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☆ Klarna rival Zilch raises $125 million with aim to triple sales and accelerate path to IPO
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-19 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Zilch initially sourced credit for its installment plans and other loans from Goldman Sachs 's private credit arm. The additional $190 million of credit will become available to Zilch as the firm continues to grow. Once Zilch has reaches the $315 million maximum funding threshold, it expects to generate nearly $10 billion of GMV by 2026. The firm reported revenues of £30 million ($38 million) in the 12 months ended March 2023. Zilch also has an advertising sales network where it provides placements for retailers to promote their wares to consumers.

Persons: Phil Belamant, Zilch, it's, Goldman Sachs, Philip Belamant, we've, Goldman, Belamant Organizations: LONDON, Deutsche Bank, Goldman, CNBC, Apple, Citi

☆ This Monzo cofounder is set to launch a new startup with Index and General Catalyst in talks to invest, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Monzo cofounder Jonas Templestein is in talks to raise funds for a new startup, sources told BI. Top investors such as Index and General Catalyst are among those in discussions to back the startup. AdvertisementA cofounder of British fintech unicorn Monzo is set to raise funds from a smattering of high-profile investors for a new venture, Business Insider understands. Now, he's primed to raise around $5-6 million at a $50 million valuation cap for a new startup, two sources said. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Jonas Templestein, Catalyst, — Organizations: Service, Business Locations: Monzo

☆ British fintech Revolut hits record revenue, profit tumbles
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

British fintech Revolut's revenue rose 45% to a record 923 million pounds ($1.1 billion) in 2022, but net profit tumbled to 6 million pounds, down from 26 million pounds the year before, the company said in delayed annual accounts on Friday. The company had said it had 26.2 million customers, up almost 10 million from 2021. CEO Nikolay Storonsky said in the annual report that the company remains "committed to our ongoing UK banking licence application." Revolut, which ranked as the UK's most valuable start-up when it was valued at around $33 billion in 2021, applied for a UK banking licence early that year but is still awaiting approval. The company said in September it had received permission to delay filing its annual accounts for a second year running.

Persons: Nikolay Storonsky

☆ Zepz, a $5 billion fintech unicorn, is laying off more staff
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Zepz, the money transfer group that owns WorldRemit, made a fresh round of layoffs. "Zepz has entered a redundancy consultation which will could affect less than 2% of its global headcount," a Zepz company spokesperson said in an exclusive statement to CNBC. "Zepz values the contributions these colleagues have made to our company," the spokesperson added. "To fully realise our mission to unlock the prosperity of cross-border communities, we sometimes need to make tough decisions," Zepz told CNBC. The business was last valued at $5 billion, making it one of the largest and most valuable fintech companies in Europe.

Persons: Zepz, Zepz hasn't Organizations: TCV, CNBC, Sendwave Locations: British, Europe

☆ Alphabet wants to invest in British fintech bank Monzo before it goes public
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Monzo, a British fintech bank, is in talks with Alphabet's private investment arm Capital G to raise what is primed to be its last funding round before a public listing. The bank touts around 8.5 million customers in the UK and is best known for its bright coral pink bank cards. Fintech funding in Europe dropped 70% to $5 billion from $17.1 billion in the first half of 2023, compared with 2022, according to Finch Capital. The prospective funding round is set to be the fintech's last private raise before a mooted public debut that would likely take place in late 2024 or 2025. The British bank reported £116.3 million in losses last year despite more than doubling its revenue.

Persons: Monzo, Catalyst, Monzo's, Cash, Conor Walsh, Anil Organizations: Business, Sky News, Abu Dhabi Growth Fund, Silicon, VC, fintech, Finch, London, Starling Bank Locations: British, London, Abu Dhabi, New York, Europe, Monzo, Starling

☆ British fintech Wise reports 280% jump in profit as higher interest rates boost income
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

British fintech firm Wise nearly quadrupled pre-tax profits in its half-year results out on Tuesday, citing a boost from higher interest rates. Including interest income, the company's total income stood at £656 million for the period, up 58% year-on-year. Wise said that it benefited from higher interest rates, extending a trend from earlier this year where the company was pulling in extra income thanks to interest rate increases. The analysts added that the boost to Wise's results from higher interest income is a "welcome temporary compensation" for slowing core total processed volume, but noted it is "likely unsustainable." Harsh Sinha, Wise's technology chief, recently took the reins from Wise CEO Kristo Kaarmann at the firm's helm.

