Weekly Fintech Newsletter | 2021 #36
BLOG
ARTICLE
There are few people in this world who know more about cannabis than US rap legend Snoop Dogg, and now the weed enthusiast-cum-entrepreneur is bringing his herbal expertise to Europe.
The Doggfather, otherwise known as Calvin Broadus, is cofounder of LA-based VC fund Casa Verde Capital, and the firm is announcing its first investment into continental Europe, leading a $15m round into Lisbon-based AceCann.
REPORT
Can you feel it? Fintech has now reached mass adoption–with 88% of U.S. consumers now using digital apps and services to manage their finances.
Similar leaps adoption leaps took the refrigerator twenty years, the computer ten, and the smartphone five.
As fintech adoption approaches parity with traditional banking, it's also become the primary way most people manage their money. Changing the culture of money and showing up wherever people touch their money positions fintech to be the new center of the financial universe.
INSIGHTS
We're seeing a dramatic change in the guard in financial services. Here's why. Tech is eating every industry. It was happening gradually. Now, it’s happening suddenly. Especially across financial services.
In his 2021 Future Of Fintech keynote presentation entitled “Gradually, Then Suddenly: The Sequel,” Anand Sanwal, CEO and co-founder of CB Insights, covers the two reasons why the dramatic change is occurring:
An absolute flood of FinTech innovation capital.
The great financial services unbundling
PODCAST
This week’s recommendation belongs to Miguel Armaza’s series Fintech Leaders and his latest conversation with Angela Strange, General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, and Dileep Thazhmon, Co-Founder & CEO at Jeeves.
In this episode, they discuss the fantastic evolution of fintech in Latin America and why these are still the early days. As well, as Jeeves history and why although they are building a global company, they actually decided to launch their first product in Mexico.
FINTECH MAPS
NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF LAST WEEK'S FINTECH SPACE
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Angel investing is on the rise in Europe.
This has been accompanied by another trend: angel investors are clubbing together to form syndicates so they can share deal flow, combine their skills and ultimately plug more cash into the startups they back.
These angel syndicates — many of which are started by former founders, startup employees, or investors — are meeting the growing demand from startups to have operators on their cap tables.
While angels can’t always write big cheques, they can offer the knowledge, domain expertise, and “hustle” experience that many founders desire in the early days of growing their business.
FINTECH HIGHLIGHTS
🇦🇺 Afterpay is one of FinTech’s most spectacular success stories, particularly from the perspective of its earliest investors. Link here.
Earlier this year, TransferWise became 🇬🇧 Wise, after 10 years of operation and debuted at the LSE in a record-breaking London tech Direct Listing, increasing its valuation from $5 billion to $11 billion. Link here.
Brits are planning to increase the number of fintechs they have installed to 3.5 apps over the next six months. Link here.
The first three quarters of 2021 were the largest ever for private FinTech company capital raising with Q3 closely following Q2 at $35.8 billion in total volume across 909 financing rounds. Link here.
🇸🇬 GrabPay announced that it has recently strengthened its safety and security features designed to protect its users from fraud and security risks. Link here.
PAYMENTS
🇺🇸 Cybersource, a Visa solution, and EBANX, global payments fintech company that specializes in Latin America, announced a new partnership for payments in Brazil. Link here.
🇺🇸 Fiserv, Inc., a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology solutions, announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire BentoBox, a digital marketing and commerce platform provider that delivers a frictionless diner experience dedicated to accelerating growth and helping restaurants seamlessly connect with their guests. Link here.
Raising debt has always been a part of 🇺🇸 Jeeves' long-term strategic plan to fuel its ambition of becoming an all-in-one expense management platform, even when it was a fledgling startup going through Combinator's program in the summer of 2020. Link here.
Payment services provider 🇬🇧 PayAlly, and 🇩🇰 Nets Group, one of Europe's leading PayTechs, have entered into a partnership for full issuing and acquiring processing services in the United Kingdom. Link here.
