Over the last few years, digital banking in Latin America (Latam) has experienced extraordinary growth on the back of changing customer needs, expanding technological penetration and rapidly evolving regulatory standards. Since 2017, the number of digital banks has more than doubled, reaching 52 independent neobanks in 2021, according to a new report by Swiss digital banking tech provider Banking, Payments: Context (BPC) and Dutch fintech consultancy firm Fincog. Brazil leads the region both in terms of sector development and consumer adoption. Out of the 52 neobanks identified, 24 players are from Brazil, and out of a pool of 77 million…
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LoanPro, a SaaS-based loan management, servicing and collections platform for alternative, fintech and traditional lenders, announced it has raised a US$100 million growth equity investment in a Series A funding round from FTV Capital, a growth equity investor. As part of the transaction, Robert Anderson, who led the investment for FTV Capital, will join LoanPro’s board of directors. Through this capital raise, LoanPro will enhance its platform functionality, enter new lending verticals, and further invest in client-centric growth initiatives. LoanPro was founded in 2014 by three brothers, to enable lenders to take back operational control and enhance real-time data insights…
Argentina’s booming fintech industry boasts over 300 companies that employ nearly 15,000 people. This year, the sector is expected to create more than 5,600 positions, reflecting on the industry’s massive growth and traction, according to data from Cámara Argentina de Fintech (the Argentine Chamber of Fintech). Results of a research shared in May 2021 by the organization show that 20% of all Argentine fintech companies currently in operation were founded just last year, showcasing the accelerated growth the sector witnessed during the global pandemic. Between 2017 and 2020, direct employment in the fintech sector grew at a sustained rate of…
California-based fintech Willa announced that it has secured US$18 million during a Series A funding round. The round was led by New York-based Fintech Collective, including additional investments from Entrée Capital and EQT Ventures. With the investment, Willa is gearing up to expand its invite-only beta to a waitlist of 150,000+ freelancers in the United States. The latest funding will also allow for the company to grow its active user base and keep up with demand and a rapidly growing waitlist. A debit card and additional services centered around financial wellness for freelancers are planned later in 2021. Willa also…
Visa revealed that its customers had spent more than US$1 billion on its crypto-linked cards in the first half of 2021. The payments giant reported that it had partnered with 50 leading crypto platforms on card programmes that make it easy to convert and spend digital currency at 70 million merchants worldwide. Visa had previously announced in March 2020 that it will allow the use of USD Coin (USDC), a stablecoin backed by the US dollar, to settle transactions on its payment network over Ethereum. The company has been expanding partnerships with digital currency platforms such as FTX, Coinbase, Crypto.com,…
Though the growth of fintech in Latin America (Latam) started later than in other region, it quickly picked up stream. Today, Latam is experiencing an explosion of fintech activity that’s being fueled by rising demand for online banking tools, encouraging demographics, and a significant underserved population. Since 2016, more than US$7 billion has been invested into Latam financial services companies, according to Crunchbase data. Funding activity accelerated in 2019, jumping from US$600 million in 2018 to US$1.5 billion. As of June 2, 2021, total investment dollars invested in the sector were already neck-and-neck with last year’s total, indicating that 2021…
JPMorgan Chase has entered into an agreement for a 40% ownership stake in Brazilian digital bank C6 Bank for an undisclosed sum. Launched in 2019, C6 Bank has reportedly amassed more than 7 million customers on its digital platform. C6 Bank offers a full suite of products including multi-currency checking and savings accounts, debit and credit cards, travel and loyalty programs, investment and lending products for individuals as well as banking and payments products for small businesses. Brazil is one of the largest retail banking markets in the world where unprecedented regulatory reform and infrastructure modernisation has led to increased…
Cross border payments specialist Payoneer announced that it has completed its merger with the FTAC Olympus Acquisition Corp. (FTOC), a special purpose acquisition company, to become a publicly traded company. As a result of this merger, a new public entity under the name Payoneer Global Inc., and its common stock and warrants, will begin trading on the Nasdaq stock market under the ticker symbol “PAYO” and “PAYOW”, respectively. Payoneer’s global management team, led by Scott Galit, Chief Executive Officer, Michael Levine, Chief Financial Officer, and Keren Levy, Chief Operating Officer, will continue to lead the company. The transaction includes a…
A world leader in tech innovation, it comes with little surprise that the US has produced some of the world’s biggest fintech companies with widely renowned names including PayPal, Square and Stripe. Today, the country hosts some of the largest and most established fintech hubs that have benefited from the presence of world leading universities, abundant tech talent pool, and finance expertise to establish some of the world’s top fintech ecosystems. Using a number of research papers including the Global Fintech Ecosystem Report 2020 by Startup Genome, the Global Fintech Hub Report 2020 produced by top Chinese Universities and government…
Brazil, the largest fintech market in Latin America (Latam) and the fifth in the world with more than 750 fintech companies, had a glorious year 2020, and the momentum is expected to continue in 2021. Investment in Brazilian fintech companies totaled US$1.7 billion in 2020, up 86% from US$910 million in 2019. 2020 also saw the fintech sector welcome several important regulatory and infrastructure developments including the new regulatory sandbox, open banking regulation, and the launch of Pix, Brazil’s instant payment system. Riding on this momentum, fintech funding in Brazil continued to accelerate this year, with two of the top…
