Connecting the dots in FinTech... by Marcel van Oost

More problems for Revolut as it waits for UK banking licence

Crowdcube joins team of rivals launching new retail investment platform Retailbook.

• Goldman is looking for a way out of its partnership with Apple

• PayRetailers integrates PIX into its all-in-one payment platform.

Connecting the Dots FinTech Update - June 27th

• Google Workspace partners with Stripe

• Binance cancels registration for inactive business in the UK

• Global B2B payment infrastructure platform Thunes has announced that it has successfully completed a series C funding round

Bybit crypto exchange follows Binance in exiting Canada amid tightened rules

LatAm fintechs propose joint open finance regulation

FROST's new broadband switching tool makes sustainable living easy and affordable.

MoneyLion to add ChatGPT-powered search to its marketplace

Revolut CFO quits for ‘personal reasons’

FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried seeks dismissal of criminal charges

Kemi Badenoch seeks emergency meeting with Revolut amid fears it may leave UK. 

Is N26 unbelievably overvalued?

Coinbase offers a fiery response to the SEC’s threat of enforcement action & more

Ex-Palantir execs raise €2.5m to protect startups from cyberattacks & more

Europe’s banks temper ambitions to challenge big US payments groups & more

Neobank creator Fintech Farm raises $22m; Unlimint expands reach to Nigeria & more

Pix continues to grow; Goldman Sachs; Coinbase considers London & more

Ryan Reynolds invests in Canadian fintech Nuvei & more

🍏 Apple Card’s new high-yield Savings account is now available
💪 Yonder secures £62.5m in equity and debt Series A round.
🇨🇴 Kala has raised US$6M
💚 Tide Encourages UK Businesses to ‘Kickstart’ Global Carbon Removal Movement to Deliver Net Zero

🔔 Rakuten Bank prices IPO
🚀 dLocal debuts All-in-One payment solution
🇧🇷 Nubank is now testing ‘NuConsignado’.
🇫🇷 Thunes bags new French license for global cross-border payments.
🇨🇦 Affirm and Stripe expand relationship to Canada.

🇺🇸 Bluevine and Wise Launch International Bill-Pay for U.S. SMBs
🌍 Fintech Plots EU Mobile-Payments Revolution From Poland
📈 Twitter to let users access stocks, crypto via eToro in finance push
🚀 Plaid Adds Instant Payouts to Its Transfer Tool
💪 Monzo joins forces with Plaid to open access for US customers.

🇨🇳 China’s Central Bank Warns Against ChatGPT ‘Data Leaks’
❌ Amsterdam-based cryptocurrency platform Change raises €2M
👩‍⚖️ Walmart Sues Credit-Card Partner Capital One
🇦🇪 UAE’s fintech Qlub raises $25 million
🤝 Finastra, Alygne partner to improve ESG investments decisions

🚀 Revolut launches ‘Crypto Collections’ for multi token investing
🙏 Cash App Founder, Bob Lee Fatally Stabbed In San Francisco
📉 Stripe Says Volume Growth Slowed
🇦🇺 Australian regulator cancels Binance's license at exchange's request
⏰ Molo launches 24-hour ‘Rapid Remortgage’

🇬🇧 Regulator cautioned over Revolut
📉 Affirm Shares Sink on Apple Pay Later News, Affirm Responds
🤝 Payments-as-a-Service Finexio partners with Proactis
👦🏻 Acorns acquires UK's GoHenry, a fintech focused on 6- to 18-year-olds

🧑‍⚖️ Revolut Reportedly Hired Lawyers to Challenge Audit Report
🌎 Worldpay chief Gabriel de Montessus takes the chair at Toqio
🇮🇳 PhonePe Cancels Deal To Acquire BNPL Startup ZestMoney
✍️ Zero Hash taps Stripe, Coinbase exec as COO
🏆 Enfuce Wins Celent ‘Model Risk Manager’ Award
🚀 CSI and Hawk AI partner to for AML

😅 Binance Sees $2 Billion in outflows as troubles compound
💳 Wio Bank selects Paymentology for card issuing
🇺🇸 StellarFi raises $15 Million
🅰️ Paytrix raises $18.3 million series A
🇬🇧 UK open banking sector valued at £4.1bn by Coadec

