UniCredit (formerly UniCredito) is an Italian global banking and financial services company. Its network spanning 50 markets in 20 countries, with more than 9,000 branches and over 148,000 employees. Its strategic position in Western and Eastern Europe gives the group one of the region's highest market shares.

UniCredit

The journey continues with Motive Ventures. From 2014 to 2021, finleap has built or invested in 15 ventures and developed more than 5 corporate JVs and service ventures collectively worth €3.0Bn+ at a point in time. The finleap portfolio is now managed by Motive Ventures.

finleap

Yabeo Capital focuses on financial purposes and internet related business.

Yabeo

Arvato is an international service provider with some 70,000 employees in more than 40 countries. They design and implement innovative solutions for clients from all over the world. These include, for example, intelligent customer service offers via all contact channels in the CRM sector, end-to-end e-commerce services for retailers and brands in the field of SCM, fraud prevention and payment services in the financial industry, and IT services in the cloud. In developing their innovative solutions, they place a strong focus on automation and data/analytics.  Clients from a wide range of industries rely on Arvato’s portfolio of solutions, from telecommunications providers and utilities companies through banks and insurance companies to e-commerce, IT and internet providers.

Arvato Bertelsmann

SoftBank provides fixed-line, mobile telephony, internet, telecommunications, and digital television products. It is a multinational telecommunications and internet corporation focused on broadband, fixed-line telecommunications, e-commerce, the internet, technology services, finance, media and marketing, and other businesses. The company operates through four segments. The mobile communications segment provides mobile communications services, produces and distributes online games for smartphones and other devices, offers mobile broadband services, provides supply chain solutions, handset protection, and insurance, buy-back and trade-in services, omnichannel solutions, and financial services, and sells mobile devices such as iPhones, iPads, and SoftBank smartphones. The Sprint segment offers mobile and fixed-line voice and data transmission services for individual consumers, businesses, government subscribers, and resellers in Puerto Rico and the U.S. and sells mobile devices and accessories. The fixed-line telecommunications segment offers telecom services such as fixed-line telephone and data communications services to corporate customers and broadband services to individual customers. The internet segment is engaged in the operation of the Yahoo! Japan portal, the sale of internet advertising, the operation of e-commerce sites, the provision of membership services, the sale and marketing of data centers, the provision of online automobile-related information, and the operation of the internet affiliate system. SoftBank also generates and sells electricity from renewable energy sources; provides payment processing, invoice collections, and computation services for businesses; distributes video, voice, and data content via media; operates the IT information site ITmedia; provides solutions and services for online businesses; and operates online games and software downloads. Additionally, it is involved in the ownership of professional baseball teams, the operation of baseball games, the management and maintenance of baseball stadiums and other sports facilities, and the procurement of funds by issuing preferred securities.

SoftBank

SBI Group aims to become a corporate entity that provides a variety of one-stop financial services over the Internet now that two major events, the Financial Big Bang resulting from deregulation, and the Internet Revolution resulting from IT innovation, have radically transformed the financial industry.

SBI Group

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA (BBVA) is a Spain-based international financial group. The Company’s activities are focused in such business units as banking, pension and insurance in Spain and Portugal, Mexico and South America.  BBV and Argentaria announced their planned merger on 19th October 1999. The goal was to continue creating value. The new bank (BBVA) had the advantages of significant size, a strong capital base, a considerable financial structure and appropriate geographic diversification of its business and risks. As a result there was a greater profit potential.  In the USA and Puerto Rico, the Bank only comprises banking business. In addition, The Company has two cross-sectorial business units, Corporate and Investment Banking and Global Retail & Business Banking, which includes retail banking, commercial and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) banking, payment systems, consumer finance and private banking, among others.  BBVA is a parent company of Grupo Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, which comprises such entities as BBVA Banco Frances SA and BBVA International Limited, among others. In December 2013, the Company sold of the entirety of its about 98.92% direct and indirect interest in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (Panama) SA (BBVA Panama) to Leasing Bogota SA, Panama.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Visa is an American multinational financial services company that facilitates electronic payment systems throughout the world. The company operates the retail electronic payments network through the transfer of value and information among financial institutions, merchants, consumers, businesses, and government entities.