As Miami rapidly becomes a central destination for technology development and a symbol for the tech exodus from Silicon Valley, fintech companies are flocking in the city, looking to leverage its Latin American (Latam) ties and crypto-friendly political environment. This year, Fortu, a digital bank focused on Latino and Hispanic US residents, chose Miami to base its headquarters, deeming it “the highest profile American city with a Latino majority and home to the most exciting emerging technology hub.” Former PayPal and Intuit CEO Bill Harris said in May that he had moved to Miami to launch its new venture, Nirvana…
Credijusto, a Mexican lending platform for small businesses, announced the acquisition of a local bank Banco Finterra which specialises in financing solutions for small businesses and the agriculture sector. According to Reuters, Credijusto acquired the regulated bank in a deal for under US$50 million, becoming the first Mexican fintech to do so. This move allows Credijusto to become a neobank in Latin America that is focused on serving small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). “Our acquisition of Banco Finterra creates the first truly digital banking platform for Mexican SMEs. This acquisition marks a major milestone in Mexico and the region,…
EBANX, a Brazilian cross-border commerce platform, announced an investment of US$400 million from Advent International and an additional commitment of US$30 million to the company’s planned IPO in the U.S. Advent has made investments in Vantiv, Worldpay, Nets, Nexi, Planet, Xplor Technologies, Prisma, Concardis, Monext, and Stone. The firm joins FTV Capital as a minority investor in EBANX. For the first time, all four of Advent’s funds, including Latin American Private Equity Fund (LAPEF), Global Private Equity (GPE), Advent Tech and Sunley House Capital, are participating in the same investment. The investment will be used to continue funding EBANX’s aggressive…
Dutch payments firm Adyen announced that it has received approval from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a branch in California. With the OCC’s approval and granting of the branch charter in combination with the Federal Reserve’s approval of the application, Adyen will be able to commence operations as a Federal Foreign Branch. Obtaining this US branch license allows Adyen to enhance its US activities and operations in line with those conducted in Europe under its European banking license that was obtained in 2017. The payments firm said in a statement that benefits of…
Broadridge Financial Solutions, provider of investor communications, technology-driven solutions, and data and analytics to the financial services industry, announced that it has acquired AdvisorStream, a provider of digital engagement and marketing solutions for the global wealth and insurance industries. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition expands Broadridge’s front-to-back office wealth capabilities, positioning Broadridge to serve growth-oriented advisors and firms looking to attract and engage prospects and clients across key digital channels. AdvisorStream’s advisor marketing platform enables advisors to drive revenue and growth by providing personalised and consistent client communications. The platform combines powerful marketing automation with highly…
Brazilian challenger bank Nubank announced that it has raised a total of US$ 750 million during two extensions of its Series G funding round, raising the round to US$1.15 billion. During the first extension, the challenger bank secured US$500 million led by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, one of the largest publicly-held companies in the world. The second US$250 million Series G extension was led by Sands Capital and with the participation of Brazilian investors; Absoluto Partners , asset manager co-founded by José Zitelmann and Gustavo Hungria, and Verde Asset Management, manager led by Luis Stuhlberger. The new investments give Nubank…
Capchase, a New York-based a platform for recurring-revenue companies to secure non-dilutive capital, has announced a US$125 million Series A investment, led by QED Investors. Additional investors in the round include early backers Bling Capital, ScifiVC and Caffeinated Capital, along with several operator angels. The new funding, which will be a mix of debt and equity, comes on the back of unprecedented growth since the firm launched just eight months ago. As part of its growth plans, the company has announced it will also be expanding its operations in the UK and Spain. Capchase was founded in 2020 and helps…
Yieldstreet, a New York-based digital investing platform, announced that it has raised US$100 million during a Series C funding round. Tarsadia Investments, led the round, joined by Kingfisher Investment, Top Tier Capital Partners and Gaingels. Existing investors, Edison Partners, Soros Fund Management, Greenspring Associates, Raine Ventures, Greycroft and Expansion Venture Capital also participated. The firm said that it will channel the new funding to expand its user base, develop new investment products, explore international expansion, and pursue strategic acquisitions. Yieldstreet was founded by Milind Mehere and Michael Weisz to digitally transform and democratise access to alternative investments, historically the near-total…
Financial products and services provider FIS and The Venture Center have announced the ten companies selected to participate in the FIS Fintech Accelerator programme which will be conducted virtually. In its sixth year, the FIS Fintech Accelerator programme is focused on identifying and fostering startup financial technology firms with promising, high-potential technologies that advance the way the world pays, banks and invests. The 2021 programme received applications from fintech companies in the U.S. and 29 other countries with thirty percent of this year’s cohort features solutions created by women founders. The 12-week accelerator program begins on June 7 and is…
Circle, creator of the second largest stablecoin USDC, announced it has raised US$440 million in financing from leading institutional and strategic investors. The financing included investments from leading private equity, institutional and strategic investors, including Fidelity Management and Research Company, Marshall Wace, Willett Advisors, Intersection Fintech Ventures, Atlas Merchant Capital, Digital Currency Group, FTX, Breyer Capital, Valor Capital Group, Pillar VC, as well as Michael J. Price and Friends. The funds will be used to fuel the company’s continued growth, organisational development and market expansion opportunities. On the heels of recruiting world-class leaders to Circle’s executive team, including Dante Disparte,…