Robinhood’s Latest Announcement: From Legend to Reality?
Hey FinTech Fanatic!
Robinhood is growing again. What started as a commission-free stock trading app is now branching out into wealth management. I’ve put together a deep dive on these announcements—take a look here. Let’s dive into some key details 👇
The FinTech started by introducing Robinhood Strategies, an automated investment management service. This robo-advisor is backed by 50+ years of Wall Street experienced team serving both institutional and HNWI, now available to everyone. Key features include tax-efficient investing, automated portfolio management, gain/loss tracking to help users optimize tax strategies, and much more.
“We designed Robinhood Strategies to give everyone incredible service and low fees with a cap, meaning you don’t have to pay more to invest more,” said Steph Guild, President, Robinhood Asset Management & Senior Director of Investment Strategy, Robinhood Financial.
In banking services, one year after launching the Robinhood Gold Card, the company is taking another step with Robinhood Banking. The Gold Card was introduced to over 100,000 users, with nearly 3 million still on the waitlist.
Robinhood Banking will offer premium banking services to its Gold members, including traditional checking and savings accounts with added benefits. There’s also something unique in the mix—take a look at the deep dive for more details. 😉
As Deepak Rao, GM & VP for Robinhood Money, stated, “Robinhood Banking is thoughtfully designed to be as easy to use as possible, while still delivering cutting-edge features historically reserved for the ultra-wealthy. We’re pushing the boundaries of what you should expect from your bank.”
Robinhood has also introduced Robinhood Cortex, an AI-powered investment tool designed to provide real-time market analysis and insights.
And there’s more to reveal about Robinhood’s announcement. Don’t miss out on any of FinTech’s latest moves— have a look at the deep dive I've prepared!
Read more FinTech news below 👇 and I'll be back on Monday!
Cheers,
FINTECH NEWS
🇺🇸 Introducing Robinhood Strategies, Robinhood Banking, and Robinhood Cortex. With exclusive benefits for Robinhood Gold members, these products help customers access financial services such as private wealth management and private banking, which were once thought out of reach to many.
🇪🇺 Mastercard signs agreement with Bizcuit to help small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) streamline their financial processes. This collaboration aims to simplify banking and accounting for entrepreneurs, reduce manual data entry, and improve efficiency.
🌍 Revolut hires crypto marketing team after launch of mobile trading app. The company is hiring product marketing managers for crypto in the UK, Poland, Spain and Portugal, to develop and lead a new marketing strategy for cryptocurrency. Candidates will be tasked with helping bring more products and campaigns to market.
🇳🇱 Adyen Giving surpasses $25M milestone thanks to donations from millions of shoppers around the world. Shoppers globally have contributed via their favourite brands through 35 million individual micro-transactions. To celebrate this milestone, Adyen is matching all donations made through Giving through 2025.
PAYMENTS NEWS
🌍 Otrium expands across Europe with Mollie. By using Mollie's payment solutions, Otrium has been able to enhance its global growth while maintaining an efficient and seamless checkout experience. The partnership has been essential for Otrium's ability to expand quickly in international markets, offering a more accessible and frictionless shopping experience for its customers.
🇮🇳 Lucknow Municipal Corporation has introduced a new facility to receive property tax bills on WhatsApp. Now, property owners can get their property tax details and a direct payment link through the official WhatsApp number of LMC. By clicking the "Pay Now" link, they can access their proper details and choose a payment method.
🇺🇸 Lili launches international payments system. Lili’s solution will enable its small business customers to both receive and send international payments in dozens of countries across North America, Europe, and Asia, helping them manage their operations and grow their businesses internationally.
🇳🇬 PalmPay rolls out Verve debit cards as Nigerian FinTechs shift to local providers. The company says it will distribute the cards through its network of over one million agents nationwide. With its expansive reach, PalmPay expects to onboard millions of cardholders by the end of the year.
🇺🇸 Jack Dorsey sent an email announcing 931 job cuts at Block. Dorsey told staff that on Tuesday, Block will be “making some org changes, including eliminating roles and beginning the consultation process in countries where required.” Keep reading
🇪🇸 Adyen integrates with CoverManager. Integration with CoverManager allows customers to automate and centralize payments, improving their experience and facilitating the financial management of the restaurant. Adyen ensures a scalable and flexible solution to adapt to the needs of any type of restaurant.
DIGITAL BANKING NEWS
🇦🇺 Bankwest introduces ‘Just Enough Bank’, with the platform promising to deliver uncomplicated and genuinely useful experiences for customers, aligning with Bankwest’s national growth ambitions. The campaign targets busy Australians who are seeking a simple, user-friendly banking experience.
🇬🇧 Taulia and Lloyds launch Visa-enabled virtual cards. Through the partnership, Lloyds will extend credit to customers who have purchased the Taulia Virtual Cards solution, allowing companies to issue virtual cards to suppliers worldwide in a seamless B2B payment process.
🇺🇸 Republic Bank selects DNA from Fiserv to enhance the company’s banking system capabilities and drive operational efficiencies to realize their digital transformation goals. Continue reading
🇿🇦 Discovery Bank launches AI tech that allows clients to see spending habits on WhatsApp. Customers can track their exact monthly coffee spend, receive tailored insights into their spending and savings habits and get suggestions to optimise their budget, maximise product features, and unlock rewards.
🇺🇸 Cleo AI to pay $17 million to settle US FTC charges it deceived consumers. The FTC said almost no one received anything close to the maximum $250 and $500 that Cleo advertised for customers of its Cleo Plus and Cleo Builder subscription services, with some advances totaling just $20.
