BlackFin Tech Weekly — April 15th, 2024
Every Monday, we publish a short digest which sums up last week’s Fintech activity.
Hello FinTech Friends,
Welcome back to our newsletter! We have a week full of Fintech news behind us and we are excited to dive into the deals and other related Fintech news that happened over the last 7 days. Notably, there was a lot of movement in the UK with many new deals being announced on the island. Like last week, we also saw many deals again in the Banktech sector. You will find the details below!
Last week we saw 10 official fintech deals all over Europe for a total amount of 71m€ raised, with 5 deals in the UK, 2 in France, 1 in Germany, 1 in Sweden, and 1 in Spain.
Congratulations to Mimo the UK-based business platform, which has successfully raised £15.5 million in a round led by Northzone, alongside Cocoa Ventures, Seedcamp, and Upfin VC. Well done also to Pactio a UK-based platform for private equity, for having raised a $14 million venture round. The new round was led by EQT Ventures. Lastly, we want to extend our congratulations to Deblock, the French fintech that offers a current account in euros and a wallet with cryptocurrencies in the same place, for having raised €12 million in a Venture Round from Headline, 20VC, and Motier Ventures.
Honorable mention also to HOKODO which managed to raise a €100 million Debt facility.
Let’s dive in
Mimo, the UK-based fintech that aims to increase SMEs’ cash-flow monitoring efficiency, has secured an impressive £15.5 million in funding, led by Northzone, alongside contributions from Cocoa Ventures, Seedcamp, Upfin VC, and notable angel investors. With this influx of capital, Mimo is poised to revolutionize B2B payments through a new platform that automates administrative tasks. Additionally, the funding will fuel the development of an end-to-end SaaS system aimed at streamlining financial management for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Mimo's strategic focus includes tailoring the platform to diverse business needs and demographics, particularly emphasizing international transactions to simplify financial administration for SMBs engaged in global trade and inventory management. With an emphasis on simplifying invoicing, multi-currency management, and comprehensive data collection, Mimo is primed for further expansion and innovation in the financial technology sector.
The UK-based tech platform Pactio has secured a substantial $14 million in Series A funding, led by EQT Ventures. The Series A round attracted notable participation from high-profile private equity industry insiders and tech angels. With this infusion of capital, Pactio is poised to propel its growth trajectory, focusing on several key initiatives. These include scaling its digital infrastructure throughout the entire investment lifecycle of private markets, enhancing its AI capabilities to drive efficiency and informed decision-making, and extending its digital architecture to streamline private capital flows from deal inception to exit. Moreover, Pactio aims to expand its team, recruiting former private markets professionals and expert technologists, as well as individuals with deep expertise in fintech and machine learning. This strategic approach ensures that Pactio remains at the forefront of innovation within the private markets technology landscape, equipped to meet the evolving needs of its clientele and seize opportunities for sustained growth and market leadership.
Deblock, the Paris-based fintech that developed a current account that allows to manage both cryptocurrencies and usual savings in the same place, recently secured €12 million in funding, led by Hoxton Ventures, with support from Headline, 20VC, Motier Ventures, and notable angel investors. This capital injection will fuel Deblock's expansion efforts, enabling it to scale its operations, broaden its customer base, and obtain regulatory approval across Europe. Additionally, Deblock plans to bolster its technological infrastructure and enhance its suite of financial products and services tailored to the needs of cryptocurrency users, further solidifying its position in the market.
In addition to this week’s fundraising activity, here is the European M&A activity of the week:
Spendesk has announced the acquisition of Okko. Spendesk is a spend management platform for mid-sized businesses. Its solution includes bookkeeping and budgeting tools, card services, and account and expense management services. Spendesk has raised almost €300m so far and Okko marks Spendesk’s first acquisition. Okko is a procurement platform that streamlines the process from initial need to final purchase order for businesses. With the acquisition, Spendesk seeks to make its offer for its customers more complete, while becoming the first fully integrated procurement and spend management solution for mid-sized businesses in Europe.
Read more
And finally, here are the news that caught our eye last week:
Revolut has obtained a banking license in Mexico, signaling its entry into Latin America's second-largest economy. With over 40 million users worldwide, Revolut is eyeing a slice of Mexico's $63 billion cross-border remittance market. This move follows its successful launch in Brazil last year.
Open banking has emerged as a promising avenue for financial institutions (FIs) and FinTechs to enhance consumer services through secure data sharing.
Yet, recent insights from PYMNTS Intelligence reveal a nuanced perspective among FI executives. While smaller FIs view open banking as a competitive edge, larger institutions, grappling with heightened fraud risks, exhibit reluctance: more than half of the largest FIs surveyed (>$100 bn AUM) said the risks overshadowed Open banking’s benefits.
As the industry navigates this delicate balance between innovation and risk mitigation, understanding and addressing fraud concerns will be paramount in shaping the future of open banking.
Former PayPal CEO Dan Schulman steps into the venture capital sector, joining Valor Capital Group as a managing partner. With his extensive experience and successful track record (doubled PayPal’s market cap, and tripled its revenues during his time), Schulman's addition to the team signifies a strategic move for Valor in bridging the US and Latin American technology markets.
Brazilian fintech Nubank joins forces with Wise Platform to unveil its latest offering: the Global Account and international debit card. Specifically aimed at high-income Ultravioleta customers, this initiative caters to facilitate money management while traveling abroad.
Key features include instant balance conversions from real to dollar and euro via the Nubank app, debit card usage in over 200 countries and territories, and two free cash withdrawals from foreign ATMs per month. Additionally, customers gain access to a virtual SIM card compatible with 40+ countries.
Have a great week & see you soon!
Sources of the fundraising reports.