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Blik + Revolut, a Game Changing Payment Expansion

Hey FinTech Fanatic!

Big news in the world of FinTech: Blik, the revolutionary Polish payment system, is teaming up with Revolut to expand its instant payment services beyond Poland!

Blik, which has captured the hearts of over 16.5 million users in Poland since 2015, is known for its seamless phone-based transfers and secure transaction codes. Now, Blik is set to integrate with Revolut’s platform, promising a new level of convenience for Revolut’s Polish customers and potentially paving the way for international growth.

This partnership could be a game-changer for both companies. Blik’s capabilities are expected to go live on Revolut’s mobile app by the end of the year, marking a significant milestone in their expansion plans. As Revolut, now gearing up for an IPO and boasting 40 million customers, looks to broaden its reach, Blik’s integration might just fast-track its international ambitions.

Stay tuned for more updates on how this collaboration could reshape the payment landscape!

Cheers,

Marcel

BREAKING NEWS

🚨 Three former Wirecard executives (including Wirecard boss Markus Braun) found personally liable for €140m: Former Wirecard boss Markus Braun and two other executives have been ordered to pay €140mn plus interest in damages to the defunct payment group’s administrator over violations of professional duties. Click here to learn more

FINTECH NEWS

🇨🇳 Ant Group launches AI-powered ‘life assistant’ app Zhixiaobao. As an AI-native application powered by Ant Group’s BaiLing foundation model, Zhixiaobao is designed to make everyday tasks easier through user-friendly interactions. Read more

🇬🇧 Funding Circle UK reports solid business performance with focus on profitability. The firm says that they delivered “a solid financial performance, stronger than expectations, and made good progress to simplify the business and deliver profitability as set out in their Full Year Results in March.”

🇺🇸 PayPal is launching 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗣𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲, a rewards program for consumers on the PayPal Debit Mastercard. The program includes stackable cash-back offers and personalized ways to manage spending. It enables PayPal Debit cardholders to receive 5% cash back on up to $1,000 in selected category spend per month.

PAYMENTS NEWS

🇺🇸 Yuno announced a new partnership with Kount, an Equifax Company, a leader in trust and safety technology. The collaboration combines Yuno’s innovative payment orchestration capabilities with Kount’s advanced solutions for fraud detection, identity verification, chargeback management and regulatory compliance.

🇺🇸 Ryan Breslow’s $450M Bolt deal said to involve a restraining order now. Breslow’s plan to get himself reinstalled as CEO of FinTech company Bolt has apparently stalled. According to Forbes, Breslow sent an email to shareholders thanking them for signing off on the deal. Find out more

🇬🇧 Visa boosts consumer protection with smarter bank transfer payments. Visa announced that it is applying the company’s infrastructure, technology and capabilities to account-to-account (A2A) payments, giving consumers more control and protection on how they pay via bank transfers.

🇮🇹 Satispay connects with Stripe. Through this collaboration, selected Italian online merchants using Stripe will be able to accept payments with Satispay and will join the already growing community of more than 350.000 retailers that are powering their day-to-day sales operations with Satispay.

🇨🇳 Ant Group sees 300% rise in international users adopting mobile payment in China in 2024. This surge has created significant business opportunities for local merchants. The number of Chinese merchants regularly servicing overseas travelers through the company’s mobile payment solutions have tripled during the same period.

🇺🇸 Affirm to profit soon from Buy Now, Pay Later. Lower interest rates and growing volume will be tailwinds. Affirm has been able to adjust its pricing to merchants and consumers to levels that have accommodated higher transaction costs. Read on

🇨🇳 Alibaba's Taobao and Tmall to accept WeChat Pay. The introduction of WeChat Pay on these platforms is expected to roll out later in September 2024. The decision reflects Alibaba’s efforts to revitalise growth in its domestic ecommerce business.

Iata and Amadeus offer payments option to bypass card-processing costs. Airline association Iata and Amadeus payments platform Outpayce have announced they are partnering to enable airlines to accept account-to-account payments or bank transfers direct from customers.

OPEN BANKING NEWS

🇦🇺 Australian FinTech Upworth releases its free AI-powered budgeting and cash flow management tool leveraging Open Banking. Upworth's new budgeting tool stands out by consolidating transactions from multiple banks into one view, automatically excluding internal transfers, and using AI for better categorization across 18 categories, among other benefits.

🇺🇸 Akoya and Nova Credit partner to help lenders deploy cash flow income analytics to improve credit decisioning through increased data access. Through the partnership, Akoya’s industry-leading bank data connectivity can be used to access and verify customers’ cash flow and income data.

🇺🇸 Banked selected to support Visa A2A launch, an open system to boost consumer protection with smarter bank transfer payments. Banked will use Visa's A2A platform to facilitate variable recurring payments (VRP), enabling automatic transfers from payer to merchant for seamless one-click or scheduled payments.

🇩🇪 CTS EVENTIM adds Tink’s user-friendly Pay by Bank service to its checkout options. With minimal data entry and fewer redirects, this account-to-account payment offering provides a secure and streamlined experience – allowing merchants to differentiate themselves from the competition.

