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Finovate Global Canada: Mitigating Currency Volatility, Earning Banking Licenses, and More!

Finovate Global Canada: Mitigating Currency Volatility, Earning Banking Licenses, and More!
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Finovate Global, Klarna, MasterCard

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 Float unveiled 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.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Central and Eastern Europe

Middle East and Northern Africa

Central and Southern Asia

Latin America and the Caribbean

Asia-Pacific

  • Laybuy by Klarna relaunched in New Zealand this week.
  • Aspire subsidiary ASG2 secured a Capital Markets Services License (CMS) from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
  • Australian digital payment provider Fat Zebra acquired SecurePay from the Australia Post.

Photo by Luis Ruiz

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As it Preps for IPO, Klarna Takes the Throne as Walmart’s BNPL Provider

As it Preps for IPO, Klarna Takes the Throne as Walmart’s BNPL Provider
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, IPO, Klarna
  • Klarna is replacing Affirm as Walmart’s exclusive BNPL provider, marking a major shift in the BNPL space.
  • Walmart shoppers will soon be able to use Klarna’s installment loans in-store and online, with OnePay handling the user experience and Klarna underwriting the loans.
  • The deal strengthens Klarna’s U.S. presence ahead of its IPO, giving it access to millions of Walmart shoppers and increasing its loan volume, brand recognition, and potential investor appeal.

Klarna has big news today, and it’s not just that the company filed its IPO prospectus with the SEC. The buy now, pay later (BNPL) company announced that it has struck an agreement with Walmart to serve as the retail giant’s exclusive partner for BNPL installment loans.

Klarna is replacing BNPL provider Affirm, which secured the BNPL provider partnership with Walmart last January. Under the agreement, Klarna will provide the BNPL loans for Walmart shoppers in-store and online.

The online BNPL loans will be extended through Walmart-owned fintech OnePay (formerly known as ONE). OnePay will handle the user experience, while Klarna will be in charge of loan underwriting. The BNPL loans through One will range from three-month to 36-month terms and will charge interest rates ranging from 10% to 36%. Leveraging Klarna’s BNPL tool will add installment loans to OnePay’s suite of existing financial tools, which include banking, credit, and payments products. 

“This is a game changer,” said Sebastian Siemiatkowski, Co-founder and CEO, Klarna. “Millions of people in the U.S. shop at Walmart every day—and now they can shop smarter with OnePay installment loans powered by Klarna. OnePay choosing Klarna as their exclusive installment loans partner at Walmart in the U.S. is a huge vote of confidence as we pursue our goal of being available everywhere for everything. We look forward to helping redefine checkout at the world’s largest retailer—both online and in stores.”

This deal is a significant customer acquisition opportunity for Klarna. Walmart serves millions of shoppers daily, and Klarna’s presence at checkout will significantly increase its U.S. loan volume.

According to CNBC, Walmart will initiate the launch with Klarna in the coming months and will roll out to all Walmart channels later this year. It is likely that Klarna will serve as the only BNPL option for Walmart shoppers by the end of 2025.

​Walmart launched OnePay, its fintech startup, in January 2021 through a partnership with Ribbit Capital. In January 2022, Walmart expanded One’s capabilities by acquiring two fintech platforms, Even and ONE, which helped Walmart create a more comprehensive financial services app. One launched with a checking account product for Walmart employees, as well as some select customers, in 2022.

“It’s never been more important to give consumers simple and convenient ways to access fair credit at the point of sale—and that’s especially true for the millions of people who turn to Walmart every week for everything,” said OnePay CEO Omer Ismail. “We’re incredibly excited to partner with Klarna to give consumers easier and more seamless ways to shop with OnePay at Walmart.”

Notably, today’s partnership comes days after Klarna filed its F-1 prospectus with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. While this is a much-anticipated move in the fintech community, the official valuation figures won’t come out until Klarna prices its shares, which may take around a month. That said, Klarna hopes to raise at least $1 billion at a $15 billion valuation.

This deal signifies two major things. First, it indicates a major shift in the BNPL landscape. Affirm’s stock dropped by more than 10% in pre-market trading following Klarna’s announcement, which highlights just how significant a BNPL partnership with Walmart is. Additionally, Walmart’s move to switch its BNPL provider after a little over a year shows that retailers are not afraid to reevaluate their BNPL strategies, and that no single player is untouchable.