Persons: Wise, Harsh Sinha, Kristo Kaarmann, Taavet Hinrikus Organizations: British, Jefferies, London Stock Exchange Locations: Kaarmann, Estonia

☆ Alphabet-backed GoCardless considers takeovers as CEO expects a barrage of consolidation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Hiroki Takeuchi, GoCardless chief executive, on the MoneyConf Stage, attends Web Summit 2021 in Lisbon, Portugal. Last year, GoCardless acquired the Latvian open banking startup Nordigen in its first major acquisition. Open banking is one thing and definitely something we think is really important." GoCardless' technology allows firms to collect direct debit payments from consumers. What is open banking?

Persons: Hiroki Takeuchi, Harry Murphy, We're, GoCardless, Takeuchi, Rapyd, they're, we've, Nordigen Organizations: Sportsfile, Getty, GV, CNBC, Tink, PayU GPO, GoCardless Locations: Lisbon, Portugal, British, Latvian, Britain, Statista, London

☆ HyperJar, a British fintech that offers digital wallets to users, just raised $24 million in funding with this 15-slide pitch deck
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

HyperJar, a fintech startup that offers digital wallets and B2B spending tech, has raised $24 million in funding. Founded in 2016, HyperJar is best known for its digital wallets and spending tech via its app, where users can track their finances, put money into savings pots, and earn rewards. "For the first time, we can really proactively market and grow our B2C offering which is HyperJar but also we have a very successful platform which can be made much more successful," Rob Rooney, HyperJar CEO, told Insider in an interview. "The critical part is building out that and our operating system which is an enterprise version for B2B purposes." The startup's funding comes from Susquehanna Private Equity Investments and the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan.

Persons: HyperJar, Rob Rooney, Rooney Organizations: North America, Susquehanna Private Equity Investments, Healthcare, Ontario Locations: Europe, North

☆ Britain's $4.5 billion digital bank Monzo debuts investments feature
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

MonzoMonzo, the $4.5 billion digital challenger bank, launched a feature that lets users make investments —marking its first foray into the massive financial investment market. Monzo Investments will allow users to start investing with as little as £1. With Monzo Investments, you can start from £1." MonzoThe investments pots feature will appear in a new part of the home screen on Monzo called Savings & Investments. Gautam Pillai, head of fintech research at the investment bank Peel Hunt, said Monzo's new investments feature could increase customer "stickiness."

Persons: Anil, Monzo Monzo, It's, Monzo, who've, they'll, Monzo's, they've, Zopa, Wise, we've, Gautam Pillai, Peel Hunt, Pillai Organizations: Investments, BlackRock, CNBC, Monzo, Monzo Investments, Savings, Starling Locations: Britain

☆ Revolut to stop crypto services for U.S. customers
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoLONDON, Aug 4 (Reuters) - British fintech Revolut will stop allowing U.S. customers to access cryptocurrencies, the company said in a statement on Friday, citing the regulatory environment and crypto market uncertainty there. "As a result of the evolving regulatory environment and the uncertainties around the crypto market in the U.S., we’ve taken the difficult decision, together with our U.S. banking partner, to suspend access to cryptocurrencies through Revolut in the U.S.," a Revolut spokesperson said via email. From Sept. 2, U.S. customers will no longer be able to buy cryptocurrencies on Revolut. From Oct. 3, buying, selling and holding will be disabled altogether for U.S. customers. Revolut said the move impacts less than 1% of Revolut's crypto customers globally.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, we’ve, Revolut, Elizabeth Howcroft, Jason Neely Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: U.S, Revolut

☆ European markets lower as global economies drag; CAB Payments debuts in London
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON — European stock markets were lower Thursday as traders digested sluggish economic growth. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 0.2% when markets opened, but quickly dropped to lose 0.8% in the first minutes of the session. British fintech company CAB Payments made its debut on the London Stock Exchange Thursday, against a backdrop of a few companies opting to list in London this year. "We are excited about London being an amazing place to list a company," Bhairav Trivedi, CAB Payments CEO, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe." "We are very bullish on the London Stock Exchange," Trivedi said, adding that his company wanted to "jumpstart" the U.K. fintech market.