Visa

Lakestar is a venture capital firm investing in technology companies led by exceptional entrepreneurs. Early investments included Skype, Spotify, Facebook, and Airbnb. Since raising the first fund in 2013, Lakestar manages an aggregated volume of over EUR 1bn across three early-stage funds, and more recently a growth fund.  The company has expanded and broadened its portfolio and holds investments in the likes of Opendoor, Oscar, GetYourGuide, Glovo, Sender, Eigen, Five, Revolut, and Hometogo to name a few. Lakestar has a presence in Berlin, Zurich, and London. Lakestar helps companies to identify new markets and expand into them rapidly, with a focus on the US and Europe. The team advises and supports portfolio companies in business development, recruitment, technology, and marketing. The investments range from early-stage companies to those in their growth stage.

Lakestar

ABN AMRO Ventures is the corporate venture fund of ABN AMRO

ABN AMRO Ventures

HV Capital is a Munich- and Berlin-based venture capital firm that supports founders in developing their internet companies. Since 2000 HV Capital, formerly HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, has invested in Internet and technology companies through various generations of funds and is one of the most successful and financially strongest early-stage and growth investors in Europe. HV Capital has already invested in around 200 companies, including Zalando, Delivery Hero, FlixMobility and SumUp. The total of all HV Funds amounts to €1.7 billion. The company supports startups with capital between €500,000 and €50 million. This makes HV Capital one of the few venture capitalists in Europe that can finance startups through all growth phases.

HV Capital

Vulcan Capital invests across all stages of corporate development through leveraged buyouts, growth capital, distressed/turnaround, and early-stage venture capital as well as public equity value investing. The firm's portfolio spans a range of industry sectors, including media and communications, energy and natural resources, financial and information services, technology, and life sciences. Vulcan Capital is the private investment group of Vulcan Inc., the organization founded by Paul G. Allen, co-founder of Microsoft.

Vulcan Capital

Storm Ventures is a $600m (TAM) VC firm 100% focused solely on early-stage enterprise investments.  We've been founders ourselves, of enterprise companies including Airespace (acquired by Cisco) and EchoSign (acquired by Adobe).  We've had to go without pay as CEOs ourselves to make payroll.  We've gone from $0 to $100m in ARR and lived all the stages in between.  We've here to help, and add some strategic capital and insights.  And not be in the way when we're not needed.

Storm Ventures

Global Brain Corporation is a venture capital firm that invests in companies from seed or early to pre-IPO startups.  Global Brain has invested in 300+ startups from seed/early to pre-IPO startups and achieved 25 IPOs and 61 M&As as a result of providing hands-on support services and resources to its portfolio startups. Global Brain has managed a pure investment fund as well as multiple corporate venture capital funds partnered together with tier 1 public companies of telecom, real estate development, financial service, beverages, agriculture food, logistics, and electronic devices.

Global Brain Corporation

The Samsung Catalyst Fund is Samsung Electronics’ evergreen multi-stage venture capital fund that invests in the new data economy and strategic ideas for Samsung’s mobile, device solutions and consumer electronics groups. Investment spans across Automotive, Robotics, Digital Health, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Infrastructure, and Device-Level Solutions. Through Samsung Catalyst Fund, entrepreneurs are enabled by Samsung’s global brand, manufacturing and distribution, domain expertise, recruiting network, and world-class Innovation Fellows for advice and mentorship.

Samsung Catalyst Fund

Decisive is a wealth advisor that provides services to high net worth individuals, families, and institutional investors. With a worldwide presence across strategic international locations, Decisive is a disruptive evolution from traditional private and investment banking with areas of expertise spanning Wealth Management, Entrepreneurial Advisory, and Curated Investment Management. The firm was founded in 2016 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Decisive Capital Management

Pathway is a leading private market fund-solutions provider with over $55 billion in assets under management from private equity, private credit, and infrastructure mandates.  Formed in 1991, Pathway creates and manages single- and multi-investor programs for institutional investors worldwide, investing in various private market strategies through primaries, secondaries, and co-investments. Pathway’s investment professionals have participated in the development of more than 100 private market portfolios, committing more than $82 billion to more than 625 private market investments across a wide variety of private market strategies. Pathway has raised in excess $24 billion in commitments from its more than 55 fund of funds.

Pathway Capital Management

FJ Labs is a stage-agnostic investment firm that focuses on marketplaces and consumer-facing startups. Their investments are seed and series A. The investment range of the company is $50,000 to $5,000,000. It invests in Alibaba Group, Beepi, BrightRoll, Betterment, Adore Me, and Earnest.