Second, Walmart’s move indicates that the retailer is positioning OnePay to compete with traditional banks and fintechs. By adding Klarna’s BNPL tools to its roster of banking services, Walmart is positioning OnePay as a more comprehensive financial platform for its customers, which tend to be financially underserved individuals.

Photo by Cristian Cativo

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Fintech Rundown: A Rapid Review of Weekly News

Fintech Rundown: A Rapid Review of Weekly News
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Backbase, Equifax, Fintech Rundown, Klarna, Plumery

FinovateEurope 2025 kicks off this week at the Intercontinental O2 in London. Learn more about the conferences’s keynote speakers, power panels, demoing companies and more in our pre-show briefing.

In the meanwhile, here’s a look at some of the news making fintech headlines as the week begins. Be sure to check back all week long for more updates.

Payments

Backbase and MeaWallet team up to bring advanced tokenization solutions to Australia and New Zealand.

Payments orchestration platform Yuno partners with Invest Qatar to as the company opens its new Middle East headquarters in the country.

Digital banking

Digital banking experience systems provider Plumery announces partnership with African digital identity verification provider, Smile ID.

Embedded finance

NatWest Boxed and The AA forge strategic partnership to leverage Boxed’s embedded finance platform to offer financial products, including instant savings accounts, to AA customers.

Financial wellness

PensionBee teams up with financial wellness marketplace ClearScore.

Socially responsible credit provider Kashable announced a technology partnership with HR, payroll, workforce management, and culture solutions company UKG.

E-commerce

Payments and e-commerce network Klarna expands its partnership with European paytech Nexi.

Regtech

Equifax UK goes live with its Finance Emissions Calculator to help enhance sustainability reporting requirements.

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A Look Back at What You Loved: Top 10 Posts of 2024

A Look Back at What You Loved: Top 10 Posts of 2024
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Fiserv, Klarna, List series, Revolut, Socure, SoFi

As both a conference producer and a news outlet, we’re always paying close attention to the topics that resonate most with you — our audience of fintech and banking professionals. To wrap up 2024 and brace ourselves of what to expect for 2025, we analyzed readership data to gain valuable insights into the stories, trends, companies, and products that mattered most to the industry this year to create the top 10 posts of 2024.

This list is compiled of posts published in 2024 that garnered the highest number of views and engagement in 2024. From breaking news to big IPOs, these were the stories you found most compelling. So, without further ado, here’s a countdown of the top 10 posts that captured your interest over the past year.

#10: Finovate Awards finalists (link)

Meet the Finalists of the 2024 Finovate Awards!

#9: Klarna’s long-awaited IPO (link)

5 Facts About Klarna’s Long-Awaited IPO

#8: How Galileo is expanding into real time payments (link)

SoFi’s Galileo Extends Partnership with The Bancorp to Offer Real-Time Payments

#7: A highlight of conversations with FinovateFall’s Best of Show Winners (link)

Best of Show Winners from FinovateFall 2024 Join the Finovate Podcast

#6: A look at Socure’s big buy (link)

Socure Acquires Real-Time Risk Decisioning Company Effectiv for $136 Million

#5: A Finovate Global roundup focused on central Asia (link)

Finovate Global Uzbekistan: Fintech Innovation and Banking Breakthroughs in Central Asia

#4: A look at how Walmart is tapping a traditional fintech player to compete on payments (link)

Walmart Taps Fiserv to Offer Pay by Bank

#3: The news event that kicked off the stablecoin frenzy (link)

What Stripe’s Purchase of Bridge Means for Stablecoins in the U.S.

#2: A mid-year roundup of M&A activity (link)

Top 10 Fintech Acquisitions of Summer 2024 (So Far)

#1: How Revolut is doubling down in the wealth management arena (link)

Revolut to Launch Standalone Wealth Management App

Photo by Vlada Karpovich

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Google Pay Adds AfterPay and Klarna to BNPL Options

Google Pay Adds AfterPay and Klarna to BNPL Options
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Google, Klarna
  • Google Pay is adding Afterpay and Klarna to its checkout flow, complementing its existing partnerships with Affirm and Zip.
  • Adding more BNPL options at the point of sale will help increase conversion rates and average order values.
  • By offering four BNPL options, Google Pay solidifies its edge over Amazon, which currently provides Affirm as its sole BNPL provider at checkout.

