Friday March 5, 2021 –
Here are the new and noteworthy stories we have been following this week.
India’s Reliance partners with Google, Facebook for digital payment network bid
India’s Reliance Industries has partnered with Facebook, Google, and fintech player Infibeam to set up a national digital payments network; this initiative is in response to India’s central bank inviting companies to establish new umbrella entities (NUEs) to create a new payments network that would exist alongside NPCI.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-reliance-facebook-google-idUSKBN2AR0CP
Walmart nabs Goldman Sachs bankers to help lead its new fintech start-up
Walmart has hired two senior bankers from Goldman Sachs to help drive its new fintech start-up, as the company as looks at new business lines to expand beyond retail; the move follows Walmart’s announcement in January that it was teaming up with Ribbit Capital to establish a new fintech company.
Square Financial Services Begins Banking Operations
Square announced that its industrial bank, Square Financial Services, has begun operations after completing the charter approval process with the FDIC and the Utah Department of Financial Institutions; Square Financial Services is an independently governed subsidiary of Square, Inc. and its primary purpose will be to offer business loan and deposit products.
https://squareup.com/us/en/press/square-financial-services-begins-banking-operations
Klarna Valued at $31 Billion After U.S. Growth Stoked Investors
Klarna has raised $1 billion from a group of more than 30 new and existing investors (unnamed) at a valuation of $31 billion which is about triple the company’s valuation at its last funding round; the new money will be used to expand the business and make targeted technology acquisitions, with about $10 million going towards climate change.
Stori Raises $32.5M in Series B Funding
Stori, a Mexican credit card startup, raised $32.5m in Series B funding led by Lightspeed Venture Partners with participation from Vision Plus Capital, BAI Capital and Source Code Capital; Stori is focused on improving financial inclusion and is targeting Mexico’s mass-middle and emerging-middle income populations.
https://www.finsmes.com/2021/03/stori-raises-32-5m-in-series-b-funding.html
Payments Canada selects Interac Corp. as the exchange solution provider for Canada’s new real-time payments system, the Real-Time Rail
Payments Canada has selected Interac as the exchange solution provider for Canada’s real-time payments system, the Real-Time Rail (RTR); the exchange solution provided by Interac will allow Payments Canada members participating in the RTR to send and receive RTR payment messages with settlement being supported by Mastercard’s Vocalink.
Indonesian payments infrastructure firm Xendit raises $64.6m
Southeast Asian digital payments infrastructure provider Xendit has raised US$64.6 million in a Series B funding round led by Accel; a variety of microbusinesses, SMB”s, and large payments platform providers use Xendit’s API-based technology to process payments, run marketplaces, disburse payroll, and detect fraud.
Mastercard Completes Acquisition of Nets’ Account-to-Account Payment Business
Mastercard has announced the completion of its acquisition of Nets, a European PayTech company, having met the conditions set out by the European Commission in its approval in August 2020; Nets addition to Mastercard will support a broader set of account-to-account capabilities, including clearing and settlement instant payment infrastructure, bill payment, and E-invoicing applications.
