We hit 60k, Revolut hits 50m - TWIF UK & Europe (25/11)

Hello TWIF UK & Europe friends,

Please find another week of fintech news, financings and exits below.

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Highlights below of deals since the last post in the fintech space across the UK & Europe. Deal data powered by Dealroom.

🇪🇺 Bank account and crypto wallet solution Deblock raised a £13.3m seed round from Hoxton Ventures, Headline, Chalfen Ventures and The Twenty Minute VC.

🇪🇺 B2B AI finance tool Freqens raised a $3m seed round from Kima Ventures, Financiere Saint James, Motier Ventures, Better Angle and Purple.

🇪🇺 Institutional digital lending platform Cardo AI raised a $15m Series A from Blackstone, Fintop Capital, Jam Fintop, Andy Horwitz and Kevin MacDonald.

🇬🇧 Payment orchestrator CellPoint Digital raised a $30m round from Toscafund and Penta Capital.

🇬🇧 Payment acceptance solution KodyPay raised a $20m Series A.

🇪🇺 Wealthtech Aixigo has been acquired by French asset manager Amundi for €149m.

🇪🇺 Neobank N26 has reported its first profitable quarter.

🇪🇺 Spend management provider Moss has partnered with Airwallex to enhance and streamline global payments.

🇬🇧 Starling Bank has launched an Easy Saver savings account. It's new CEO also ordered a return to office sparking a number of staff resignations.

🇬🇧 Neobank Revolut has hit 50 million customers globally.

🇬🇧 Spend management solution Payhawk has selected JP Morgan Payments as its payment partner.

🇬🇧 Digital bank Chase UK has introduced its first credit card.

🇬🇧 Cross-border payment startup Zing has selected PSP Checkout.com as its global acquiring partner.

🇬🇧 Latam neobank Nubank is in talks to switch its domicile to the UK.

🇬🇧 Neobank Kroo is considering offering investment products.

🇬🇧 Business neobank Tide launched a carbon calculator to help SMEs.

🌍 B2B lender Rapid Finance expanded its Rapid Access Card to all eligible Line of Credit clients.

🌍 Neobroker Robinhood acquired custodial and portfolio management platform TradePMR for $300m.

🇪🇺 Soc Gen's digital asset division is deploying its Euro stablecoin on the XRP ledger.

🇪🇺Crypto firm Gemini launched in France after securing a VASP licence ealier this year.

🇪🇺 Tether and Kraken backed firm Quantoz launched a MiCA compliant USDQ and EURQ stablecoins.

🇪🇺 Stablecoin issuer Paxos is buying Finnish EMI licence holder Membrane Finance to access the EU.

🇬🇧 Revolut Trading granted a UK trading licence and authorisation as an investment firm.

🌍 Crypto exchange Bitget hit an all-time high in trading volume.

🌍 Bitwise Asset Management acquired Ethereum staking provider Attestant.

🌍 Crypto exchange Crypto.com acquired Fintek Securities, an Australian brokerage firm.

🌍 18 attorney generals have sued the SEC over its crypto actions.

🌍 PayPal's Xoom is to allow cross-border stablecoin payments through PYUSD.

🌍 SEC chair Gensler is to step down in January.

🌍 DeFi protocol Ethena sees $1bn in inflows.

🌍 Coinbase has introduced a 4.7% APY reward for USDC holders

🇪🇺 Santander Commercial Bank has expanded its digital cash management tools. It also launched its digital neobank Openbank in Mexico.

🇬🇧 HSBC has partnered with cross border payment platform Dandelion.

🇬🇧 NatWest expands its partnership with NCR Atleos to modernise its self-service banking and upgrade its ATMs.

🇬🇧 Lloyds Bank launch a benefits tool to help customers who might be missing out on benefits.

🇬🇧 Open banking provider TrueLayer laid off 25% of its staff in a single day before its recent fundraise.

🇬🇧 Payment infrastructure provider Modulr acquired accounts payable fintech Nook.

🇬🇧 Issuer processor Paymentology signed Mexican neobank Albo as a customer.

🌍 Australian banks are piloting a fraud and scam intelligence-sharing network.

🇪🇺 Payments solution Mollie has launched in Italy.

🇪🇺 BNPL provider Klarna signed airline Finnair and Staples as a customers. The BNPL solution will soon launch on Google Pay.

🇪🇺 Mastercard has partnered with insurtech Qover to embed return shipping cost protection for credit card holders in Belgium and Luxembourg.

🇪🇺 Payment provider Worldpay has introduced virtual cards for travel agents.

🇪🇺 Adyen has launched Tap to Pay on iPhone in New Zealand.

🇬🇧 Barclays is exploring giving away 80% of its merchant acquiring business to Brookfield after it struggled with a outright sale or partnership.

🇬🇧 Payment firm Navro acquired a Foreign Money Service Business registration in Canada.

🇬🇧 BNPL provider Zilch is considering a secondary share sale.

🌍 Global payments fintech Airwallex is taking the 1% Pledge, committing 1% of its equity to support innovation and entrepreneurship alongside tech companies Atlassian, Canva, Airbnb and Salesforce.

🌍 Google Pay has added Afterpay BNPL to its digital wallet.

🌍 The CFPB has amended its new payment rules brining digital wallet and electronic money transfer services into scope, impacting big tech.

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