The Fintech Fix Weekly Roundup 20/04/2022

Welcome to The Fintech Fix, where we cover the biggest stories of the financial week. Whether it’s the next groundbreaking trend in cryptocurrency or Blockchain technology, a new partnership about to change the global, economic landscape or an upcoming startup generating a huge following, this is the place to keep up with the breaking news of the future. 

Hot Topics –  The biggest story in this week’s roundup was announced just yesterday, as Robinhood signed an agreement to acquire Ziglu, the electronic money institution and crypto asset firm. Robinhood are looking to expand internationally and the UK-based Ziglu provides the perfect opportunity to further their mission of democratising finance for all. “Ziglu and Robinhood share a common set of goals, working to reduce the barriers to entry for a new generation of investors” said Mark Hipperson, Founder and CEO of Ziglu. Vlad Tenev, CEO and Co Founder of Robinhood, echoed a similar sentiment regarding the acquisition; “Ziglu’s impressive team of deeply experienced financial services and crypto experts will help us accelerate our global expansion efforts.” Huge news! 

The BNPL market still offers huge potential; with a projected market value of $3.98 trillion by 2030, getting it right no doubt opens up huge opportunities for success. With that in mind, a new report released by Deloitte and Mambu outlined the 5 components that merchants and fintechs need to embrace in building a successful BNPL offering. These include value propositions, technology and data, risk and compliance, skills and capabilities, and go-to-market. If the market potential wasn’t enough to entice you, João Caldeira, Partner at Deloitte, clearly stated how with BNPL, “the bottom line is that it’s a new revenue driver and having the ability to quickly add seamless instalment-based payments at the point of decision can change a business.”

TerraPay successfully obtained an MSB licence in the State of Florida, allowing them to facilitate their unparalleled and robust cross-border payments infrastructure to mobilise international remittances from the region in real-time, at low costs, and help offer diverse value-added financial payment services to partners and customers across the globe. The licence will also allow TerraPay to expand into 96 countries within the US and LATAM region, giving “a strategic boost to our commitment to drive global financial inclusion”, according to Ambar Sur, Founder and CEO of TerraPay.

Sticking with the theme of payments, Paymob, MENA’s market-leading digital payments provider, announced its formal entry into Pakistan following rapid growth in its home market. Pakistan has a population of over 220 million, over 4 million SMEs, and ranks as the 5th largest market for freelancing servicing local and international customers with no sufficient local means of digital payments – it’s clear that the country is perfectly suited to Paymob’s ability to bridge the digital financial gap and expand across MENAP. 

TrueLayer recently launched its closed-loop payment product in Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Lithuania and the Netherlands in order to provide a more cost-effective, frictionless and secure payments product that handles the speed of online commerce better than traditional payment methods. Their new product delivers instant pay-ins, instant withdrawals and refunds, as well as dedicated merchant accounts too so that business can gain full visibility of a customer’s account details as soon as a payment settles.  

Big Partnerships To Watch – American Express and i2c Inc, a provider of digital payment and banking technology, have made a multi-product agreement enabling fintechs and FIs globally to develop and scale innovative payment solutions for consumers and businesses on the American Express global payments network. Mohammed Badi, President of Global Network Services at American Express, also noted how this collaboration gives fintechs the chance to tap into the American Express Brand, as the Amex/i2c platform also gives access to Amex Offers, the Resy dining program, and exclusive access to ticket pre-sales, as well as leading protections and fraud mitigation capabilities. 

Could this be a new revolution in the relationship between musc, artist and fans? Luno, the global cryptocurrency platform with over 10 million users, announced a new partnership with London’s KOKO. The two look to empower new artists by creating opportunities through live streaming with digital and blockchain technology. Alongside this, the partnership promises to offer exclusive access and events for Luno customers:

• KOKO x Luno Fan Experiences: Series of perks allowing for backstage access, meet and greets
• Over 1000 tickets for fans to win via social media throughout the year
• A 48-hour presale window for Luno customers
• Opportunity for Luno customers to gain first entry to their favourite acts
• Special offers on KOKO and select one off merch drops

Funding – We have two stories to end this week’s roundup in funding. “Cross River is powering the future digital economy and changing lives by reinventing the way financial services are accessed,” said Gilles Gade, Founder, President and CEO of Cross River. The group seems well on their way to continuing this goal, after they announced a whopping $620 million capital raise led by Eldridge and Andreessen Horowitz. This new capital will accelerate Cross River’s ongoing technology-focused growth strategy, which includes four core initiatives: building out the Company’s leading embedded payments, cards, lending and crypto solutions; further investing in its people and communities; continuing to execute against plans for international expansion; and bolstering strategic partnerships that underscore Cross River’s commitment to reshaping global finance and promoting financial inclusion.

And last but not least, Sharegain secured a $64 million Series B round, the largest to date in the securities lending industry. CEO and Founder, Boaz Yaari, highlighted the implications of this funding, perfectly positioning the company to launch in the US and capitalise on the rise of private investors to generate additional income by lending their securities that otherwise sit idle.