up to speed on the variety of fintech innovation happening in countries like Mexico and Colombia.

Colombian payments orchestration platform Yuno raises $25 million

Payments, as we say in the fintech business, is the gift that keeps giving. And this week, Colombian payments orchestration platform Yuno is on the receiving end. The company announced this week that it has raised $25 million in funding from a consortium of investors including DST Global Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Tiger Global, Kaszek Ventures, and Monashees.

With customers ranging from McDonald’s to Avianca, Yuno offers fast and reliable payments orchestration for businesses in industries like e-commerce, retail, and mobility. The company’s platform offers features such as one-click checkout modifications and smart routing. Yuno also integrates data from all payment processors and anti-fraud tools into a single, unified interface. The company will use this week’s investment to support its operations in both North and South America. The investment also will help fuel Yuno’s expansion to new markets in Europe, Asia, and Africa.

“This financial backing validates our vision and our ability to take the global payments industry into the future, helping fuel positive change across many different sectors of the economy. We are thrilled to bring our cutting-edge solutions to new markets,” Yuno CEO and co-founder Juan Pablo Ortega said.

Mexico’s Ziff acquires digital lender Arrenda

Meanwhile, a few miles north, Mexican revenue-based financing company Ziff has acquired Arrenda, a Mexico-based digital lending startup. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Arrenda founder and CEO Joe Merullo will take the position of Chief Technology Officer in Ziff’s C-suite.

Ziff founder and CEO Gerardo Name said the acquisition will boost the company’s product offering and “enable us to rapidly penetrate new market sectors.” Currently, Ziff’s revenue-based financing solution provides liquidity to Mexican SMEs – which often have little to no credit histories – by funding up to 36 months of receivables. The acquisition will enable Ziff to leverage Arrenda’s Adelanta digital lending platform, which enables Mexican property owners convert future rental payments into cash within 24 hours. Name added that he hopes to see Ziff distribute more than $1 billion pesos to Mexican SMEs by the end of 2027.

BBVA Technology expands to Latin America

Created in 2023, BBVA Technology announced its expansion to Latin America this week. To be headquartered in Mexico, the new entity – officially titled “BBVA Technology en América” – represents the merger of a number of technology companies that previously operated under the name BBVA Axial Tech. The goal of the nearly 600-strong body is to help advance BBVA Group’s digital transformation objectives. The company noted that in addition to a regional expansion, the creation of BBVA will help boost career opportunities for BBVA’s tech talent.

From Mexico City, Mexico, BBVA Technology will provide technology services to BBVA firms operating in Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Former BBVA Axial Tech CEO Robert Altes will serve as CEO of the new company.

Note that BBVA has also set up a companion entity in Europe – “BBVA Technology in Europe” – led by CEO Ricardo Jurado and headquartered in Spain.

Here is our look at fintech innovation around the world.

Asia-Pacific

  • Savis and Open Banking advisory firm Konsentus announced the creation of an operational structure for open banking in Vietnam.
  • New Zealand-based Kiwibank went live with ACI Worldwide’s Enterprise Payments Platform.
  • Hong Kong’s Mox partnered with Wise to enable low-cost, international payments directly from the Mox app.

Sub-Saharan Africa

  • South African payroll and HR software company PaySpace agreed to be acquired by HR startup Deel for $100 million.
  • Kenya’s Equity Bank launched instant withdrawals courtesy of a partnership with PayPal.
  • A partnership between Mastercard and Ethiopian commercial bank Awash Bank will bring new payment solutions to consumers in the country.

Central and Eastern Europe

Middle East and Northern Africa

  • Tarabut teamed up with Bahrainian fintech BENEFIT to launch a new consent authentication method.
  • Is there a “silver lining” in Israel’s fintech funding slowdown?
  • Mastercard forged a long-term global partnership with First Abu Dhabi Bank.

Central and Southern Asia

  • Pakistan’s Raqami Islamic Digital Bank partnered with banking solutions provider Codebase Technologies.
  • India’s central bank introduced a new self-regulatory framework for the nation’s fintechs.
  • Turkish challenger bank Papara announced plans to acquire Pakistan-based digital wallet provider SadaPay.

Latin America and the Caribbean

  • Mexican revenue-based financing fintech Ziff acquired digital lending company Arrenda.
  • Chilean fintech Levannta raised $2.5 million in funding in a round led by Manutara Ventures.
  • Mexico-based microlender Baubap secured $120 million in debt financing.