🍎 Apple Pay Later launches for select group
☃️ Frost goes carbon neutral ahead of fundraise
🚀 Thunes raises $30m as part of Series C
✍️ Griffin strengthens leadership team with new CFO and CRO
📱 Ingenico acquires smartphone payment acceptance fintech Phos
💳 Mastercard, Visa in talks to buy Pismo

👩‍⚖️ Binance and founder allegedly violated rules to attract U.S. users
🏦 First Citizens Acquires Much of Failed Silicon Valley Bank
📉 Block short-seller claims ‘Wild West’ compliance
🤖 Big banks invest in generative AI startup Hazy
🇸🇬 Over 500k users have signed up for Singapore’s Trust Bank
🇮🇩 Indonesian Qoala raises US$7.5m Series B+
🙏 Sibstar launches to help people with dementia manage finance

🤖 Klarna plugs ChatGPT into its platform for faster product recommendations
🚀 BNPL FinTech Sezzle files for direct listing on Nasdaq
🦁 MoneyLion rebrands "Even Financial" to "Engine by MoneyLion"
🇳🇱 Dutch stock exchange platform NPEX raises €2M
🌱 Climate fintech HeavyFinance raises €3m seed

Enfuce to power Science Card; Mastercard settles stablecoin transactions & more

🇸🇪 Mastercard acquires Swedish cyber-security firm Baffin Bay
🤖 GoCardless integrates with Zapier to automate payment processes
🥳 Monite doubles seed round to $10m
🎉 Wingspan raises $14M for payroll platform
🌱 TTV Capital raises $250 million for early-stage fintech fund
💸 Recognise Bank secures £25 million funding

⬇️ Stripe raises $6.5bn, working on GPT-4 product
🤝 BNP Paribas and Hokodo work on BNPL innovation
⚛ Atom Bank chair to step down as digital lender prepares for listing
💳 Parker emerges from stealth with $157m funding
🚀 Ibanera lands $18.5m in capital investment

🇺🇸 Bank of America gets over $15b in deposits after SVB fails
💸 Bunq hits €2bn in user deposits
🇲🇽 Mexican FinTech Clara obtains $90m credit line
🇦🇺 Wirex lands in Australia
🇷🇼 Flutterwave obtains licenses in Rwanda.
⏰ NatWest sets daily crypto purchase limits

🎉   Apexx Global raises $25 million Series B

🇦🇪   Sav raises $750k pre-seed to revolutionize personal savings

🧹   tidely receives EUR 3.5 million seed financing

🌱   Web3 firm Cubist lands $7m in seed raise

😌   SVB's new CEO: ‘... business as usual’

🪙   Swift completes CBDC sandbox test

💳   Nets partners with Visa and Mastercard

£   Binance suspends GBP withdrawals

🇨🇭   Credit Suisse reports weaknesses in financial controls

🇸🇦   HyperPay to go public in Saudi Arabia

📈   USDC nearly at $1 peg again

👩‍⚖️   Flutterwave faces another trial in Kenya

🥭   MANGOPAY collaborates with PayPal

🇳🇬   Nigerian fintech FairMoney acquires PayForce

Today's episode skips regular news stories. We'll discuss the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, the events leading up to the downfall, and the possible impact on the market in the future. In tomorrow's episode, on March 14th, we'll go back to regular FinTech news stories and give updates on the SVB story as we go.

🏷 Railsr announces sale
❤️‍🩹 Better.com’s SPAC gets lifeline but still problematic
🇬🇧 British Business Bank opens £70m Northern Ireland fund
🆔 Digital identity company Yoti raises £10m
🎉 Monnai raises $6.5 Million series A
🇩🇪 La Famiglia raises €255m to invest in seed & growth startups
🇨🇦 Synctera raises $15M for embedded banking in Canada

👋 Silvergate Bank to voluntarily liquidate
👩‍🏫 Adyen launches 2023 EMEA Accelerator
⛏ Block announces development kit for bitcoin mining
🤝 Zilch & Yapily to use open banking for BNPL lending
🎉 Brex Brings Groundbreaking Tools to Finance Teams With OpenAI
🇫🇷 FinTech Aria receives €50M in debt funding

