Fintech
Innovation in financial technology — digital payments, neobanks, blockchain, and more.
UK ethical money app Zero ceases trading and will close all accounts
Zero, which launched its app in January 2025, stopped trading on 18 March after failing to raise further funding, leaving about 21,500 registered users needing to move their money out.
Klarna and Elliott Double Forward-Flow Facility to $2 Billion to Support $17 Billion US Lending Push
Klarna and Elliott Investment Management doubled their forward-flow facility to $2 billion and extended it by one year, enabling up to $17 billion of US consumer financing.
GTN Wins Hong Kong SFC Licence in Dual-Hub Asia Push
GTN has secured a Type 1 licence from Hong Kong's SFC, completing its Asia-Pacific dual-hub strategy with regulated hubs in Hong Kong and Singapore.
South Africa's Happy Pay Secures $5M Seed Led by Partech
Cape Town-based BNPL innovator Happy Pay raises $5 million in seed funding to scale its ad-subsidized, zero-interest payments network serving 600,000 users. Partech leads with local VCs backing merchant-funded model amid South Africa's costly credit landscape.
Revolut Posts Record 2025 Pre-Tax Profit of £1.7 Billion as Revenue Surges 46% to £4.5 Billion
Revolut reported a record £1.7 billion pre-tax profit for 2025, up 57%, with revenue rising 46% to £4.5 billion and 68.3 million retail customers at year-end.
China to Authorize 12 More Banks for Digital Yuan Expansion
Beijing plans to expand its digital yuan network by approving 12 additional banks, sources say, including Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and China Everbright Bank, to boost adoption, with cumulative transactions reaching 16.7 trillion yuan by November 2025.
OwlTing Group ranks No. 226 on FT Asia-Pacific high-growth companies list
Nasdaq-listed OwlTing Group placed 226th of 500 in the Financial Times and Statista High-Growth Companies Asia-Pacific 2026 ranking, citing a 42% revenue CAGR over 2021 to 2024.
Starling Bank Launches What It Calls the UK's First Agentic AI Financial Assistant
Starling Bank has launched what it claims is the UK's first agentic AI financial assistant, which carries out banking tasks for customers in response to voice and natural language prompts.
Brazil's Ume secures R$150m FIDC to expand retail lending partnerships
The Brazilian credit fintech, which lets retailers offer financing to their own customers, raised about US$28.5 million through a receivables investment fund.
US and Canadian Fintech Lobbies Forge Cross-Border Alliance
The American Fintech Council and the Canadian Lenders Association have announced a strategic partnership to support cross-border market entry, joint policy work and events linking the U.S. and Canadian fintech sectors.
MENA Fintech Market Set to Nearly Double as Tokenized Wallets Surge
Digital payments accounted for more than 54 per cent of the MENA fintech market in 2025, supported by the rapid proliferation of mobile wallets and merchant-acquiring incentives.
Mastercard Stakes $1.8 Billion on Stablecoin Rails with BVNK
Mastercard has agreed to acquire BVNK, a London-based stablecoin infrastructure startup, for up to $1.8 billion in what Fortune described as the largest stablecoin deal to date.