SumUp Hits 1 Billion Transactions, Speeds Global Expansion
Hey FinTech Fanatic!
SumUp has hit a remarkable milestone, processing over 1 billion transactions annually across its global merchant base. The FinTech company has evolved significantly from its payments roots, with over 1 million customers now using SumUp Business Account as part of its expanded multi-product ecosystem.
The company, which has been EBITDA-positive since Q4 2022 with consistently improving margins throughout 2023, continues to expand its presence across 36 markets. With its latest Australian market entry and licensed banking services in Brazil, SumUp is planning further market expansions for late 2024 and 2025, alongside growing its Business Account and Cash Advance services.
Hermione Tomic, SumUp CFO, emphasizes the company's long-term vision: "SumUp is focused on creating sustainable value and exploring various strategic opportunities, and having reached the point of positive operating cash flow, we have many options available to us. Our priority is growing the business and continuing to innovate for the benefit of our merchants for the long-term, rather than rushing toward a public listing."
Enjoy the read, and I'll catch up with you on Monday with more tales and updates!
Cheers,
POST OF THE DAY
🎬 Remember 5 years ago, when Klarna launched this great campaign with Snoop Dogg? 🩷
In the video, the 47-year-old artist is renamed 𝗦𝗺𝗼𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗼𝗴𝗴, a reference to Klarna’s ambition to enable “smoooth” payments. Snoop Dogg also also became “a minor” shareholder in the company.
Now that’s what I call a great brand colab!
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FINTECH NEWS
🇬🇧 SumUp surpasses 1 billion transactions per year and accelerates global expansion with record growth. This milestone marks a pivotal point in SumUp’s mission to help merchants start, run, and grow their businesses, highlighting its rapid expansion across multiple markets.
🇲🇾 Fidelity and Maybank launch multi-asset fund in Malaysia. The new fund is designed to enhance diversification and deliver income and capital growth and will be available exclusively to Maybank clients. Continue reading
🇬🇧 Lightyear to relaunch in the UK with direct FCA authorisation. Under the newly authorised company – Lightyear UK – customers will benefit from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), something only available to investment firms who are directly authorised. Read on
🇪🇪 Norrsken-backed green investment startup Grünfin closes saying “maybe we were ahead of time.” The Estonian green investment platform was founded in 2020 by former Wise employees and offered investors the chance to build an investment portfolio in sustainable companies. Explore more
🇳🇬 Financial inclusion drives African FinTech M-KOPA to $400M in ARR. The company claims to have hit profitability since last year across four countries: Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and Ghana. South Africa, where it opened around a year ago, is its fastest-growing market, according to President and MD of FinTech Mayur Patel.
PAYMENTS NEWS
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🇵🇭 GCash said to weigh record Philippine IPO of up to $1.5 billion. GCash has invited banks to pitch for an IPO in Manila aiming to raise $1-1.5 billion in the second half of 2025, according to people familiar with the matter. An IPO of that size would likely make it the biggest ever in the Philippines.
🇺🇸 Blindpay leverages Bitso Business technology to connect global tech firms with Latin America. Blindpay’s API enables seamless cross-border payments, leveraging Bitso Business infrastructure to link businesses with local payment channels, simplifying access to advanced payment technology.
🇨🇦 RealDesk and Zum rails enable payment processing for Canadian real estate brokerages. This collaboration integrates Zum Rails’ payment processing with RealDesk’s real estate management platform, providing a solution to the challenges of disconnected, manual payment processes for real estate brokerages.
🇨🇳 Visa and LianLian Global collaborate to launch Yueda Card. Through the integration of Visa’s global payment infrastructure and LianLian Global’s technological capabilities, the Yueda Card addresses payment needs in various sectors, including ecommerce, foreign trade, travel, and supplier transactions.
OPEN BANKING NEWS
🇧🇭 Benefit partners with Tarabut to launch Bahrain’s first innovation-led, centralised open banking authentication solution. The new technology allows consumers to access financial services more easily, streamlining the authentication process and enabling seamless app-to-app experiences.
REGTECH NEWS
🇺🇬 Hackers steal $17 million from Uganda central bank, the state-owned New Vision newspaper reported on Thursday. Hackers known as "Waste," reportedly based in Southeast Asia, breached the Bank of Uganda's IT systems this month, transferring funds, some of which were sent to Japan, according to New Vision.