Google Pay is doubling down on buy now, pay later (BNPL) options at checkout. The company announced today that it is adding Afterpay and Klarna to its checkout flow at select merchants. The move will offer consumers more flexible payment options when they use Google Pay.

“People shop on Google more than a billion times per day, and consumers are increasingly looking for more choice and flexibility when it comes to their payment options,” said Google Pay Senior Director Drew Olson. “By teaming up with pay over time providers like Klarna, we are able to give Google Pay users more payment options when checking out, while providing merchants with another tool to drive growth.”

Adding Afterpay, which has 24 million active users, and Klarna, which has 85 million active users, will not only offer more ways to pay but may also lead to increased conversion rates and higher average order values. Customers are more likely to make larger purchases when offered flexible payment solutions.

“Afterpay’s integration with Google Pay comes at the perfect time as next-gen shoppers are fueling mainstream use of BNPL, mobile commerce, and digital wallet use,” said Afterpay and Cash App Head of Global Partnerships Tanuj Parikh. “We are excited to expand our BNPL to Google’s network, creating the best and most streamlined customer shopping experience that meets all the needs of this younger consumer set.”

While Afterpay is now available on Google Pay, Klarna will launch with select merchants in 2025. The company aims to expand the BNPL options to more merchants in the future.

Today’s news comes about a year after Google unveiled that it partnered with Zip and Affirm, two other major BNPL players, to offer Google Pay users BNPL options. While offering four BNPL options at the online point of sale sounds excessive, not all merchants offer every BNPL option at checkout. The selection of BNPL providers is dictated by the agreements between Google Pay, the BNPL services, and the individual merchants.

By expanding its roster of BNPL options, Google Pay strengthens its competitive edge against Amazon, which currently limits point-of-sale BNPL offerings to Affirm. While the exclusivity agreement between Amazon and Affirm ended last year, Amazon has yet to collaborate with additional BNPL providers. Google Pay’s strategic decision to double its BNPL offerings may prompt Amazon to diversify its own consumer payment options.

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5 Facts About Klarna’s Long-Awaited IPO

5 Facts About Klarna’s Long-Awaited IPO
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Klarna, List series

After what seems like years of speculation, buy now, pay later (BNPL) leader Klarna has filed for its IPO with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Sweden-based company is being quiet about details, however. Klarna released a five-sentence press release with very little color. “This press release is being made pursuant to, and in accordance with, Rule 135 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and shall not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities,” the release plainly stated. “Any offers, solicitations or offers to buy, or any sales of securities will be made in accordance with the registration requirements of the Securities Act.”

Given its presence in the BNPL space, as well as its lofty valuation, which peaked at almost $46 billion in 2021, there has been a lot of interest in Klarna’s IPO plans. Here are five key things to know about Klarna’s IPO, what it signals for the market, and what it could mean for both investors and customers alike.

The IPO has been in the works for years

Klarna was founded in 2005 and first hinted at an IPO in 2019 in an interview with Bloomberg. At the time, company CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski mentioned that the company was considering an IPO within the next one to two years, depending on market conditions.

Since then, Klarna has seen significant growth. The company added to its BNPL tools in 2020 with the launch of its own shopping platform that hosts half a million retail partners who list goods across a range of categories. Today, Klarna’s retail site counts 150 million shoppers– 40 million of which are U.S. based– who make two million transactions on its platform each day. Overall, the company facilitates two million transactions per day for its 85 million active customers.

Klarna’s valuation peaked at $46 billion, but won’t reach that figure at its IPO

Klarna’s valuation has fluctuated over the past four years. At its peak, the company was valued at $46 billion in June 2021, making it the most valuable private fintech company in Europe. In 2022, however, the company’s valuation dropped to $6.7 billion.

While Klarna has not disclosed the valuation it plans to reach for its pending IPO, Fortune estimates the company could earn a valuation of about $14.6 billion. This figure is based on a move that Klarna shareholder Chrysalis Investments made in October to increase the value of its stake in the company to £120.6 million ($154 million).

