BlackFin Tech Weekly — July 8th, 2024
Every Monday, we publish a short digest which sums up last week’s Fintech activity.
Hello FinTech Friends,
Welcome back to our newsletter! There have been some interesting developments in the European Fintech scene. One of Germany’s most famous Fintechs is undergoing a major restructuring by refocusing on its profitable operations and ceasing all money-losing operations. There have also been some interesting deals and two new M&A activities that you will want to know more about, so read on!
Last week we saw 9 official Fintech deals in Europe for a total amount of €82.7m raised with 3 deals in France, 1 deal in the UK, 1 deal in Ireland, 1 deal in Germany, 1 deal in Spain, 1 deal in Lithuania and 1 deal in Austria.
Congratulations to Wefox, the German insurtech platform, which has secured €25 million in a funding round led by Chrysalis Investment and Target Global, to support their ongoing restructuring efforts. Additionally, applause goes to RavenPack, a leading data analytics provider for financial services, which has raised $20 million in series A funding led by GP Bullhound, with participation from the European Investment Bank. Finally, we extend our congratulations to iSYBUY, a French start-up specializing in digital procurement solutions for mid-sized companies, which has successfully raised €10 million from SWEN Capital Partners and Eiffel Investment Group.
Let’s dive in
The German insurtech Wefox has secured €25 million in fresh capital amid a significant restructuring effort. The round was funded by Chrysalis Investment and Target Global. Over the past 18 months, Wefox has streamlined operations, shed non-core assets, and faced insolvency concerns. The company, once valued at £3.6 billion, has cut jobs and closed offices in several countries. The restructuring, expected to be completed by the end of the year, will focus on profitable markets: the Netherlands, Austria, and Switzerland, while withdrawing from Germany. Wefox Insurance AG will no longer be core, with portfolios up for sale, and several executives, including Group CFO Jon Wismer, will depart the company.
RavenPack, a data analytics pioneer for financial services based in Spain, has secured a $20 million investment led by GP Bullhound, with participation from the European Investment Bank. This funding will accelerate the development and launch of RavenPack’s new AI platform, Bigdata.com, which is set to transform decision-making for financial professionals by providing real-time, high-quality data insights.
iSYBUY, a French purchasing management software for medium-sized companies, has finalized a €10 million Series A funding round. Led by Eiffel Investment Group and SWEN Capital Partners, this round also includes historical investors such as IRDI and PROBTP. The funds will support an ambitious recruitment plan and accelerate growth in France and internationally, knowing that the start-up already generates 10% of its revenue from exports to the Benelux, Spain, and Switzerland. This marks a major step for iSYBUY as it aims to become the European leader in Source-to-Pay solutions for mid-sized companies.
In addition to this week’s fundraising activity, here is the European M&A activity of the week:
Taxfix has announced the acquisition of Taxscouts. Taxfix is a tax filing platform for individuals that was founded in 2016 in Berlin, Germany. It has raised $330 million from well-known investors, such as Index Ventures and Creandum, and has operations in Germany, Spain and Italy. Taxscouts is an accounting and tax platform founded in 2017 in London, UK. It has raised £9.2m in funding and has offices in London, Tallinn and Madrid. With the acquisition, Taxfix is looking to expand into the UK market and gain additional market share in existing markets.
Vivid Money has announced the acquisition of Pile Capital’s treasury solution. Vivid Money offers a range of banking services both for individuals and SMEs. Vivid was founded in 2019 in Berlin, employing 200 people and having raised over €200 million. Pile Capital is a treasury management software company for startups and VCs which was founded in 2022 in Berlin, Germany. It had raised a pre-seed round of €2.8m in 2022 and is now ceasing operations after the acquisition of its treasury solution. Vivid will fully integrate Pile’s treasury solution and strengthen its SME offering with the integration.
And finally, here are the news that caught our eye last week:
Revolut achieved a record profit of $545 million in 2023, with revenue surging 95% to $2.2 billion. The company added nearly 12 million new customers, boosting the total to 38 million, and saw customer balances rise from $16.4 billion to $22.7 billion. Aiming for a $40 billion valuation and a UK banking licence, Revolut plans to sell $500 million in shares, driven by its expanding global presence and financial growth.
Wise reports potential customer data exposure from the Evolve Bank & Trust hack by the LockBit ransomware gang. Personal information, including names, addresses, and sensitive IDs, may have been compromised. Wise is investigating and will notify affected customers, while other fintech partners like Affirm and Marqeta are also assessing the situation.
The European Payments Initiative (EPI) has rolled out Wero, a new digital wallet and instant payments solution initially available to customers of the German Savings Banks Association (DSVG) and DZ Bank. Aiming for broader European availability within six months, EPI plans to unify digital payments across Europe by starting with P2P transactions and expanding to include in-store payments and BNPL by 2025.
Have a great week & see you soon!
Sources of the fundraising reports