[ad_1]
Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech (formerly The Interchange)! We’re back after a brief hiatus, and I can tell you that judging by the volume of pitches I received last week, venture capital investing in the fintech sector is definitely picking up. This week, we look at Plaid’s latest step toward an IPO, a BNPL company’s financial results, and much more. Let’s go!
To receive a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important fintech stories in your inbox every Sunday at 7:30 a.m. PT, subscribe here.
The big story
Last week, Plaid announced that it had hired its very first president. Notably, former Cloudflare Chief Product Officer Jen Taylor has extensive experience taking a private company IPO – something we expect Plaid to do in the relatively near future. Coincidentally, I was already working on a “Here are the fintech startups that could go public in 2024” piece. With the help of F-Prime Capital, I’ve put together a list of fintechs that have the potential to go public sooner rather than later. Klarna, Chime, Stripe are just a few of those mentioned .
Analysis of the week
Speaking of public companies, buy now, pay later firm Affirm reported earnings last week. Despite revenues being 48% higher, or $591 million, compared to estimates of $521 million, investors remained cautious. After rising 7% on Thursday, shares fell nearly 11% on Friday to close at $43.86. It is important to note, however, that this is not that far from Affirm’s 52-week high and is almost double what he bargained for see you in November. Generally speaking, public fintechs had a better year last year. “Overall market capitalization reached $573 billion at the end of 2023, up from the low of $389 billion in December 2022 – but down from the peak of $1.3 billion in September 2021,” according to an email from F-Prime Capital.
Dollars and cents
Ingrid had a great scoop when she announced that Entrust is purchase AI-powered identity verification startup Onfido for over $400 million.
New unicorn alert! Romain reported that accounting software startup Pennylane has become the French leader last unicorn with a fundraising of 40 million euros.
Meanwhile, Christine reported that another accounting startup – Finally – raised $10 million in equity financing. Based in Miami, Finally aims to help businesses automate accounting and finance functions.
ICYMI: Start-up ramp for expense management acquired Venue, an AI-based startup as it expands its provisioning offering, and Metronome’s usage billing software finds success in AI as a startup raises $43 million in new capital.
What else do we write
Reliance Industries spin-off Jio Financial Services said it was I do not negotiate with Paytm to acquire its portfolio business, quashing “speculative” media reports as the company struggled to put out the fire caused by the central bank’s crackdown the previous week.
An Indian parliamentary panel has urged the government to support the growth of domestic fintech players that can offer alternatives to the Walmart-backed PhonePe and Google Pay apps, which currently control more than 83% of the country’s digital payments market.
PayPal is working on a new general public application for its mobile customers and hinted it would be “ready” to take advantage of new EU regulation, the Digital Markets Act (DMA), when it comes into force next month for tech “gatekeepers” like Apple .
Don’t miss Tage’s in-depth analysis on the situation of African startups facing many of the same problems that plagues fintechs in more mature markets like the UK and US
Very interesting titles
Kin Insurance Fuels Growth with $15 Million in Financing
Construction Insurance Tech Startup Shepherd Secures $13.5M Series A Funding Round
RealReports raises $2 million in seed funding
Pagaya Secures $280 Million Credit Facility for AI-Driven Consumer Finance Products
Navro Secures EMI License, Raises $14 Million to Revolutionize Global Payments
[ad_2]