Some of Klarna’s competition has already gone public

Klarna’s eventual IPO will follow in the footsteps of some of its competitors in the BNPL space who have already made their public debuts. California-based Affirm went public on the NASDAQ in early 2021 and now holds a market capitalization of $17.7 billion, while Australia-based Afterpay was acquired by Square (now Block, Inc.) in a 2022 deal valued at $29 billion. Sezzle, which originally went public on the Australian Stock Exchange, listed on the NYSE in 2023. Block also owns BNPL pioneer Afterpay, which went public on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2016 before the $29 billion acquisition.

Klarna’s regulatory heat will likely increase

All across the globe, BNPL is not without its criticism. The payments technology has faced backlash because of its propensity to promote irresponsible spending habits. This has led to formal regulation in multiple countries, including the issuance of an interpretive rule from the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau earlier this year.

As a public company, Klarna will be subject to a higher standard and will face greater scrutiny to not only comply with evolving regulations, but also to create and uphold higher standards of its own to protect its customers. Klarna is already ahead of regulation, however, as the company has already implemented features incluing spending caps, a transparent fee structure, and financial wellness tools.

An IPO offers potential for growth

Going public will offer Klarna access to additional capital that the company can use to fuel expansion. This is particularly important in the U.S., where it competes with Afterpay, Affirm, and PayPal’s BNPL offerings.

The IPO may also enable Klarna to create additional revenue streams by launching more traditional products and personal financial management tools. This expansion could position Klarna into a global financial power player.

Photo by appshunter.io on Unsplash

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3 Takeaways from Klarna Checkout’s Rebrand as Kustom

3 Takeaways from Klarna Checkout’s Rebrand as Kustom
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Klarna, List series

This week, Klarna Checkout, also known as KCO, announced its official rebrand as Kustom. The rebrand comes 12 years after the launch of Klarna Checkout, which at the time set a new standard for e-commerce in Northern Europe. The rebrand also arrives months after Klarna sold KCO to a consortium of investors led by BLQ Invest CEO and Founding Partner Kamjar Hajabdolahi.

“Klarna Checkout is very dear to me, and the impact it’s had on Klarna’s journey is immense,” Klarna CEO and Co-Founder Sebastian Siemiatkowski said in June when the divestment was announced. “I’m so pleased it’s finding a new home, with owners who are carefully handpicked to continue to create outstanding value for our merchant partners.”

A new home back then, and now, a new name. As Kustom, the digital checkout solution stands as one of the largest digital checkout providers in Europe. Kustom has 24,000 e-merchants and annual transaction volume of more than $14 billion (150 billion SEK). Kustom will focus on e-merchants and will add to its suite of payment methods, while keeping Klarna a key component of Kustom’s offering. Additionally, Kustom will focus on optimizing the checkout experience and building related services as opposed to offering its own payment methods or credit products.

“Our full focus will now be on our merchants and continuing to develop this great product based on their needs,” Hajabdolahi said. “We have an incredibly strong customer base, we are profitable, and we have secured financing for strategic acquisitions, which provides an excellent foundation. In the coming months, we will put all our efforts into further developing our infrastructure to expand our offering in 2025, including the introduction of new payment methods.”

Here are a trio of top takeaways from the rebrand.

Kustom will start strong

The rebrand comes at a time of strength for the digital checkout platform. The solution has a market share of more than 40% in Sweden and more than 20% across the Nordics. Kustom will also benefit from its new owners who have been credited for their “Buy and Build” strategy when it comes to acquisitions.

Strategic partnership with Stripe

In addition to its rebrand announcement, Kustom also shared news of a new strategic partnership with payments innovator Stripe. Stripe’s platform will be instrumental to Kustom’s plans to introduce new features and payment methods for e-merchants, starting in the first half of 2025.

Continued collaboration with Klarna

Despite the summer sale and the autumn rebrand, Kustom will retain its relationship with Klarna and, in fact, plans to offer Klarna’s payment methods in the future. Also many of the personnel moves accompanying the rebrand reflect more continuation than separation. Jesper Eriksson, previously Country Manager for Klarna in Sweden, will become Chief Commercial Officer for Kustom. Rasmus Fahlander, previously Senior Product Director for Klarna Checkout, will become CPO. Alexander Olsson, former finance director for the U.S. at Klarna, will take the role of CFO.