FJ Labs

Founded in 2018, Stableton is an investment firm based in Zurich, Switzerland. The firm seeks to invest in growth stage tech-enabled companies operating in the cloud, enterprise software-as-a-service, consumer, information technology and fintech sectors. The firm has additional offices in Zug and Berlin.

Stableton Financial

BBVA provides consumer, corporate, small-company banking, and financial security investment services. The company was established in 1968 and is based in Panama City, Panama.

BBVA

CNP is a private investment firm investing in and supporting European sector-leading or emerging companies in their long-term development. It has a long history of direct investing across sectors and European listed and non-listed companies and fosters sustainable value creation from strategic, financial, and government stewardship. CNP is one of a group controlled by the Frère family. CNP is headquartered in Belgium with presence and a mandate across Europe

Compagnie Nationale à Portefeuille

Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital is an alternative investment firm based in Luxembourg and the Czech Republic.

Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital

Solaris

Solarisbank is a Banking-as-a-Service platform. As a technology company with a full German banking license, Solarisbank enables other companies to offer their financial services. Via APIs, partners integrate Solarisbank's modular banking services directly into their product offerings. The platform offers digital bank accounts and payment cards, identification and lending services, digital asset custody as well as services provided by integrated third-party providers. To date, Solarisbank has raised more than EUR 160 million from a bluechip shareholder base, including ABN AMRO’s Digital Impact Fund, BBVA, finleap, Global Brain, HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, Lakestar, Samsung Catalyst Fund, SBI Group, Storm Ventures, Visa, Vulcan Capital, and yabeo Capital.

Solaris (formerly known as Solarisbank) offers a banking-as-a-service (BaaS) platform through a set of APIs (over 400 as of July 2023) for FinTech developers to build consumer products. Solaris offers a range of banking services, such as digital banking and card management, lending services, payments, and know-your-customer (KYC) solutions. It also offers a digital assets infrastructure platform to embed scalable crypto services for end-users, and <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9313">security brokerage tools </a>for on-exchange and off-exchange trading.

Democratizing financial technology with a suite of API-based solutions

FinTech Infrastructure

Solarisbank

Junior exploration roundup: Outcrop, Lithium Ionic, Solaris, DLP

American Express

solarisBank and American Express have teamed up to enable the latter’s customers in Germany to pay in instalments.

Solaris (formerly known as Solarisbank) offers a banking-as-a-service (BaaS) platform through a set of APIs (over 400 as of July 2023) for FinTech developers to build consumer products. Solaris offers a range of banking services, such as digital banking and card management, lending services, payments, and know-your-customer (KYC) solutions. It also offers a digital assets infrastructure platform to embed scalable crypto services for end-users, and <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9313">security brokerage tools </a>for on-exchange and off-exchange trading. The company acquired <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/4478">peer BaaS platform provider Contis </a>in July 2021, for an undisclosed sum (subsequently approved by regulators in January 2022). Solaris intended to leverage the acquisition to spread its operations further across Europe and enter Asia. Key customers and partnerships As of July 2021, Solaris worked with around 50 companies, which included challenger banks, business banking providers, trading apps, and crypto startups, among others. In December 2020, Solaris became the first German bank to migrate its core banking system, digital products, and databases to the cloud. The company claimed to be growing at 40-60% annually as of July 2021, and managed around 2 million end customer accounts. <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/7143">Solaris partnered with viafintech GmbH </a>(a subsidiary of British payments platform Paysafe), a barcode-based payment infrastructure provider, in December 2021, to expand its digital banking infrastructure. Through the partnership, Solaris’s user were able to provide end customers with over 20,000 cash deposit and withdrawal points across Europe. Funding and financials Solaris’ net revenues reportedly grew 30% YoY in 2022 to reach EUR 130 million (USD 143.3 million); however, it was yet to turn profitable (having experienced a EUR 56 million [USD 61.8 million] loss). The company <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/20017">raised EUR 38 million </a>(USD 41.8 million) in Series F funding in July 2023, at a USD 1.6 billion valuation ( <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/4478">similar to its valuation in July 2021 </a>), to invest in strengthening governance and compliance to develop and expand the company further.