DIGITAL BANKING NEWS
🇬🇧 Revolut's business banking unit is making an effort to secure larger enterprises as revenue exceeds $500m. Revolut established its B2B banking unit in 2017 to provide banking services including business debit cards, multi-currency accounts and invoicing aimed at freelancers and companies with fewer than 10 employees.
🇦🇪 Reem Finance selects Temenos to power new digital community bank in the UAE. Reem Finance's shift to Temenos' cloud solution will drive its digital transformation, enabling faster, more flexible services to meet its diverse customers' needs.
🇨🇴 Nu Colombia has announced a strategic partnership with Puntored to expand financial accessibility by allowing customers to make cash deposits directly into their Nu accounts at Puntored locations throughout the country. This collaboration marks a significant step in Nu’s evolution toward becoming a comprehensive transactional account provider.
🇦🇺 Commonwealth Bank of Australia said generative artificial intelligence tools cut customer losses from scams in half. It has also helped to shorten the process for mortgage pre-approvals to as little as 10 minutes. The technology reduced fraud by 30% and cut call center wait times by 40% this year, the bank said Thursday.
🇬🇧 CMA letter to Monzo about breaching Parts 3, 7, 8 and 12 of the Retail Banking Order. The CMA found Monzo breached multiple parts of the 2017 Retail Banking Market Order, and the bank has agreed to take action to prevent a recurrence. Read on
🇪🇬 Bank NXT partners with Mindgate to launch a cutting-edge digital platform for corporate clients. The partnership reflects a shared vision of driving digital transformation, as Bank NXT and Mindgate combine FinTech innovations to redefine corporate banking for the future.
🇺🇸 Inbenta and ebankIT join forces to enhance digital banking experiences with AI-Driven customer engagement. This collaboration aims to revolutionize the way financial institutions interact with their customers by offering Inbenta’s advanced AI technologies through ebankIT’s platform.
🇸🇬 Trust Bank opens waitlist for upcoming investment offering. The bank is gearing up to launch a new investment product called TrustInvest, which is designed to make investing easier and more accessible for everyone. Discover more
PARTNERSHIPS
🇮🇹 Adyen and Doctolib partner on embedded financial products in healthcare. Doctolib is integrating Adyen's online payment and financial services into its digital healthcare platform, and recently launched in France and Italy with plans to expand to Germany and other European countries, according to a press release.
🇵🇭 ADB, Mastercard launch an innovative partnership to finance MSMEs in Asia and the Pacific. The initiative will initially target Georgia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, using a $5 million Mastercard grant to boost lending to MSMEs, focusing on women-led businesses and climate finance.
DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS
🇬🇧 Ex-Revolut duo raise $2.3 million to build 'blockchain bank account' Bleap. Joao Alves and Guilherme Gomes, former Revolut employees, believe that blockchain technology forms the foundation of the future of finance. The concept for Bleap began to take shape in July 2023. Find out more
🇨🇱 Google-Backed R2 raises $59 million. R2, a Latin American startup building lending tools for tech companies in the region, raised $59 million in equity and debt to continue expanding operations, including a push to grow its business in Chile.
🇨🇳 China’s Tencent uncloaked as mystery lead backer of Neo Financial’s recent US$80-million ($112-million) equity investment, valuing the Calgary online financial upstart at a steep discount to its last financing. Continue reading
🇯🇵 Japanese FinTech startup Habitto raises $11.7m series A. The raised capital aims to support Habitto in expanding its digital banking platform. The funds will also be used to develop new financial tools targeting young consumers in Japan.
M&A
🇬🇧 Atlantic Money joins Deel. Joining Deel allows Atlantic Money to combine its innovative and efficient approach to offering financial services with Deel's comprehensive platform, ultimately enhancing the financial ecosystem for businesses operating globally.
MOVERS & SHAKERS
🇨🇭 SIX appoints Bjørn Sibbern as new CEO, effective 1 January 2025. Since the beginning of 2024, Bjørn Sibbern has been leading the international exchange business of SIX as Global Head Exchanges and a member of the Group Executive Board.
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