Photo by Leeloo The First

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Xero Clients Can Now Offer BNPL Payments via Klarna

Xero Clients Can Now Offer BNPL Payments via Klarna
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Klarna, Xero
  • Xero and Klarna have partnered to allow small businesses to offer buy now, pay later (BNPL) options at checkout, giving consumers more flexible payment choices.
  • Under the partnership, Xero’s small business clients will have access to BNPL capabilities that may help boost revenue and enable more large-ticket sales.
  • This collaboration has the potential to help Xero’s small business clients maintain healthy cash flow by getting paid upfront.

Small business accounting software company Xero and global payments network and shopping platform Klarna announced this week that they have teamed up.

The deal is essentially a distribution partnership for Klarna, which will help Xero’s small businesses clients accept buy now, pay later (BNPL) payments from their consumers. Xero small business customers in all regions except Australia can offer Klarna at checkout as a payment option, providing a credit card alternative while still getting paid for the goods or services up front.

“We know that maintaining a healthy cash flow is critical to a successful business, and offering more ways to pay supports increased business growth and getting paid faster,” said Xero SVP Payments & Ecosystem Bharathi Ramavarjula. “In fact, our recent research report shows that if a business doesn’t offer customers their preferred way to pay, they are prepared to take their business elsewhere. By enabling our customers with more ways to pay, including Klarna, we can help them retain customers and increase their revenue.” 

Klarna’s BNPL tools include a four-payment, interest-free installment plan, a 24-month financing option, and a pay-in-30 day option. Before a customer makes their purchase, Klarna verifies their eligibility and offers transparent terms of the payment. Once the purchase is made, the company follows up with reminders to help ensure that shoppers stay current on their payments. According to Klarna, 99% of the financing is repaid and 40% of orders placed are repaid early.

The partnership has the potential to provide BNPL capabilities to small businesses that would normally not be able to offer flexible payments or financing. By offering a more flexible payment option, these businesses have the potential to close more larger-ticket deals. It also has the potential to help businesses maintain healthy cashflow, as merchants using Klarna will receive the payment up front.

“This partnership brings Klarna’s flexible payment options to micro businesses of all kinds so business owners can get paid on time and their customers can choose how and when to pay,” said “Klarna Chief Commercial Officer David Sykes. “This includes businesses where gardeners and landscaping services using Xero can now offer a Klarna BNPL payment option, plumbers and heating engineers using Xero can fix their customers’ boilers and let them spread the cost while small businesses involved in the construction industry could spread the cost of smaller projects over three interest-free installments.”

Both Klarna and Xero have been in the fintech news cycle in recent months for different reasons. Last month, Klarna unveiled plans to cut its workforce in half in favor of AI-driven productivity. And earlier this month, Xero announced plans to acquire collaborative reporting tool Syft Analytics.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

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Klarna Integrates New Payment Service to Enhance Checkout Security

Klarna Integrates New Payment Service to Enhance Checkout Security
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Klarna

A nearly ten-year old acquisition may turn out to be Klarna’s secret weapon to improve security during the checkout process.

The Swedish payments company announced this week that it has integrated a new payment service into its Klarna Pay Now product suite. The integration is designed to improve checkout security and has been made possible thanks in large part to Klarna’s acquisition of Germany-based Sofort in 2014.

“We are integrating Sofortüberweisung into the Klarna environment to offer consumers and merchants the best of both worlds: the familiar Sofort payment process combined with the smoother, more secure payment experience and global reach of Klarna,” Klarna Chief Commercial Officer David Sykes said. “The combined product is better for merchants and consumers, and (is) also a platform for Klarna to expand the functionality of Sofortüberweisung globally.”

Sofortüberweisung is a bank-to-bank payment service that Klarna gained access to by acquiring Sofort GmbH in 2014. Klarna has been incorporating Sofort’s technology into its solutions since 2017, and has launched the service in some of its other markets around the world, including the U.K. With this week’s integration, consumers will be able to track their Sofortüberweisung payments from within the Klarna app, as well as make payments without having to re-enter their payment information. This, combined with Klarna’s two-factor authentication, facilitates both greater convenience and increased security.