Cross River Bank provides a white-label banking-as-a-service (BaaS) platform for enterprises, combining banking services, payments, and marketplace lending infrastructure to build fintechs. Its solutions comprise demand deposits, savings accounts, credit and debit cards, and payment clearing services, including automated clearing house (ACH) and real-time payments. The company also provides banking and payment infrastructure for the crypto industry, including risk management services for its crypto clients. Key customers and partnerships As of December 2020, the company had over 400 employees, and had entered into more than 30 partnerships. Moreover, as of March 2021, the platform had been used to support over 375,000 small businesses through the paycheck protection program (PPP).Cross River Bank teamed up with UK-based BaaS provider <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/421515">Railsr </a>in January 2019 to launch a common API for their platforms to be used globally. As of April 2022, Cross River had over 80 clients including lenders such as Affirm, Best Egg, and Upstart, neobanks such as <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/220119">Revolut </a>, and blockchain-based payment processing platform GreenBox. The platform reportedly originated over USD 24 billion in loans per annum, around 10x the value of loans it originated in 2015. Cross River Bank has expanded its operations by acquiring Betterfin, a platform offering lending-as-a-service (LaaS) solutions, in November 2021. Through the acquisition, Cross River Bank leveraged Betterfin’s software to digitize parts of the small-business lending process (such as origination and underwriting).The company partnered with <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/1643">American Express </a>(Amex) to enable FinTechs to issue credit cards through Cross River Bank, on the Amex network, while also providing select Amex benefits to the FinTechs.Funding and financials The company <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9458">raised USD 620 million in funding </a>co-led by Eldridge and a16z, at a valuation of over USD 3 billion, to invest in product developments, recruitment, international expansion, and boosting strategic partnerships.

Cross River Bank

Synctera was co-founded in 2020 by Peter Hazlehurst, the former head of Uber Money, who previously led the development of Google Wallet. The company offers an API-based infrastructure platform for community and regional banks to find and partner with FinTechs. This enables FinTechs to leverage the former’s licenses to embed FDIC-insured mobile checking, debit cards, savings accounts, and payment innovations, among other features. The API platform offered to the banks will then be sold to the FinTechs to code on. Although the end customers interact with the FinTechs, they legally belong to the bank.<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/8117">Synctera mainly charges the banks </a>based on the interchange fees they earn (half of the interchange fees, as of January 2022) from the services provided. It does not charge them an initial amount to use the platform. Moreover, the platform also embeds fraud-as-a-service and charges FinTechs on a per transaction basis (4 cents per transaction) should they choose to use it. It subsequently shares that revenue 50/50 with the banks.The company launched the “t-minus10” project in January 2022, which offers a live sandbox for FinTechs to build apps, test, and go to market, enhancing their access to banking partners. It subsequently launched a “Smart Charge Card” (APIs to build, launch, and issue charge cards) and “White-label Banking App” (a codebase for developers to build embedded banking products or neobank apps) infrastructure in October 2022.Key customers and partnershipsIn February 2022, Lineage Bank (a community bank in Tennessee) and GoGetr (FinTech aiming to promote health and wealth management) became the first companies to launch a banking solution using the Synctera platform. As of March 2023, the platform was working with around 50 fintechs, of which 14 were live (including Wayapay and Float). Synctera reportedly had over 20 implementations set for launch in the following two months.Synctera announced a new card issuing and management infrastructure offering (Card-as-a-Service), in July 2021, which it developed in partnership with Mastercard and leading card issuing infrastructure disruptor, <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/64287">Marqeta</a>.Funding and financialsIn March 2024, Synctera raised USD 18.6 million in <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/27244">Series A1 extension</a> co-led by Lightspeed and Fin Capital. The company earmarked the funds to support business growth by facilitating more complex use cases across the US and international markets. The company also <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/16980?industryIds=53">raised USD 15 million</a> in funding led by NAventures in March 2023, to invest in expanding the platform’s use cases and broadening its geographic footprint beyond the US (including expanding to Canada). Meanwhile, Synctera has also partnered with the National Bank of Canada to enable companies to launch FinTech apps and embedded banking products in Canada.

