Plus: Brex, Block, Flinks, and Shakepay unveil new product offerings.
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$86-million Series D extension has Koho targeting growth and profitability
(BETAKIT)
Koho CEO Daniel Eberhard told BetaKit last August that the FinTech startup was in a good position to navigate the downturn’s economic headwinds. As this year closes, Koho has secured an all-primary, all-equity $86 million CAD Series D extension round, priming the company to growth and profitability in 2024.
“The big thing that’s changed structurally in the business is that the economics are scaleable,” he said. “Last time we talked, the economics were positive and growing, but now they’re in the right place.”
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Wealthsimple Aims to Quadruple Assets to $74 Billion in Five Years
(BNN BLOOMBERG)
Wealthsimple has set a target of quadrupling assets to $100 billion CAD ($74 billion) in five years, betting that it can capture a significant share of younger investors who don’t want to use traditional money managers.
The FinTech firm recently surpassed 100,000 First Home Savings Accounts (FHSA) opened on its platform, which co-founder Michael Katchen said on LinkedIn is 30 percent of all FHSAs made since the account was introduced.
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Bitkey lead calls Canada an important market as Block launches new self-custody Bitcoin wallet worldwide
(BETAKIT)
American payments giant Block has officially launched Bitkey, a new self-custody wallet aimed at giving cryptocurrency owners more control over their Bitcoin.
In an interview with BetaKit, Bitkey business lead Lindsey Grossman said that the idea is to provide Bitcoin holders with a safe and secure storage alternative to crypto trading platforms that is simpler and easier to use than existing self-custody solutions.
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Goldman Sachs-backed ZestMoney, once valued at $450M, to shut down
(TECHCRUNCH)
ZestMoney, a buy now, pay later startup whose ability to underwrite small ticket loans to first-time internet customers attracted many high-profile investors, including Goldman Sachs, is shutting down following unsuccessful efforts to find a buyer.
The Bengaluru-headquartered startup employed about 150 people and had raised over $130 million in its eight-year journey.
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Brex launches corporate card, expense offering targeting Canadian workers at US firms
(BETAKIT)
San Francisco-based FinTech firm Brex has publicly launched a fully localized cross-border corporate card aimed at servicing the Canadian employees of United States (US)-based companies.
Brex said it introduced the new service after noticing that US companies with Canadian subsidiaries were joining its platform more quickly.
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FinChat secures $1.5 million USD from Social Leverage to expand AI-powered stock research platform
(BETAKIT)
Earlier this year, Toronto-based FinTech startup Stratosphere decided to jump on the generative artificial intelligence (AI) trend. Stratosphere launched FinChat in April 2023, and the platform quickly exploded in popularity.
Now armed with $1.5 million USD in seed funding, FinChat has built a subscription-based public equity research platform. The startup offers a self-serve product for “sophisticated, self-directed” retail investors and professional portfolio managers.
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Brim Financial gears up for North American growth with Mastercard partnership
(THE LOGIC)
Toronto-based FinTech startup Brim Financial has entered a partnership with Mastercard to roll out credit card programs for US financial institutions and FinTech firms.
Brim is unique in the Canadian fintech space because it’s licensed as a credit card issuer and provides partners, such as Canadian Western Bank and Laurentian Bank, a “platform-as-a-service” through which they can manage their credit card business.
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Bianca Bharti joins BetaKit as newsletter editor
(BETAKIT)
BetaKit is thrilled to announce that Bianca Bharti has joined BetaKit’s editorial team as its first-ever newsletter editor.
As newsletter editor, Bianca will be in charge of accelerating BetaKit’s flagship newsletter, and will play a key role in defining and growing our editorial capabilities within the format.
BetaKit is on a mission to connect, interrogate, and inform Canadian tech. If you believe in this mission the way we do, join us: BetaKit is hiring a new senior editor and a permanent CEO, with more roles to be announced in the New Year.
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Advice on fundraising and living in the future from Huntress CFO Marcos Torres
(BETAKIT)
Building a business is an exercise in living in the future, according to Marcos Torres, CFO of managed cybersecurity platform Huntress.
In a recent #CIBCInnovationBanking podcast episode, Torres shared his advice for founders who want the best chance of success in difficult times.
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Exclusive: Montenegro Plans to Extradite Fallen Crypto Tycoon Do Kwon to U.S.
(THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)
Montenegro’s top justice official has privately said he plans to send disgraced crypto tycoon Do Kwon to the U.S. rather than South Korea to face criminal charges, people familiar with the matter said.
Kwon—who has been jailed in the Balkan country since March—has been the focus of an international tug-of-war as both the U.S. and South Korea seek his extradition. Prosecutors in both countries want to put Kwon on trial for fraud and securities-law violations in connection with the $40 billion crash of his TerraUSD and Luna cryptocurrencies in May 2022. Kwon is a South Korean citizen.
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Fintech startup Pontera raises $60 mln, plans more hiring in Israel
(REUTERS)
Fintech startup Pontera has raised $60 million in fresh funding led by investment firm ICONIQ Growth, the New York-based company which builds software to help financial advisers manage retirement accounts, said on Thursday.
Pontera didn’t disclose its valuation, but a source close to the company said it was now worth over $550 million. The source requested anonymity since the numbers are not public.
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Bitcoin Hits $40,000 Level for the First Time Since May 2022
(BNN BLOOMBERG)
In the digital-assets market, Bitcoin has held firm following a weekend rally that took the oldest token above $42,000 for the first time in 19 months as frenzied speculation in cryptocurrencies extended its rally to more than 150% this year.
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Montréal FinTech firms target payments with latest offerings
(BETAKIT)
Two Montréal-based FinTech companies, National Bank-owned Flinks and cryptocurrency startup Shakepay, are expanding their offerings with new payment services.
Flinks has announced that it is entering the instant payment market with the launch of Flinks Pay. Meanwhile, fellow Montréal FinTech firm Shakepay—which helps customers buy and sell Bitcoin and Ether through its crypto-trading platform—has rolled out a slew of bank-like capabilities to its users.
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