Peer-to-peer lending bosses split on whether to become a bank
UK’s largest peer-to-peer/marketplace lender CEOs outline two very different visions of the future. Funding Circle and Zopa don’t disagree on much. But when it comes to whether or not to launch a bank, CEOs Samir Desai and Jaidev Janardana have reached a divergence point. Both delivered keynote speeches at last week’s AltFi Europe Summit. Desai’s – which was entitled: “To be or not to be a bank” – left the audience in little doubt as to Funding Circle’s intentions. “We at Funding Circle have no plans to launch a bank,” said Desai. He went on to identify the three types of bank collaboration that have sprung up across the marketplace […]
Fintech startup Quantexa raises $3.3Mn to support international expansion
Quantexa Limited, a FinTech startup, has managed to rake in $3.3 million in a Series A round led by Albion Ventures and HSBC. The company, based in London, uses big data analytics to go head to head against complex financial crime. Its Entity Resolution and Network Analytics software makes use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to gather information from disparate data sets and create insights. Its applications include the following features: – Protection against financial losses and reputational damage with data analytics and entity and network based techniques. – Creation of an integrated, networked view of customers across disparate data sources, in order to support all areas of your […]
Funding Circle close further funding round, valued at $1 billion
Investor interest in the peer-to-peer lending industry shows no sign of slowing; British site Funding Circle have just closed another round of funding, taking their total raise to $380 million. Funding Circle recently closed another round of venture capital funding to the tune of $100 million, valuing the company at $1 billion. The new round was led by DST Global, BlackRock, and Temasek, a fund backed by the Singaporean government. Since its conception in 2010, Funding Circle have become ones of the world’s leading marketplaces exclusively focused on small businesses. The platform has raised approximately £300 million in equity capital, lending more than £2.5 billion to 25,000 businesses in the […]
French officials are in London again wooing fintech and finance firms to Paris post-Brexit
The Vice-President of the Paris Region begins a two-day visit to London on Monday as French officials continue their aggressive courting of British businesses affected by Brexit. Othman Nasrou, Vice-President of the Paris Region in charge of international affairs and tourism, is visiting London on Monday and Tuesday to meet a selection of finance and fintech companies. Nasrou will pitch the companies on the attraction of Paris as a location for finance firms post-Brexit. Nasrou’s visit is part of an aggressive bid by French officials from both local and central government to lure businesses away from Britain in the wake of Brexit. The UK’s exit from the European Union is […]
Vista to acquire D+H for fintech merger with Misys
The US buyout firm wants to create a ‘global fintech powerhouse’ by merging an existing portfolio company with its new acquisition Private equity firm Vista Equity Partners has struck a deal to acquire D+H, a Canadian financial technology provider, with an eye to merging it with UK-based Misys to create a financial software company with $2.2 billion in revenues. US-based Vista said in a statement today that it will pay C$25.50 per share in cash for D+H, including the assumption of debt, in a deal that values the Toronto-listed firm at 4.8 billion Canadian dollars. The buyout firm acquired software provider Misys in 2012. The combined company will be privately […]
The Benzinga Global Fintech Awards – entries closing soon
The Benzinga Global Fintech Awards May 11, 2017 in New York, is the premier event in Fintech, celebrating financial innovation from around the world. The Benzinga Awards is a competition to showcase the companies with the most impressive technology, who are paving the future in financial services and capital markets! Applications are still open, so apply now before the March 17 deadline. At the event, you’ll get a first look at groundbreaking technology, innovative platforms, and the chance to network freely with top industry professionals. Over 550 FinTech CEOs, C-suite executives of financial institutions, VCs, press, and others attended the 2016 Benzinga Fintech Awards. 45 exclusive exhibitor spots on the show floor […]
London FinTech startup Oinky raises $1m
Tech City News can exclusively reveal that Oinky, a London-based savings app, has raised approximately $1m (£765,000) in Seed funding from a group of high net worth individuals and entrepreneurs from the finance and tech sectors. Originally backed by Seedcamp, the startup, which will use the money to expand its team (it recently hired Azimo’s former head of growth Francisco Lema), launch its product and build additional product features, has also received regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Founded in 2015, Oinky’s mission is simple yet ambitious. Co-founders Ivan Soto-Wright and Conrad Holmboe, who met at Redington, decided to set up the company in an attempt to address […]
Law firms cosy up to UK fintech community
Top law firm Slaughter and May is to give five fintech startups free legal services worth tens of thousands of pounds. Meanwhile, another law firm, Simmons & Simmons, is launching a fintech and regtech student support programme with London’s Queen Mary University. Simmons & Simmons and Slaughter and May are both keen to woo members of London’s vibrant fintech scene, building relationships that could one day yield valuable business. Late last year Slaughter and May opened the doors to its first Fintech Fast Forward programme, inviting applications from startups in areas such as insurtech, regtech, datatech and distributed ledger technology. Over 25 firms applied, seeking £30,000 of value add services […]