Synctera

Based in the UK, Weavr, formerly known as Open Payments Cloud, was spun out of payment provider Ixaris in 2019. Weavr offers the infrastructure for enterprises to embed banking services across various industries, including education, fitness, logistics, etc. Weavr’s “Meta” platform combines multiple banking and payments partners in one platform through application programming interfaces (APIs). Using the APIs, enterprises can embed virtual banking services such as card payments, fund transfers, and international banking accounts.Weavr expanded its operations to Singapore in November 2022, as part of its global expansion plans.Key customers and partnershipsAs of July 2021, Weavr’s customers included Finway, Thanks Ben, and MySkillCamp, among others.In October 2019, Weavr partnered with payment service providers Global Processing Services (GPS), Paynetics, and iDenfy to enable developers to create and run sophisticated and streamlined payment experiences for their European customers through Weavr.Funding and financialsWeavr <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/8647?industryIds=53">raised USD 40 million </a>in Series A funding in February 2022, led by Tiger Global, less than a year after <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/4166">raising GBP 4 million (USD 5.5 million) </a>in seed funding in July. The funds were earmarked for business development and recruitment to support Weavr’s expansion to the US market, while also supporting its continued expansion in the UK and Europe.

Weavr

MX offers an open finance portal, data connectivity application programming interface (API), and MX platform API for banks, credit unions, and other financial service providers. The company’s solutions allow its clients to utilize financial data to reduce fraud, approve loans faster, and improve their customer experiences. In addition to APIs and connections, MX also offers a range of capabilities, including data aggregation, analytics, financial feed insights, wealth and investment services, and verification services. MX looks to enable banks and financial institutions to launch next-generation services and apps that automate and personalize financial experiences. As of January 2021, the company noted that it worked with more than 2,000 banks, credit unions, and FinTech companies, and its platform reached over 200 million end-users. Moreover, it also powered 43 of the top 50 digital banks as of the same period. In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/8753?industryIds=53">February 2022, MX partnered </a>with <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/361160">Rize </a>, to enable users to access Rize’s banking infrastructure to build, launch, and scale financial products through a single API, thereby reducing the development time and cost. In January 2021, MX raised USD 300 million in a Series C funding round led by TPG Capital, at a valuation of USD 1.9 billion. The newly raised funds are to be invested in improving MX’s capabilities, expanding its global presence, and increasing its workforce. In January 2021, MX noted that its headcount tripled over the past two years, reaching 550 staff members. The company appointed Shane Evans as interim chief executive officer (CEO) in January 2022, to prepare the company for an IPO or sale (at a valuation of over USD 5 billion) and oversee its growth.

Bankable is a banking-as-a-service (BaaS) infrastructure provider allowing financial institutions and corporations to utilize its API to integrate banking services. It provides a platform for its enterprise customers to offer modular banking services, including ledger management (process data from multiple banks to support cash management for global corporate affairs), digital banking, payment cards, and e-wallets. The company expanded its platform by <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/19662">acquiring Arex Markets </a>in June 2023, to embed working capital solutions (such as flexible invoice financing, corporate credit cards, lodged cars, and revolving credit). The company has a global presence, with operations spanning from the US to the Middle East as of January 2021. Bankable noted that the expansion of its global footprint also helps its European and US FinTech clients expand their operations internationally. Key customers and partnerships In January 2020, the company partnered with the diversified FinTech infrastructure provider <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/85350">Plaid </a>, which enabled Bankable’s customers to use Plaid’s tech to connect to more than 15,000 banks in the US and Europe. Funding and financialsIn April 2019, <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/13061">Visa </a>invested an undisclosed sum in Bankable and entered a partnership with the startup. Through the partnership, Visa members obtained access to Bankable’s platform, while Bankable used VisaNet (Visa’s electronic global payments network) to extend its international payment and banking solutions.

Bankable

Platforms that allow FinTechs to integrate banking services such as opening and maintaining accounts, facilitating card payments, etc.


Platforms that enable FinTechs to integrate a range of payment-related services such as one-time payments, subscriptions, and receipt management for domestic and cross-border transactions.


Companies that enable organizations to embed anti-money laundering (AML), identity verification, and know-your-customer (KYC) solutions.


Platforms that allow FinTechs to integrate lending services,  by typically applying AI/ML technology to a spending analysis to analyze creditworthiness.

Companies providing APIs and integrations for FinTechs to access securities markets, facilitate transactions and clearing, and provide insights to help end-users manage their finances.

May specialize in promoting inclusiveness in financial services, primarily in the investment and lending spaces

AI/ML can improve the quality of their offerings, such as using AI/ML to reduce biases

Used for payment completions, accessing banking and transaction data, and providing financial insights, among others

Solarisbank

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