New week – several new fintech unicorns and many more closed funding rounds! This week’s funding highlights cover credit cards, blockchain, investment, crypto and even some local fintech platform accomplishment! Take a look at some major investments of this week.
Mexican fintech startup Stori reaches unicorn status with $50M equity raise (Tech Crunch)
The Stori – Mexican fintech startup, which offers credit cards to underserved populations in Mexico, has raised an additional $50 million in equity at a $1.2 billion valuation and has become a new fintech unicorn! It also has secured $100 million in debt financing. BAI Capital, GIC and GGV Capital co-led the equity portion of the deal, which also included participation from other existing and new investors, including Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, Vision Plus Capital, Goodwater Capital and Tresalia Capital. Read more
Blockchain start-up 5ire turns 105th Indian unicorn, valued at $1.5 billion (Business Standard)
Blockchain start-up 5ire said it raised $100 million in Series A funding from UK-based conglomerate SRAM & MRAM, making it the 105th unicorn in India and the 20th this year. 5ire would use the funds to expand the business and extend its footprint across three continents — Asia, North America, and Europe. It plans to make India the hub of operations and core area of focus. Read more
CIBC Innovation Banking Provides £40 Million Growth Financing to Fintech Company Smart to Accelerate Growth and Acquisitions (Business Wire)
London CIBC Innovation Banking is pleased to announce £40 million of growth financing for London-based Smart, a leading retirement technology provider. Smart will use the capital to expand its market growth, accelerate the launch of strategic products, and undertake acquisitions. Read more
Pico signs agreement to secure $200m investment (Fintech Global)
Pico, a New York-based provider of mission-critical technology services, software, data and analytics for the financial community, has secured $200m in strategic investment from the Golden Gate Capital. The new funding will be used to pursue strategic M&A opportunities that further enhance its global ecosystem. Read more
Amsterdam-based Carbon Equity raise €1.8M to accelerate climate tech innovation (Silicon Canals)
Amsterdam-based Carbon Equity, a fintech platform that democratises access to impact private equity, announced on Thursday that it has secured €1.8M in an oversubscribed Seed round of funding. 4Impact, The Hague-based VC, led the round with participation from Germany-based WiVenture and AENU. A group of experienced angels, including the founders of Bloomon and sustainable aviation pioneer SkyNRG also participated. The proceeds will allow it to launch its retail investing programme and expand its investor base and its technology platform. Read more
Final Fantasy Maker Square Enix Backs Bitcoin Gaming Startup Zebedee in $35M Round (Decrypt)
US-based Zebedee’s platform helps game developers build in Bitcoin micropayments via the Lightning Network, announced a $35 million Series B funding round led by Kingsway Capital, which includes participation from Square Enix and The Raine Group, plus existing Zebedee investors Initial Capital and Lakestar. According to a media report, received funding will be used to meet the company’s highly ambitious roadmap both in terms of building out infrastructure to support the hundreds of millions of users that play their partners’ games, as well as to hire top-level talent. Read more
X1 Card, the Fastest Growing Challenger Credit Card of All Time, Raises $25M Ahead of Opening to the Public (Business Wire)
San Francisco-based X1 Card announced $25M in Series B funding and will be opening applications to the general public in the U.S. in the coming weeks. The funding is led by FPV Ventures, the new venture firm from Wesley Chan, who founded Google Analytics and wrote the first checks into Robinhood and Plaid. Participating investors include existing investors Craft Ventures, Spark Capital, Harrison Metal and SV Angel and new investors Abstract Ventures, the Chainsmokers and Global Founders Capital. This brings X1 Card’s total funding to more than $45M, and the new funding will be used to invest in product innovation and scale as it opens to general availability.Read more
Fintech mx51 raises $32.5 million Series B for global plans (startupdaily.)
Australian payments fintech mx51 has raised $32.5 million in a Series B. The lead backer was not disclosed by the startup, which described them only as a “global fintech investor”. Major existing investors, including Mastercard, Acorn Capital, Commencer Capital, Rampersand and Artesian joined the latest raise. mx51 will use the funds for local scale and international expansion, doubling down on core in-store, online payments and merchant dashboard solutions, as well as bolstering capabilities to assist with fraud prevention and data-driven customer insights. Read more
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