To that point, customers will need a Klarna account in order to take advantage of the Sofortüberweisung integration, and the company notes 95% of Sofort customers already have one. Klarna also reports that the “improved user-friendliness” of the integration has produced a 5% increase in conversion rates for consumers who use it.

Founded in 2005, Klarna made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2012. In the decade-plus since then, the company has grown into a major e-commerce and payments business with 150 million total active customers in its network – including 34 million in the U.S. With more than 500,000 total merchants using its technology, Klarna facilitates two million transactions per day.

The company also recently made headlines with word that it is preparing for an initial public offering in the U.S. as early as the first half of 2025. Also this month, Klarna announced that it had partnered with Adobe Commerce to make it easier for merchants on the platform to implement Klarna’s Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services.

“Consumers are embracing the flexibility that Buy Now Pay Later services can provide, with Adobe Analytics data showing over 11 percent growth this year,” Jason Knell, Adobe Sr. Director, Content & Commerce Partners, said. “Klarna’s global footprint enables Adobe Commerce merchants to meet the changing needs of their customers and stay competitive in today’s digital economy.”

Klarna is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. Sebastian Siemiakowski is Klarna’s CEO.

Photo by Karolina Kaboompics

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Fintech Rundown: A Rapid Review of Weekly News

Fintech Rundown: A Rapid Review of Weekly News
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: BlueVine, Daily news, Finastra, Fintech Rundown, Finzly, Klarna, MasterCard, Salt Edge, Trustly, Tyro, Weekly Alumni News, Weekly News

As 2024 works its way toward halftime, we’re seeing an uptick in partnership and collaboration activity from crypto to regtech. Check back all week long for updates on the latest in fintech news.

Payments

Payment orchestration platform Gr4vy extends its partnership with open banking payments company Trustly.

Tyro Payments teams up with StoreConnect to enable integrated payments for a Salesforce-based POS solution.

Intelligent verified payouts solutions provider Verituity closes $18.8 million funding round.

MENA and Africa-based consumer fintech Pyypl to issue prepaid Visa cards from its UAE headquarters as part of a new partnership with Visa.

Clair partners with Check to seamlessly offer on-demand pay. 

Tribe Payments appoints Andrew Hocking as CEO.

Frost Bank taps Finzly to provide FedNow and RTP instant payments to its business clients and consumers.

Digital banking

Mahalo Banking introduces its latest partner: Industrial Credit Union.

Bluevine teams up with Mastercard to launch its new Small Business Cashback Mastercard.

Bank Midwest partners with Finastra to launch its new digital bank, OnePlace.bank.

Tuum expands its partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to deliver its next generation core banking platform through the AWS Marketplace.

Quail Creek Bank chooses Jack Henry to stay competitive and enhance customer experience.

MoneyLion appoints Jon Kaplan as Chief Revenue Officer.

Avidia Bank partners with Q2 and Personetics to modernize its digital banking experience and strengthen engagement.

Eltropy announces key enhancements to unified conversations platform.

Fraud and Identity management

Risk-decisioning software provider Provenir launches onboarding fraud solution.

Email address intelligence firm AtData forges strategic partnership with unified identity platform Dodgeball.

DataVisor enhances multi-tenancy capabilities for scalable, secure, and flexible fraud and AML solutions.

E-Commerce

Klarna divests its Klarna Checkout (KCO) division for $520 million.

Regtech

E-document management platform A-Cube API announces collaboration with Salt Edge to facilitate compliant document digitization.

DeFi

Decentralized finance (DeFi) platform 1inch partners with Web3 security provider Blockaid.

Embedded finance

Cotribute, an embedded fintech platform serving credit unions, partners with APCU and Center Parc Credit Union to launch an automated digital account opening solution.

Embedded finance platform for technology purchases Gynger raises $20 million in a Series A round led by PayPal Ventures.

Banking-as-a-Service

Payments and financial solutions provider Finzly partners with Frost Bank to bring FedNow and RTP Instant Payments to business and retail customers.