Persons: Bhairav Trivedi, Trivedi Organizations: British fintech, CAB Payments, London Stock Exchange Locations: British, London

☆ British payments fintech Volt in talks to raise fresh funds from Coinbase-backer IVP, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

London-based fintech startup Volt is set to raise fresh funds, sources say. The company, founded in 2019, is in talks with VC firm IVP over a deal worth around $50 million. British fintech startup Volt is in talks to raise fresh capital from Silicon Valley investing firm IVP, sources say. The payments firm, founded in 2019, has already raised around $28 million to date and counts Swedish investor EQT Ventures among its biggest backers. Volt is set to raise around $50 million as part of the deal, two London-based sources said.

Persons: Slack, PSD2, IVP, Hopin, Tom Greenwood, Jordan Lawrence Organizations: EQT Ventures, Fuel Ventures, Open Finance Association, Open Banking, IFX Locations: British, Silicon Valley, London, Europe, Volt's, Brazil

☆ Alphabet-backed U.K. payment firm GoCardless to cut 15% of headcount
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Alphabet -backed British fintech unicorn GoCardless has said it will reduce its global headcount by 15%, slashing 135 roles in a bid to cut costs. A separate 15 roles will be transferred from Britain to Latvian capital Riga. The payments firm most recently raised $312 million in a Series G funding round in February, earning a $2.1 billion valuation. Its backers include Alphabet's venture capital investment arm GV, BlackRock and Permira. Takeuchi hinted at the firm's renewed focus on profitability to CNBC in comments at the Money 20/20 conference last week.

Persons: GoCardless, Hiroki Takeuchi, Permira, Takeuchi, CNBC's Ryan Browne, — CNBC's Ryan Browne Organizations: GV, CNBC Locations: British, Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Latvian, Riga, London, BlackRock

☆ BlackRock is on the lookout for deals — and it just scooped up a major lender to European startups to supercharge its private credit business
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Michelle Abrego | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The purchase will boost the money manager's offerings in the booming private credit space. The world's largest asset manager is set to buy a lender to European technology and healthcare companies to boost its private credit business. One area that BlackRock has been focused on ramping up has been its $320 billion alternatives business, especially private credit. Private credit has grown tremendously as traditional banks pull away from loaning to small and risky companies. Within private credit, venture debt is a growing area.

Persons: Larry Fink, Stephan Caron, Monese, Keefe, Michael Brown, Brown, Martin Small Organizations: BlackRock, Investors, Silicon Valley Bank, Tennenbaum Capital Partners Locations: London, BlackRock, loaning, Europe, Asia, Silicon

☆ Banking-as-a-service fintech Griffin just raised $13.5 million. Check out the 15-slide pitch deck it used to land the fresh funds.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Banking-as-a-service startup Griffin just raised $13.5 million in fresh funds. The startup enables businesses to skip the process of finding a banking partner. Check out the 15-slide pitch deck Griffin used to raise the Series A round below. British fintech startup Griffin has raised $13.5 million in fresh funds just months after it secured a UK banking license. Griffin has raised $35.7 million to date, including a $15.5 million raise in July 2022.

Persons: Griffin, David Jarvis, Allen Rohner, we've, Maria Campbell, Campbell Organizations: Financial, MassMutual Ventures, EQT Ventures Locations: London

☆ UK fintech bank Monzo more than doubles revenue but marginally narrows losses to $143 million, results show
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

London-based fintech bank Monzo more than doubled its revenue last year, results show. The company, founded in 2015, also narrowed losses marginally to £116.3 million ($143.4 million). British fintech bank Monzo more than doubled its revenue last year and marginally narrowed losses to £116.3 million ($143.4 million), according to results published on Wednesday. Monzo, famous for its bright coral pink debit cards, added another 1.6 million customers with the bank now servicing around 7.4 million users. The company's results come after fellow London-based fintech bank Starling, announced a pre-tax profit of £195 million ($241 million).

Persons: Anil, Monzo, Starling, Y Combinator, Tom Blomfield, Combinator Organizations: Catalyst, Abu Dhabi Growth Fund Locations: British, London, Abu Dhabi

☆ Fintech firm Wise's shares fall after announcing CFO is resigning, CEO to go on leave
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Shares of British fintech firm Wise slipped Monday, after the company announced its CFO Matt Briers is leaving the company next year, while its CEO Kristo Kaarman will go on paternity leave starting September. Wise shares were down around 4% as of 9:45 a.m. London time. Briers will step down as Wise CFO in March 2024, once Kaarman has returned from a sabbatical break, the company said in a press release Monday. In his time as CFO, Briers took Wise from a scrappy money transfer upstart to a publicly-listed financial technology giant. Briers is the second CFO of a major U.K. fintech firm to announce his departure this month — on May.