Last month, 🇺🇸 Paystack became the first payment gateway in Africa’s largest economy to become an Apple Pay partner. Link here.
🇺🇸 Veem, the global payment network for small-to-midsize businesses, announced a collaboration with Visa, the world's leader in digital payments. Link here.
🇩🇰 Lunar, the financial services company that offers Nordic consumers and businesses a new way to bank and pay, taps into the payments space with acquisition and a checkout solution for e-commerce. Link here.
Dock, an innovator in financial technology infrastructure across Latin America, announced the acquisition of 🇧🇷 BPP, a payment institution regulated by the Central Bank of Brazil that specializes in Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS). Link here.
Fintech scale-up 🇩🇰 Pleo, which offers a simplified company spending solution, smart company cards, and bill payment processing, announces its new business model incorporating a no-fee service for customers in the UK, Ireland, Sweden, and Denmark. Link here.
BNPL
The Paypers has launched the Who’s Who in Buy Now, Pay Later industry mapping, a global overview of key players, and business models. Link here.
The co-founder of a pioneering Egyptian buy-now, pay-later firm 🇪🇬 Sympl is targeting a market of more than 40 million bankcard holders with a new startup that offers on-the-spot approvals for deferred payments. Link here.
Buy now, pay later fintech 🇦🇺 butn has shrugged off a 30 percent slump in its share price since listing by signing two real estate deals, launching the instant financing company into the commercial property industry. Link here.
🇬🇧 Credit Kudos has launched Signal, an Open Banking and machine learning-based credit score that it says enables lenders to increase acceptance of previously declined customers and reduce defaults. Link here.
CRYPTO
🇦🇺 Douugh, the responsible financial super app helping customers autonomously manage and grow their money to live financially healthier lives, today announced it has partnered with Zero Hash to integrate cryptocurrency wallet and trading capabilities into the Douugh app. Link here.
Cryptocurrency exchange platform Luno has announced it has accumulated 9 million customers with a million added in just over four months. Link here.
Coinbase calls for new cryptFresh from a tussle with the SEC, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has called for the creation of a new US regulator to oversee digital assets. Link here.
Also, Coinbase is joining the NFT party, creating a decentralized marketplace where users can mint, collect and trade non-fungible tokens. Link here.
🇺🇸 Celsius Network, the leading global cryptocurrency earning and borrowing platform, announced a US $400 million investment led by WestCap, a growth equity firm, and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a global investment group. Link here.
ECommerce platform, 🇮🇱 Wix.com, has partnered with blockchain payment services company, 🇺🇸 BitPay, to enable merchants to begin accepting cryptocurrency payments. Link here.
‘Crypto Made Easy’ pioneer Divi, has taken a major step towards its goal to create a fully decentralized, private payment solution that drives crypto’s mass adoption, with the UK launch of its user-friendly mobile wallet. Link here.
🇬🇧 Wirex, the leading payments firm, has launched its crypto platform in Vietnam and increased the range of revolutionary services across 81 others. Link here.
blockWRK, the issuer of the federally approved WRK token, announces the launch of its blockchain-powered employee rewards app and Visa card. Link here.
Payments processing company 🇬🇧 Stripe is branching out into the cryptocurrency space, creating a brand new team of engineers and designers to chart its path in digital assets. Link here.
INVESTMENTS
🇬🇧 WealthKernel, a wealthtech provider for digital investment services, announced it has extended its partnership with inclusive investment service, Wealth8, which has migrated its investment offering to WealthKernel’s trusted APIs. Link here.
UK-based banking, exchange, and investment app 🇬🇧 Ziglu is launching a market-leading fee-free euro account that enables tourists and business travelers to spend without incurring currency exchange charges. Link here.
OPEN BANKING
Plaid, a top open banking platform, and Currencycloud, a multi-currency transfers Fintech, have agreed to a strategic partnership, according to a release. Link here.