Egyptian Banking-as-a-Service startup Connect Money secures $8 million.

Lending

USMI names Enact MI President and CEO Rohit Gupta as Chair of the Board.

Conotoxia makes loan applications and processing available in its mobile app.

Small business finance

Airwallex integrates with Intuit QuickBooks to provide seamless multicurrency reporting.

Photo by Nubia Navarro (nubikini)

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Finovate Global France: Lydia Launches New Digital Brand, RockFi Raises Millions, Meet Finovate’s French Alums

Finovate Global France: Lydia Launches New Digital Brand, RockFi Raises Millions, Meet Finovate’s French Alums
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Backbase, Finovate Global, Klarna, MasterCard

This week, Finovate Global looks at recent fintech developments in France.

French start-up Lydia announced the launch of a new digital banking brand this week. Named Sumeria, Lydia plans to invest more than €100 million in the new initiative, as well as hire 400 people over the next three years. Sumeria, according to a post on LinkedIn, offers 4% interest and is designed to be a “simple and accessible banking super app.

“We are convinced that technology (cloud, mobile) is not an end in itself, but a way to simplify life, through everyday details,” the company noted in a statement on its website. Arguing that current accounts should be neither “trendy gadgets” nor make users captive to a given app, system, or institution, the company explained: “It should solve a real problem. This is why Lydia’s choices, with Sumeria, are motivated by common sense and its ambition to be universal: for everyone, for everything.”

Lydia’s brand announcement follows a decision by the company to split its digital banking app into two components. Originally launched in 2013 as a P2P payments app, Lydia’s solution scaled, adding more and more financial services features over the years. It was the launch of its Lydia Accounts offering convinced the company that a change was necessary to keep its early adopters – who relied heavily on the P2P service – onboard. The result was to offer the P2P services separately from Lydia’s digital banking proposition through the Lydia Accounts app. The original Lydia app will become Sumeria, with the new features mentioned above – such as stock trading, savings accounts and loans – to be ported to the new banking brand.

Headquartered in Paris, Lydia has raised more than $259 million in funding. The company’s investors include Accel and Echo Street Capital. In addition to the launch of Sumeria, Lydia is also seeking a credit institution license from the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority.

Paris, France-based private wealth management startup RockFi raised €3 million in funding this week. The round was led by Varsity I and featured the participation of numerous business angels in technology and private management. The company plans to use the capital to grow its workforce by 3x by the end of 2024 so as to provide private banking and wealth management expertise to clients throughout France.

“Since the beginning of the year, we have seen strong client traction eager for a new model to manage their wealth,” RockFi Co-Founder and CEO Pierre Marin said. “With a market of €4.8 trillion in assets ahead of us and no tech leader yet in France and Europe, our ambition is very high for the coming years.”

RockFi’s model combines human expertise and technology to offer services including banking, wealth management, life insurance, and pension savings. The firm has a targetable clientele with assets of more than €100,000, representing six million households in France.

“Three months after our official launch this is an important step that anchors a strong momentum and allows us to further accelerate the construction of the new private management,” the company wrote on its LinkedIn page this week. “The ambition remains: to surround ourselves with the best talent and partners in each field and to deploy a tech ecosystem to unleash the potential of independent wealth managers at the service of their clients.”

Meet Finovate’s French Alums!

Over the years, Finovate has been proud to showcase a number of fintech innovators based in France. Here’s a look at some of French fintechs that have demoed their technology on the Finovate stage in recent years.

Dotfile – FinovateEurope 2024 – demo

ShareID – FinovateEurope 2024 – demo

Numeral – FinovateEurope 2023 – demo

SESAMm – FinovateEurope 2023 – demo

Thread – FinovateEurope 2021 – demo

BLECKWEN – FinovateEurope 2020 – demo

Worldline – FinovateEurope 2017 – demo

Ledger – FinovateEurope 2016 – demo

Here is our look at fintech innovation around the world.

Central and Eastern Europe

  • German B2B payments provider Billie forged a strategic pan-European collaboration with BNP Paribas.
  • Klarna expanded its Pay in 3 service to Slovakia.
  • U.K.-based business financial platform Tide launched in Germany this week.

