The Week in Review

The Week in Review

Friday January 31, 2020 –

Here are the new and noteworthy stories we have been following this week.

Currencycloud nabs $80M from Visa, World Bank Group and more for cross-border payment APIs

Currencycloud, a UK based money transfer company has raised $80 million in a Series E round from Visa, IFC, BNP Paribas, the SBI Group, Siam Commercial Bank and existing investors; Currencycloud serves about 350 companies with its money transfer API’s and plans to expand to Asia this year.

https://techcrunch.com/2020/01/26/currencycloud-nabs-80m-from-visa-world-bank-group-and-more-for-its-cross-border-payments-api/

Splitit teams up with Stripe

Splitit, an Australia listed fintech that provides installment payment functionality on credit and debit cards has announced a partnership with Stripe; the Stripe relationship will facilitate and expand merchant acceptance of Splitit, streamline transaction processing, and funds movement.

https://www.finextra.com/pressarticle/81274/splitit-teams-up-with-stripe

Subway Inks Payments Deal With Adyen for U.S., Canada

Adyen has entered into an agreement with Subway to process payments in the the US and Canada at its stores, online, and in-app; this deal follows Adyen’s win in December to handle McDonald’s in-app payments in Europe.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-28/subway-inks-payments-deal-with-adyen-for-u-s-canada

University of Toronto and Trilogy Education Launch FinTech Boot Camp in Toronto

The University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies (SCS) is teaming with Trilogy Education to launch a fintech training program to prepare professionals for the continued growth in financial technology jobs in Toronto; the 24-week program will include classes on AI, machine learning, and blockcahin technology.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/university-of-toronto-and-trilogy-education-launch-fintech-boot-camp-in-toronto-300994304.html

US digital banking startup Rellevate selects core tech

Rellevate, a US digital banking startup has selected Technisys as its core platform provider and expects to go live in Q1 of this year; the bank will focus on low income consumers and offer its services primarily through employers..

https://www.finextra.com/newsarticle/35169/us-digital-banking-startup-rellevate-selects-core-tech

Australia’s Commonwealth Bank raises stake in pay-later fintech Klarna

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has made a $200 million investment in Klarna and launched its ‘buy now pay later’ services in Australia; the CBA had earlier made a $100 million investment in Klarna and now holds a 5.5% stake in the company.

https://www.reuters.com/article/klarna-australia-cba/australias-commonwealth-bank-raises-stake-in-pay-later-fintech-klarna-idUSL4N29Y50A

UPS And Square Collaborate To Offer New Integrated Shipping Solution To Small- And Medium-Sized Businesses

UPS has announced a new collaboration with Square that offers turnkey UPS® shipping options integrated into the Square Online Store; the solution provides Square’s e-commerce customers with UPS shipping connectivity as well as access to attractive discounts on UPS shipping.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ups-square-collaborate-offer-integrated-210610813.html

Goldman Sachs Presents on Strategic Evolution at Investor Day

Goldman held its first-ever investor day and outlined the firm’s strategic direction and new medium- and longer-term financial targets; additionally, the firm discussed its strategy for building out a digital consumer bank where its sees a market of $125+ billion in deposits, $20+ billion in consumer credit, and pre-tax income upto $900 million.

https://www.goldmansachs.com/media-relations/press-releases/current/announcement-01-29-2020.html

PayPal Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Results

PayPal reported Q4 and full-year 2019 results that included revenue of $17.8 billion, GAAP operating income of $2.7 billion, 305 million accounts, and Venmo volume of $125 billion; on the earnings call, the company noted that its Venmo credit card will run on the Visa network.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/paypal-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2019-results-300995613.html

Trust Stamp Receives Investment from Mastercard

Trust Stamp, at Atlanta based authentication services company has received a strategic investment from Mastercard; the company supports several verticals, including humanitarian and development services, banking, fintech, KYC / AML compliance, real estate, and law enforcement.

https://www.finsmes.com/2020/01/trust-stamp-receives-investment-from-mastercard.html