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Singapore Offers Visa’s Currencycloud In-Principle Approval for MPI License

Singapore Offers Visa’s Currencycloud In-Principle Approval for MPI License
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Currency Cloud, Daily news
  • Currencycloud was offered In-Principle Approval to serve as a Major Payment Institution license holder in Singapore.
  • If granted the license, Currencycloud will be able to offer its full suite of intra-regional and international money movement services to Singapore businesses.
  • “Having the license would allow us to integrate with the robust financial network in Singapore and collaborate with valuable industry players,” said the company’s Managing Director of APAC Rohit Narang.

B2B cross-border payments fintech Currencycloud announced this week that the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) offered the company In-Principle Approval (IPA) to serve as a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license holder in the region.

If the MAS grants Currencycloud the MPI license, the company will be able to offer its full suite of intra-regional and international money movement services to Singapore businesses. These additional capabilities will allow the U.K.-based company to process intra-Asia and east-to-west payments more quickly, efficiently, and seamlessly.

The MPI license will also impact Singapore-based businesses, which will be able to leverage Currencycloud to help their customers make conversions and payouts in their own time zones and local currencies. Ultimately, the license will help these local businesses launch new financial services quickly by leveraging local networks combined with its multi-currency account capabilities.

“The IPA for a Major Payment Institution License is testament to the strength of the Currencycloud brand,” said Currencycloud Managing Director of APAC Rohit Narang. “Having the license would allow us to integrate with the robust financial network in Singapore and collaborate with valuable industry players. The payments opportunity in Asia-Pacific is significant, and Singapore’s excellent infrastructure, world-class regulatory system, and strategic geographical location serve as an ideal base for accelerating future payments innovation across the region.”

Founded in 2012, Currencycloud facilitates cross-border, multi-currency transactions.  In addition to offering virtual wallets, the company also enables banks, fintechs, and FX brokers to offer their users the ability to send, receive, and manage their multi-currency payments. Among the company’s clients are Starling Bank, Revolut, Penta, and Lunar. 

Currencycloud was acquired by Visa in 2021. Mike Laven is CEO.

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Payroll Connectivity Provider Argyle Raises $30 Million in Series C Funding

Payroll Connectivity Provider Argyle Raises $30 Million in Series C Funding
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Argyle, Daily news, Funding, Fundings
  • Payroll connectivity provider Argyle raised $30 million in Series C funding this week.
  • The round was led by Rockefeller Asset Management’s Fintech Innovation Fund.
  • New York-based Argyle made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2022.

Income and employment data provider Argyle secured $30 million in new funding in a Series C round led by Rockefeller Asset Management’s Fintech Innovation Fund. Bain Capital Ventures, SignalFire, and Checkr also participated in the round. The investment consists of both equity and debt and takes the company’s total capital raised to more than $100 million. The funding will help Argyle continue to adapt and expand its automated income and employment verification platform. No valuation information was provided in the funding announcement.

This week’s news comes in the wake of a year in which Argyle notched a number of significant accomplishments and milestones. In 2023, Argyle onboarded more than 90 new customers. The company also boosted its total customer count to more than 140 firms in verticals such as mortgage, personal lending, and background screening.

To date, Argyle has processed more than 1.6 million annual verifications. This includes direct-source income and employment verifications for 90% of the U.S. workforce. Last year, the company achieved a 3.6X growth in bookings, generated cost savings for up to 80% of customers, and built integrations with lending partners ICE and nCino. Argyle also became the first consumer-permissioned provider to integrate into Dark Matter’s Empower LOS.

“Our verticalized approach and direct-source model has provided accurate data and an enhanced consumer experience for our customers,” Argyle CEO and founder Shmulik Fishman said. “With this capital from our valued investors, we will continue to tailor our solutions to priority verticals while improving the verification experience for the next wave of prospective customers that can benefit from our services.”

In an extended “Letter From Our Founder & CEO”, Fishman articulated the journey his company has made and underscored Argyle’s commitment to what he referred to as the “human side of digital transformation.” Noting that even “novel technology” is “only half the equation,” Fishman added “widespread digital transformation only happens when people trust new technologies enough to change their behavior. And change is really hard – even when it’s absolutely essential.” Calling the current moment Argyle’s “enterprise-adoption era” Fishman wrote that now was the time to ensure that “people and process take center stage.”

Headquartered in New York and founded in 2018, Argyle made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2022. At the conference, company co-founder and COO Billy Marsden showed how Argyle’s Link 4.0 design update enhanced account connectivity, and decreased drop-off rates for users of its real-time income data platform. Link 4.0 also upgrades the platform’s visual style to boost consistency across Argyle’s product line.

Interested in demoing at FinovateSpring in San Francisco in May? We are happy to read applications from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateSpring hub today to learn more.

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Who Needs Open Banking When You Have Apple FinanceKit?