Middle East and Northern Africa

  • Emirates NBD and Pine Labs announced a collaboration to bring new payment solutions to businesses in the region.
  • A partnership between NymCard and Dellsons Associates will help bring embedded finance solutions to businesses in the Middle East and Pakistan.
  • Israel-based fintech Kima teamed up with Mastercard’s FinSec Innovation Lab to explore use cases for a “defi credit card.”

Central and Southern Asia

  • Indian digital payments company PhonePe partnered with LankaPay to bring UPI payment acceptance to Sri Lanka.
  • Kazakhstan announced the availability to 10+ new CBDC card services since the launch of its digital tenge.
  • U.K.-based startup Fintech Farm raised $32 million in funding to fuel its expansion to India.

Latin America and the Caribbean

  • TransNetwork acquired Inswitch to bring cross-border digital payments options to Latin America.
  • Mexico-based BNPL platform Aplazo raised $70 million in new funding.
  • Uruguayan cross-border payments platform dLocal announced the expansion of its partnership with Deel.

Asia-Pacific

  • Backbase, digital enabler SmartOSC, and Vietnam-based OCB partnered to launch the OCB OMNI 4.0 app to enhance digital banking in Vietnam.
  • Philippines-based fintech Skyro teamed up with identity verification company ADVANCE.AI.
  • Hong Kong’s Faster Payment System (FPS) is facilitating the use of e-CNY wallets, launched this week.

Sub-Saharan Africa

  • Mastercard partnered with the Cooperative Bank of Oromia to improve financial inclusion in Ethiopia.
  • Payment processing solutions company PayRetailers went live in Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.
  • The Financial Times recognized Africa’s Moniepoint as the fastest growing fintech in the region.

Photo by Martijn Adegeest

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Almost 90% of Klarna Staff Use Kiki The Company’s Internal AI

Almost 90% of Klarna Staff Use Kiki The Company’s Internal AI
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Klarna
  • Klarna announced that 87% of its staff use its Generative AI engine, Kiki in their daily work activities.
  • Kiki was launched in June 2023 and uses OpenAI’s Large Language Models.
  • Kiki generates responses within one to five seconds and offers answers that are dependent on the user’s role and other context.

Global payments network and shopping platform Klarna announced today that 87% of its staff use Generative AI to complete their daily work activities. The employees are using Kiki, Klarna’s internal AI assistant.

Klarna launched Kiki in June of 2023, leveraging OpenAI’s Large Language Models (LLMs). Since it was released, Kiki has responded to more than 250,000 inquiries, which equates to roughly 2,000 inquiries per day. Today, more than 85% of all Klarna employees use Kiki. 

“We push everyone to test, test, test and explore,” said Klarna CEO and Co-founder Sebastian Siemiatkowski. “As Klarna continues to discover applications for OpenAI’s tech, there’s the potential to take the business to new heights. We’re aimed at achieving a new level of employee empowerment, enhancing both our team’s performance and the customer experience.”

Overall, Kiki helps manage and distribute internal knowledge at Klarna, which helps to maintain a transparent culture. The AI assistant, which generates responses within one to five seconds, offers answers that are dependent on the user’s role and other context.

How do Klarna staff use Kiki? Employees can use the AI assistant to not only fetch information, but also to solve issues independently. For example, the company’s communications team uses the engine to evaluate whether press articles written about Klarna are positive or negative. The company’s lawyers use the tool to draft common types of contracts. “The big law firms have had a really great business just from providing templates for common types of contract. But ChatGPT is even better than a template because you can create something quite bespoke,” said Klarna Senior Managing Legal Counsel Selma Bogren.

Klarna also uses GenAI for external customer communications. The company states that, after one month, the AI customer service assistant handled 2.3 million conversations, equivalent to two-thirds of Klarna’s customer service chats.

The announcement comes as OpenAI, which powers Kiki, unveiled GPT-4o, the latest iteration of its GenAI chatbot. The new version is faster, has improved its non-English language text, and accepts input of any combination of text, audio, and images, while generating any combination of text, audio, and image outputs. “Because GPT-4o is our first model combining all of these modalities, we are still just scratching the surface of exploring what the model can do and its limitations,” states OpenAI’s announcement page.

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto

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