BofA gets validation for digital results: The bank said it won Global Finance’s Best Consumer Digital Bank in the US—and its recent news updates on marketing and patents show it continues to give top priority to digital plans.
Twin Flexes may muddle Monzo’s message: A UK fintech’s buy now, pay later (BNPL) product has the same name as the neobank’s—and it has some advantages over the first Flex. This complicates things for Monzo, but a bad outcome isn’t a given.
Here’s a look at some of the latest news from our Payments & Commerce analysts.
Established fintechs are increasingly commanding funding—and the space’s maturation will herald more exits and pressure from investors to demonstrate a path to profitability
Monzo’s BNPL offering could boost its bottom line: Its new Flex product includes longer repayment periods that come with interest—but transparency and a retroactive BNPL choice could make customers more comfortable with taking on debt.
Fifth Third’s healthcare neobank deal bears early fruit: Provide beat its expected loan performance in August—indicating that the recently acquired player’s focus on a large professional niche could benefit the incumbent’s bottom line.
More than half of US adults were first taught about investing by either themselves or nobody.
Groww is in talks for a new raise that would triple its valuation to $3B as investors eye huge user acquisition opportunities for local fintechs.
The banking giant will buy fintech GreenSky in a deal worth about $2.24 billion, broadening the line of products available to consumers through its direct bank unit.
UK banks accused of blaming fraud victims: A consumer watchdog publication reports that banks aren’t adhering to their industry code’s threshold in disputes on fraudulent payments. The report may hurt banks’ reputations and help competitors woo away customers.
The BNPL provider will let merchants accept Bitcoin payments and plans to launch a crypto trading feature—which may help it stand out as other BNPL providers opt for more traditional feature enhancements.