Digital currency exchange Coinbase raises $100 million, hits $1 billion valuation
Digital currency exchange Coinbase announced on its blog on Thursday that it has raised $100 million in so-called “Series D” funding led by U.S. venture capital firm IVP, making it the first bitcoin start-up to achieve a valuation of at least $1 billion. Start-ups with a $1 billion valuation are part of what is called a “unicorn” club in the venture capital industry. The $1 billion valuation was estimated by data and research provider Pitchbook. Series D is generally the fifth stage of funding, following a seed investment, and series A through C rounds. With the new investment, Coinbase has raised $217 million since it launched in 2012. It raised […]
Vantiv seals $10 billion Worldpay acquisition
Vantiv Inc. agreed to acquire U.K. payments processor Worldpay Group PLC for about GBP8 billion ($10.4 billion) in cash and stock, one of the biggest deals in the fast consolidating sector. The tie-up, according to a joint statement Wednesday, will create a trans-Atlantic payments processing giant with a combined market value of more than $20 billion. The companies disclosed their negotiations last month as the Ohio-based Vantiv appeared at the time to ward off a potential rival bid from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. The combined entity will be called Worldpay. Payments businesses are under pressure to join forces in part to cut costs as greater regulatory scrutiny and rising […]
The 10 Biggest Fintech Companies in America
Financial technology companies in the U.S. raised $3.5 billion in the first half of 2017, according to KPMG, as investors rushed to place bets in buzzy sectors like insurance and digital currencies. The U.S. is now home to 13 fintech unicorns who have scored valuations of at least $1 billion. This year alone, Robinhood (free trading), AvidXChange (automated invoicing for small businesses) and Symphony (Wall Street messaging platform) all joined the billion-dollar club. Here are the ten most valuable private venture-backed fintech players based in the U.S.: 1. Stripe Value: $9.2 billion* Founded: 2010 Founders: Patrick and John Collison CEO: Patrick Collison Allows merchants to accept online and mobile payments […]
Two of Britain’s fastest growing fintechs are going after a huge pot of money: pensions
Fast-growing online investment startups Moneyfarm and Scalable Capital are both planning to launch pension products later this year, hoping that accessing the huge UK retirement market could super-charge their growth. Moneyfarm announced plans to launch a pension product later this year when it announced its full year results on Friday. Those results show that the startup, which launched in Italy in 2012 and the UK last year, currently has £260 million in assets under management. It offers personal investment and ISA products. Paolo Galvani, Moneyfarm’s cofounder and chairman, told Business Insider: “We will launch a UK pension product in the fourth quarter and next year Italy. For the next few […]
Fintech Kantox raises £4.6 million from investors as it targets profitability
Foreign exchange fintech company Kantox has raised £4.6 million from its existing investors as it aims for profitability. Filings with Companies House show Kantox raised the sum at the end of July. CEO and founder Philippe Gelis confirmed the fundraise with Business Insider over email, saying the company raised the money from existing investors Partech Ventures, IDinvest Partners, and Mundi Ventures. Gelis told Business Insider: “We indeed raised some more money with our existing investors. We are progressing well and focusing on building sophisticated software solutions for our clients. “We have great traction so we did not want to look for new investors (something which is always very time consuming) […]
For fintech inspiration, LPL turns to Acorns, not Betterment
LPL isn’t shying away from the task of building up a new technological foundation for a fiduciary-focused, digital advice era. The largest independent broker-dealer spent $77 million last year on technology upgrades alone, an effort that includes developing a digital advice platform with BlackRock’s FutureAdvisor, transitioning to a new advisor and client management platform and launching a mobile app for clients to connect and interact with advisors. But even though LPL envisions a future where advisors are using automation and behavioral management alongside portfolio and planning services, its top technology executives say robo advisors like Betterment or Wealthfront aren’t sources of inspiration. “We’ve looked at market and are trying to […]
Singapore’s GIC leads $220 million funding round for Chinese P2P lender Dianrong
Chinese peer-to-peer lending platform Dianrong has raised $220 million from Singapore sovereign fund GIC Pte Ltd [GIC.UL] and other investors to fund R&D in China and potential ventures elsewhere in Asia. Other investors in the funding round included CMIG Leasing, a unit of China’s biggest private investment conglomerate China Minsheng Investment Group (CMIG), and South Korean fund manager Simone Investment Managers, Dianrong said on Wednesday. The Shanghai-based firm will use the funds to automate some of its new branches across China, for research and development and potential acquisitions, Dianrong’s co-Chief Executive Soul Htite told Reuters. “Now we’ve graduated to another level, so people that know finance are also seeing us […]
Fintech funding on the rebound as Irish start-ups play part
Global fintech investment more than doubled from the first to the second quarter on the back of a sharp rise in European funding deals. Ireland played its part, recording fintech investments of more than $230 million (€194 million) in the three-month period, led by Plynk which raised €25 million in a Series A round from Swiss Privée in June. Total global funding to fintech firms rose to $8.4 billion (€7.1 billion) from $3.6 billion (€3 billion) with European fintech investment jumping to over $2 billion (€1.7 billion). This is well below the peak investment high of $5.8 billion (€4.9 billion) seen in the fourth quarter of 2015, but up on […]