☆ London fintech Griffin lands UK banking license with restrictions after years-long process as it eyes fresh funding in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

British fintech startup Griffin has secured a banking license after a years-long process. The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has approved the startup, subject to restrictions. Banking-as-a-service startup Griffin has become the latest fintech to land a UK banking license with restrictions after a years-long process. Securing a UK banking license is no mean feat. Neobanks like Revolut, founded in 2015, haven't yet managed to get a UK banking license with stringent processes in place, with Jarvis suggesting that the application process isn't something "you can just throw money at."

☆ Investment banks approach Monzo over potential IPO as $4.5 billion fintech plots investing push, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Investment banks have been in talks with Monzo over a future IPO, sources told Insider. The London-based fintech has also been in discussions to grow its wealth and investment offering. A number of leading investment banks have held initial talks with British fintech unicorn Monzo about a public listing that could take place as early as next year, sources say. Some investment banks have opted to cull teams of staff focused on M&A and stock issuance in recent months, most notably Goldman Sachs. The fintech has also been on the lookout for acquisitions and partnerships in the wealth and trading space, two sources told Insider.

☆ Intesa staff to test new digital business from March
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Italy's biggest bank Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) has told staff they can sign up to test from March 1 the app for the new digital lender it is setting up with British fintech Thought Machine, an internal document showed. Intesa last year unveiled plans to invest 5 billion euros ($5.3 billion) in technology under its 2022-2025 strategy, of which 650 million is destined to create its new digital arm called Isybank. Intesa has struck a five year partnership with Thought Machine, founder and CEO Paul Taylor told Reuters, making the Italian bank one of the biggest customers of the UK firm. Thought Machine will provide Isybank with the cloud infrastructure to serve 4 million customers under 40 who Intesa intends to migrate to online and mobile banking services. The trial phase would subsequently be expanded to include a wider group beyond staff members, the document reviewed by Reuters said.

☆ Lithuania may tax windfall bank profits, boost defence spending
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Andrius Sytas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Czech Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura speaks with Lithuania's Finance Minister Gintare Skaiste at the European Union finance ministers meeting in Brussels, Belgium, July 12, 2022. "This is a critical situation, we are in an environment of high rates, so unexpected profits are appearing," central bank Governor Gediminas Simkus told a news conference. "The war in Ukraine and countries' reactions to it led to the high liquidity and high rates. The invasion also leads to more defence spending, so if we tax the windfall, the income would be used for defence", Skaiste told reporters. The neighbour of Russia had so far budgeted 2023 defence spending at 1.8 billion euros ($1.9 billion), or 2.52% of its gross domestic product.

☆ Britain sets out plans to regulate crypto industry in wake of FTX collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

In a widely-anticipated industry consultation launched Tuesday, the government proposed a number of measures aimed at bringing regulation of crypto asset businesses in line with that of traditional financial firms. A big theme that emerged in 2022 was the rise of risky loans made between multiple crypto firms and a lack of due diligence done on the counterparties involved in those transactions. The collapse of FTX has added urgency to global regulators' attempts to govern the regulation-averse crypto space. The regulatory move comes as crypto firms in both the U.K. and beyond are feeling the chill of a deep downturn known as "crypto winter." Global crypto hub ambitionsThe U.K. wants to become a leader in crypto and blockchain technology on the global stage.

☆ Britain's new PM is a fan of crypto. There are hopes he'll give the industry a boost
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Dan Kitwood | Getty ImagesU.K. cryptocurrency firms and investors have high hopes that new prime minister Rishi Sunak could turn around Britain's fading crypto aspirations. Crypto isn't exactly high up on his priority list, but industry insiders say there's reason to be optimistic. Before Sunak's appointment as PM, confidence in the U.K.'s position in the global crypto market had been waning. In a survey of 300 British fintech founders, only 9% believe it's leading the way on crypto. Yet the U.K. is home to a fairly active crypto market.

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