Who Needs Open Banking When You Have Apple FinanceKit?
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Apple, Daily news
  • Apple began offering an API called FinanceKit in its latest iOS 17.4 update.
  • The new update allows developers to fetch users’ transactions and balance data from users’ Apple Card, Apple Cash, and Apple Savings accounts.
  • Online budgeting platforms Monarch, YNAB, and Copilot are the launch partners for FinanceKit.

In its latest iOS 17.4 update, Apple is offering an API called FinanceKit that allows developers to fetch users’ transactions and balance data from users’ Apple Card, Apple Cash, and Apple Savings accounts. The company made a similar move in the U.K. in November 2023.

Launch partners in the new update are online budgeting platforms Monarch, YNAB, and Copilot. Apple’s update will help users more easily aggregate their accounts. Instead of uploading spreadsheets of their transaction data, users will be able to see data from their Apple Card, Apple Cash, and Apple Savings in real time on the third party platforms.

“This new feature means that as you spend and save with your favorite Apple products, your transactions will appear in YNAB almost instantaneously. No manual entry required,” the company said in its blog announcement. “Imagine: when you open YNAB on your device (running iOS 17.4 or higher), all of your Apple transactions are there, ready to categorize.”

Overall, the more free flow of data will help achieve a bit of what open banking is supposed to help accomplish by allowing users to access their data how and where they want. Today’s action from Apple shows that the company believes users should own their transaction data, and it is encouraging to see the tech giant granting access to third parties.

As with most account aggregation efforts, however, bringing users’ transaction and account balance data into third party platforms will not be without friction. As PFM platform Monarch Money explained on its blog post, “For those with existing Apple Card accounts in Monarch, we recommend you sync your Apple Card again as a new account, and remove or hide the old accounts. You can also merge your history from your old Apple Card account to the new one using our merge account flows on desktop, which lets you choose whether you want to move over your old transactions and/or balances.”

What might some of the impacts be from Apple’s more open approach to users’ financial data? First, it may result in consumers increasing their usage of Apple’s financial products, such as Apple Card, as they become more integrated into users’ financial management habits. The launch of FinanceKit is also a win for PFM platforms. As more platforms are able to leverage Apple’s API to fetch consumer data, they will reduce friction and minimize consumer complaints regarding manual processes. Finally, end consumers will benefit from the launch because, not only will they enjoy decreased friction, but they will also be able to make more informed financial decisions by having their transaction and account data more readily available.

Photo by blocks on Unsplash

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Monzo Raises $430 Million with a $5 Billion Valuation

Monzo Raises $430 Million with a $5 Billion Valuation
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Funding
  • U.K.-based digital bank Monzo has raised $430 million (£340 million) in a round led by Alphabet-owned CapitalG.
  • The funds come about a year after Monzo achieved profitability, having reached nine million customers.
  • Monzo’s post-money valuation is now $5 billion, up from $4.5 billion in 2022.

U.K.-based digital banking platform Monzo has raised $430 million (£340 million) in a round led by Alphabet-owned CapitalG.

Also participating in the round, which was first rumored last week,  were new investors, Google Ventures and HongShan Capital, along with existing contributors Passion Capital and Tencent. The new round boosts Monzo’s post-money valuation to $5 billion (£4 billion), which is up from the $4.5 billion valuation it received in 2022. According to Crunchbase, Monzo’s total investment amount now stands at $1.5 billion.

“With backing from global investors, we have the rocket fuel to go after our ambitions harder and faster, building Monzo into the one app that sits at the centre of our customers’ financial lives,” said company CEO TS Anil. “Each milestone we’ve reached to this point has given us more strength and speed to make strides towards our mission – now we’ll scale to even greater heights and seize the huge opportunity ahead.”

Monzo plans to use the funds to fuel expansion and to help the company improve its product roadmap. The timing of the funds, combined with the company’s expansion ambitions, come at a good time. That’s because, since it was founded in 2015, Monzo has acquired nine million users– two million of which were brought on just last year. This growth, combined with higher interest rates, pushed Monzo to achieve profitability in March of last year.

Monzo originally launched in 2015, the early days of digital challenger banks. In the U.K., the company offers both personal and business accounts that feature current and savings accounts, unsecured personal loans, and investment funds powered by BlackRock. U.S. users are limited to personal and joint checking accounts, but have the option to aggregate data from other financial services providers in order to get a holistic picture of their overall financial standing.

According to Monzo’s public roadmap, the company is currently working on budgeting improvements, paying interest on savings balances, and a faster onboarding experience. For the future, the company plans to develop digital billpay, capabilities and the ability to send checks, and also has stretch goals to launch a check depositing feature, subscription management, and merchant spending rules.

Photo by Mikhail Nilov

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