🚨 N26’s execs warned about ‘dysfunctional’ leadership
🚔 Senators urge regulators to take action on Zelle fraud
🤭 Blockchain trade finance firm Marco Polo reportedly enters insolvency
🇬🇧 BaaS platform Griffin secures UK banking licence
🤝 Weavr acquires Comma to combine embedded and open banking
👩‍⚖️ VibePay wins dispute as Rakuten withdraws Viber Pay trademark in Europe
🚀 Pismo introduces digital lending functionality
🇨🇳 Airwallex secures Chinese licence through acquisition
🇲🇽 Bank of Mexico unveils P2P transfers.
🍾 Pakistani FinTech Trukkr raises $6.4m and gets a loan license
💪 Droit raises $23m series B

⚠️ UK fintech Railsr to be sold as issues mount
🪙 Nubank rolls out "Nucoin" 70 million users
🚗 Mercedes-Benz turns car into payment device
📉 Revolut investor slashes $5bn off fintech's valuation
🙄 Silvergate "SEN" used to move funds to Exchanges
🇲🇽 Crypto exchange Bitso launch debit card in Mexico
💡 Smart lending fintech Abound raises £500 million
🇧🇷 Brazilian B2B payments platform Barte raises $3m
🇫🇷 N2F raises €24m
🇬🇧 British fintech SteadyPay raises $3m seed

🇳🇬 Flutterwave denies claims that N2.9bn was stolen by hackers
🤫 Binance execs' texts, documents show plan to avoid US scrutiny
🛒 Shopify and thirdweb Launch Web3 Commerce Development Kit
🇦🇺 Nuvei extends global expansion by launching in Australia
🇨🇭 Credit Suisse Loses Key Shareholder

🧮 Revolut's statement about reportedly "misstated" revenue numbers
😢 Stripe Cuts Valuation to $50 Billion After Facing Fundraising Hurdles
💳 Visa considers takeover of (FIS)
🚨 Crypto bank Silvergate warns on ability to survive
⏸ Visa, Mastercard pause crypto push in wake of industry meltdown
🇦🇺 Australian Central Bank Set to Launch CBDC Live Pilot in a Few Months
🇩🇪 Crypto Custodian Finoa Gets License Approvals From German Regulator BaFin
🇿🇦 SA to implement stricter regulations for payments industry
🇳🇱 Adyen integrates Click to Pay within online payment interface
🫂 Budgeting App ‘Buddy’ taps Klarna Kosma for bank transaction monitoring

🥳 Revolut's first full year profit ...
🤭 ... but Revolut’s 2021 numbers may be misstated, says auditor
🚨 Watchdog on alert for failure of Railsr
🛑 Coinbase suspends Binance stablecoin
👩‍⚖️ Former FTX director pleads guilty to charges
👋 Goldman considers losing Its consumer arm
🇬🇧 UK challenger banks overtake incumbents
💪 Thunes hires LatAm Head to toost regional growth
✅ Tide removes 100% of emissions

😳 Binance moved $1.8B in stablecoin collateral
📉 Klarna posts $1bn annual loss, its largest ever
🧮 Sezzle reports profitable fourth quarter
🛑 Remitly to wind down digital banking app Passbook
🐂 eToro and Sentifi launch Social Sentiment Portfolio
🚀 Frollo launches Net Worth Tracker
🇺🇸 US FinTech Finch raises $40m
🧹 Spade collects $5m to clean transaction data
🇸🇬 Digital asset exchange DigiFT raises $10.5M

📉️  Varo raises $50m in downround

🎉️  Revolut expects UK banking licence within weeks

🤭️  Zip loses $240m despite record revenue

🤝️  Western Union and Beforepay introduce 'send now, pay later'

🇬🇧️  Klarna rolls out UK late fees

📱️  CRED adds buy now, pay later and tap to pay offerings

🔎️  Filipino fintech Maya looks to raise $150m

⚡️ MiFinity launches Open Banking product with Volt
🏦 Hundreds of Wells Fargo's mortgage bankers laid off
💵 Mastercard allows payment in Web3 via USDC
🗺 Remitly expands into the Middle East
🚀 TransferMate announces embedded payments solution for banks
🌱 Guava raises $650K pre-seed
🥳 Brale raises $11.1m to bring CeFi and DeFi together

🛎️  Potential IPO for Monzo

🇭🇰️  Huobi and OKX apply for licences in Hong Kong

⚠️️  U.S. regulators warn of liquidity risks for Crypto deposits

🇰🇪️  FinTechs in Kenya raised $158m in 2022

✍️️  Clarency taps Form3 for access to Swift network

📱️  Revolut launches in-app cashback feature

🇮🇳️  Telecom giant Airtel eyes a stake in Paytm