Fintech Highlights - 11/14/2023
Stash gets out of crypto. Lemonade enters Arizona. Circle is considering an IPO. Here's what we've been watching this week 👇
Pinned to the Top
Lemonade’s car insurance coverage is now available in Arizona – its sixth state since first launching in Illinois two years ago.
Based on 2022 data, Arizona isn’t a top ten state in terms of premiums. The Grand Canyon state holds the 13th spot, contributing $9.6 million in written premiums.
Lemonade’s auto business accounted for just 1.5% of total premiums in the first six months of 2023.
The BFD
Brokerage app Stash, which is backed by Coatue Management and Union Square Ventures, will no longer offer direct crypto investing to customers beginning in mid-December, a Stash spokesperson confirmed, a blow for their crypto provider Bakkt.
“We found our customers weren’t focused on this aspect of our platform and given the volatility in the market, we’re no longer supporting it,” spokesperson Sarah Spagnolo wrote in an email.
Why this is the BFD: Stash offers stock trading and robo-advising and added crypto investments starting last year - in an effort to meet growing trader expectations. Given the startup raised a $40 million convertible round led by T. Rowe Price last month, and last valued at $1.4 billion in a Series G round led by Eldridge in 2021 - this is a big statement that crypto will not be a valuable revenue generator.
The big picture: Stash uses the crypto firm Bakkt to process crypto transactions, as do other fintech companies like Webull, Public and M1 Finance. Bakkt charges customers fees on crypto transactions and shares some of the revenue with Stash. Stash customers who want to continue to hold crypto will be able to transfer their assets to Webull Pay, a Bakkt spokesperson said in a statement. Bakkt, one of the few publicly traded crypto companies, has seen its share price fall under $1 ahead of Tuesday, when it will announce its third quarter financial results.
M&A
Circle, the Boston-based issuer of USDC stablecoins, is considering an IPO in early 2024, per Bloomberg. The company previously agreed to go public via SPAC, but then terminated the agreement, and has raised over $1b from firms like Goldman Sachs, General Catalyst, BlackRock, Fidelity and Marshall Wace. More here ->
Janney Montgomery Scott, a Philadelphia-based wealth and asset manager, agreed to buy TM Capital, a mid-market investment bank focused on M&A advisory work. More here ->
The Travelers Companies, Inc. has announced its decision to acquire Corvus Insurance Holdings, Inc. for an approximate sum of $435 million. More here ->
Embedded Insuretech
Bimaplan, an Indian embedded insurance startup, raised $3.5m. The company is founded by Vikul Goyal, a second-time founder with a successful exit track record. His previous venture, Carcrew, was acquired by TVS Group, a large automotive conglomerate in India. More here ->
Fintech
Black Ore, an Austin, Texas-based AI platform for financial services, raised $60m co-led by Andreessen Horowitz and Oak HC/FT. Its flagship product, Tax Autopilot, combines its proprietary AItechnology with federal and state tax codes & regulations to automate the tax preparation and review process. More here ->
Personal financial management startup Era has raised $1.3M. More here ->
Enable, an SF-based B2B rebate management platform, raised $120m in Series D funding at a $1.12b pre-money valuation. Its technology automates how distributors and manufacturers create, execute and track rebates. More here ->
Volante Technologies, a Jersey City, N.J.-based cloud payments company, raised $66m in equity and debt funding. Volante Technologies is a leading global provider of cloud payments and financial messaging solutions to accelerate digital transformation, and serves as a trusted partner to over 100 banks, financial institutions, market infrastructures, clearing houses, and corporate treasuries in 35 countries. More here ->
Greenlite, an SF-based anti-money laundering startup, raised $4.8m in seed funding. Greenlite augments compliance teams with AI coworkers. More here ->
Qomodo, an Italian provider of BNPL and other digital payment solutions to physical retailers, raised €34.5m in seed funding. The company is introducing a suite of smart payment solutions to physical retailers. More here ->
Goodvest, a French climate-friendly savings fintech, raised €10m. Goodvest, which is on a mission to build a "sustainable" investment platform committed to fight climate change: 100% personalized & transparent. More here ->
Due, a London-based payment startup built on DeFi, raised $3.3m in seed funding. Due is building an international payment platform through blockchain protocols and plans to launch this month, the company said. More here ->
More fintech:
Catherine Shu
Kyle Wiggers
Investtech
Sock, an SF-based self-custodial investment app, raised $2.8m in seed funding. Sock is a mobile finance app that "combines the simplicity of centralized exchanges with the safety and security of knowing you’ll never lose access to your funds." More here ->
Arch, a New York-based private investment management platform, raised $20m in Series A funding. Arch manages "all document and communications, providing better organization, data, and insights for private investments." More here ->
Performativ, a Denmark-based OS for wealth managers, raised €5.5m in seed funding. Performativ provides wealth managers and their clients with a "powerful management software that is fit for the future." More here ->
Proptech
Summer, a New York-based vacation home ownership platform, raised $18m. It also secured a $50m loan from Setpoint Capital. Summer helps customers buy and rent out vacation homes. More here ->
Mogul, a Washington, D.C.-based real estate investment platform, raised $3.6m in seed funding. The company simplifies commercial real estate investing, giving members access to vetted commercial real estate opportunities with the potential to generate passive income. More here ->
From the Stash
Citi to Cardholders: Go Paperless or Else - Bank says it will block access to its app and site if customers refuse to switch to digital bills. More here ->
New CFPB proposal cracks down on payments providers - The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed a new rule today that would subject large nonbank companies, including digital wallet providers and payments apps, to undergo the same supervisory exam process as banks — leveling the payments playing field. More here ->
FIS adds 74 banks to FedNow in Q3 - Payments giant FIS saw dozens of bank customers looking to join FedNow as the adoption of real-time payments grew in the third quarter. “We are encouraged by the interest we are seeing related to the rollout of FedNow,” Chief Executive Stephanie Ferris said during the company’s Q3 earnings call today. More here ->
Lemonade will hit profitability in the next 24 months, says the insurtech's CEO, Daniel Schreiber - who also said the Israeli/American company was rallying, despite the geopolitical turmoil from the war in Gaza. More here ->
Hippo, has reported robust performance in the third quarter of 2023 - with a noteworthy 38% Year-over-Year (YoY) growth in Total Generated Premium (TGP), reaching US$303.7 million compared to $219.9 million in the corresponding period last year. More here ->
Amazon has launched a groundbreaking health care benefit for Prime members - providing exclusive access to high-quality care through One Medical, an Amazon subsidiary. More here ->
Reports / Webinars / Conferences
Bank Automation Summit U.S. 2024 will take place March 18-19 in Nashville, Tenn., at the Omni Nashville.
This premier industry event focuses on the transformative power of AI and other automations within the banking sector and will provide insights, strategies and best practices for automating bank functions
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