BLOCKCHAIN/CRYPTO NEWS
🇫🇷 French stablecoin FinTech Fipto secures Payments Institution licence from France’s ACPR. The Prudential Control and Resolution Authority enables Fipto to send and receive global fiat payments on behalf of third parties, streamlining access to stablecoin transactions by significantly reducing intermediaries.
🌍 Ripple and Chipper Cash join forces to unlock faster and more cost-effective crypto-enabled payments across Africa. By leveraging Ripple’s payments solution, Chipper Cash will enable consumers to receive funds from around the world 24/7/365, making value transfers into Africa faster and more efficient.
🇺🇸 MoonPay recurring buys now live in the U.S. First unveiled to European users in January, Recurring Buys allows users to “set and forget” repeat crypto purchases made with their MoonPay Balance, MoonPay’s product feature that lets users deposit funds to their account for instant zero-fee purchases.
🇬🇧 Binance adds Apple Pay and Google Pay to options for EUR deposits. With this feature, users can easily and securely deposit EUR into their account using the credit/debit cards stored in their Apple Pay or Google Pay wallets. This simplifies access to crypto with daily payment methods.
🇺🇸 Bitstamp expands access to USDC and EURC for its 5 million users. The new USDC and EURC trading pairs will give customers the ability to transact with stablecoins more efficiently, backed by an infrastructure designed for transparency and regulatory compliance.
🇬🇧 Wirex launches travel booking platform with Crypto Payments & Rewards. The new booking platform, Wirex Travel, offers up to 65% off hotel prices and up to 8% cashback for users who pay with their Wirex card, giving users a smarter way to book accommodations while maximizing their savings and rewards.
PARTNERSHIPS
🌎 Airwallex & Yuno join forces to revolutionize global payments. This collaboration strengthens Yuno’s financial services and payment capabilities, helping businesses streamline their global transactions. For Airwallex, it enhances the company’s ability to support larger enterprises with more efficient and scalable cross-border payment solutions.
🌍 CellPoint Digital deepens strategic partnership with Southwest Airlines. Southwest will leverage CellPoint Digital's new platform to deliver personalised travel experiences through an advanced Offer & Order payment solution. The platform enables the seamless combination of multiple payment methods, from credit cards and travel credits to alternative payment methods and Rapid Rewards points, all within a single transaction.
🇺🇸 Primer adds J.P. Morgan Payments to its platform. This integration allows businesses using Primer to connect with J.P. Morgan Payments' platform, expanding payment options and optimizing transaction processes. Read more
🇮🇱 Nayax and N-and Group forge a strategic partnership to offer next-generation smart screens with embedded payments. As part of the partnership, N-and will provide smart screens featuring embedded payments by Nayax, durable design, and remote management and telemetry functions.
🇺🇸 ICE partners Circle to explore stablecoin uses. ICE will investigate applications for using Circle’s USDC stablecoin and US Yield Coin within its derivatives exchanges, clearinghouses, data services, and other markets. Keep reading
🇺🇸 BitGo’s strategic partnership with Republic expands access to private equity investments for all investors. This partnership paves the way for everyday investors to access previously unreachable assets seemingly reserved for the ultra-wealthy in a democratized marketplace.
🇦🇪 Bitpanda secures full licence approval from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), unlocking new growth opportunities in the UAE. The licence will allow it to make its virtual assets platform available to investors, including access to over 500 virtual assets, the most extensive virtual assets offering available on the market.
DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS
🇺🇸 FreshBooks secures $125m debt financing agreement with Morgan Stanley. In a statement released through its $1.7 trillion-asset investment management division, Morgan Stanley says the deal "will refinance existing debt and is expected to fuel the company’s continued growth".
🇺🇸 GetReal Security clinches $17.5m in Series A to combat Generative AI threats. The fresh influx of capital will primarily fund GetReal’s research and development, product development, and go-to-market strategies. More on that here
🇬🇧 FinTech Abound secures £250m financing deal. The latest funding, which will sit alongside Abound’s existing facilities from funders including Citi, Waterfall Asset Management, and LuminArx, provides additional firepower to scale its operations, enhance financial inclusion, and modernise the lending sector.
🇺🇸 FinTech platform Abound for Indian-Americans bags $14m seed funding. The funding will support its product expansion, technology infrastructure, and growth in product, engineering, and marketing teams. The firm plans to develop financial solutions for Indian Americans, including remittances and cross-border financial services.
🇮🇳 OneStack raises Series A round from Pentathlon Ventures, 100Unicorns and Venture Catalysts, amongst others. With the new funding, OneStack aims to expand its presence into South and East India, targeting an additional 200+ banks to achieve a 20% pan-India market share.
M&A
💰The last 12 months brought many high-profile payments M&A, across the entire payments stack including PSPs, infrastructure, POS and crypto.
Here is an overview of the largest M&A Deals in Payments:
🇬🇧 myPOS acquires UTP as it looks to boost support and payment solutions for UK SMEs. myPOS CEO Mario Shiliashki commented that the acquisition is not just about market expansion but also about empowering UK SMEs with better payment solutions, stronger support, and more growth opportunities.
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
🇧🇷 Nubank announces new IR and market intelligence director Guilherme Souto. The new director will play a key role in shaping Nubank's investor relations strategy and providing valuable insights to support the company's growth and expansion. Click here to learn more
🇫🇷 Marc Camus moves to group CIO of BNP Paribas. Camus' new oversight of the bank's IT strategy will focus on security, operational efficiency, and the deployment of AI and cloud computing. He will succeed long-time CIO Bernand Gavgani from 1 April and will also join the executive committee.
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