🇲🇩 Comertbank partners with Salt Edge for PSD2 compliance in Moldova. This collaboration will allow the bank to offer both existing and potential customers an improved experience with its banking products and services.

DIGITAL BANKING NEWS

🇵🇱 Poland’s BLIK payment system looks to expand abroad with Revolut. Blik, the payment system that has taken Poland by storm, is reportedly working on making its instant payment services available to Revolut’s banking clients in Poland and subsequently roll out its service internationally with the help of the U.K.-based financial platform. Continue reading

🇱🇹 Saldo Bank to launch its first credit cards with support from Enfuce. This announcement underscores Enfuce’s commitment to supporting both digital and legacy banks across Europe, as Saldo Bank expands its operations into payment services through a new VISA credit card programme under this partnership.

🇺🇸 JPMorgan expands Morgan Money platform with new treasury and cash management capabilities. This integration aims to streamline liquidity management processes, enhance the management of critical trading and accounting workflows, and provide real-time visibility into cash flow balances.

🇧🇷 Bad loans pile up at Nubank, Latin America’s new No. 1 Bank. Second-quarter profits doubled from a year ago on a lending surge. Analysts raised questions over high defaults, lower provisions. Keep reading

🇩🇪 Deutsche Bank settles longest-running claim over Postbank. The settlement with German investment company Effecten Spiegel includes an additional payment of 36.50 euros ($40.53) per share on the then-takeover offer price as proposed by the bank, Deutsche Bank added in a statement.

🇺🇸 U.S. Bank unveils industry-leading card, savings combination. U.S. Bank is introducing two new U.S. Bank Smartly® products designed to work together to maximize credit card rewards while also helping clients earn more on their savings balances.

🇺🇸 MidwestOne Bank streamlines customer onboarding with Temenos. This strategic move enables MidWestOne to enhance customer acquisition and retention through digital channels on a resilient, scalable platform. Read full article

BLOCKCHAIN/CRYPTO NEWS

🇩🇪 Siemens issues a digital bond worth 330 million dollars on a private blockchain. This operation, which involved some of the main German banks such as Deutsche Bank, marks a new chapter in the digital transformation of financial markets.

Mastercard partners with Mercuryo to launch a euro-denominated crypto debit card, enabling users to spend crypto from self-custodial wallets at over 100 million merchants. Mastercard's collaboration introduces a euro-denominated debit card enabling users to spend cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin from self-custodial wallets.

PARTNERSHIPS

🇪🇸 Santander to become an official partner of Formula 1®. The partnership will reinforce the bank’s visibility within its main markets, showcasing the Santander and Openbank brands. Keep reading

DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS

🇺🇸 Former Citi, Battery VC has new $378M fund to back financial services and enterprise startups. This second fund is significant because founder Ramneek Gupta expanded it beyond a corporate fund with one main LP — Prudential Financial — into one supported by a number of financial and insurance LPs.

🇺🇸 Monda raises $5M seed round to help companies monetize data and fuel AI. The capital will be used to expand operations in the US, grow its partner ecosystem, and enhance its platform to make data monetization easier for companies of all sizes.

🇺🇸 Flex raises $3.2 Million for HSA and FSA payment acceptance. The new financing will help the company with its mission of offering direct-to-consumer health and wellness brands an easier way to accept health savings account (HSA) and flexible spending account (FSA) payments online, according to a press release.

M&A

🇬🇧 Quilter acquires digital investing app NuWealth. Quilter aims to evolve NuWealth to work with advisers to help them support clients at the start of their investing journey. It will initially target clients with modest investments, offering guidance and the option to consult a financial adviser later.

🇺🇸 Paylocity to acquire spend management platform Airbase for $350 million. The acquisition expands Paylocity’s suite, offering HR and finance leaders a platform to manage all their spending, while extending Paylocity’s market beyond HCM into the Office of the CFO.

🇺🇸 Chelsea FC co-owner Clearlake buys private credit business from Natixis. The deal will take Clearklake’s assets under management to more than $90bn and expand its credit business by roughly $5bn. Discover more

MOVERS & SHAKERS

🇮🇪 Global digital payments platform CleverCards announces FinTech veteran Ray Brash as new Chief Operating Officer. This key hire comes on the back of CleverCards’ recent €8 million funding round, marking another significant milestone in the company’s ambitious growth and expansion strategy.

🇳🇱 Finom hires Klarna's Alessandro Camilotti as CFO. Alessandro's appointment further strengthens FINOM's leadership team and underscores the company's commitment to financial excellence as it scales its innovative solutions throughout the EU market.

🇬🇧 ClearBank appoints new UK Chief Financial Officer. The bank announced the appointment of Valerie Romanovskaya as UK Chief Financial Officer, subject to regulatory approval. In this role, Romanovskaya will join ClearBank UK’s Executive Team and UK Board of Directors.

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Blik + Revolut, a Game Changing Payment Expansion