The Weekly Wrap: all you need to know by Friday COB | Jan 23rd

By Puja Sharma

The Weekly Wrap is published every Friday and recaps the week’s main stories and deals, as well as upcoming events and announcements for Prime subscribers only.

The Big Story

Juspay, a Bengaluru-headquartered payments infrastructure firm, has raised $50 million in a Series D follow-on round led by WestBridge Capital, taking its valuation to $1.2 billion. The funding comes at a significant juncture for the company, following the exit of several large clients, including PhonePe, Razorpay, and Cashfree, developments that had raised questions around its domestic growth momentum.

The latest capital infusion extends Juspay’s Series D round, which had begun with an $18 million raise in April 2025. The round includes a mix of primary and secondary transactions, indicating both fresh capital inflow and partial liquidity for existing stakeholders. Despite heightened competition and recent client churn in India’s payments ecosystem, investor interest suggests continued confidence in Juspay’s long-term infrastructure-focused strategy.

In recent years, Juspay has sought to deepen its emphasis on core payments technology, including its open-source payments orchestration platform, Hyperswitch, and the use of AI-driven tools to improve performance, reliability, and scalability for enterprise clients. Earlier funding rounds, including a $60 million raise led by Kedaara Capital, were aimed at supporting international expansion and strengthening product capabilities beyond the Indian market.

While the departure of marquee clients has reshaped perceptions of Juspay’s position in India’s FinTech stack, the latest funding round provides the company with additional runway to recalibrate its strategy. As the payments infrastructure space matures, Juspay’s ability to balance client concentration risks, global expansion, and sustained profitability will remain closely watched.

Deals of the week

• Zeroport raises $10m to secure remote access for banks
• Fimple raises $10m to accelerate international expansion across GCC
• AAZZUR raises £2m to expand embedded finance infrastructure
• Namdev Finvest raises $37m to scale MSME lending
• Rain raises $250m to scale stablecoin payments infrastructure
• MariBank secures $75m to support digital banking expansion
• Kikin lands $20m debt line for AI-driven SME lending
• Mal raises $230m to build AI-native Islamic digital bank
• Morph launches $150m onchain payments accelerator

Be on the lookout for

Citigroup has suggested that U.S. FinTech companies may see significant gains as Washington pivots toward a populist, affordability-driven policy approach ahead of the November 2026 midterm elections. President Donald Trump’s renewed emphasis on affordability is prompting investors to reassess the financial sector, with analysts noting that FinTech challengers could be better positioned than conventional banks to capitalise on this shift.

The report highlights that firms offering consumer-friendly credit solutions and small-business services, such as buy-now, pay-later providers Affirm and Klarna, as well as digital finance platforms like SoFi, stand to benefit most. These companies are aligned with the affordability narrative by offering flexible payment options, lower-cost lending, and accessible financial tools.

Citigroup argues that Trump’s agenda could create an environment where FinTech firms gain market share, as consumers and small businesses increasingly seek alternatives to traditional credit structures. The brokerage notes that affordability-focused policies may encourage innovation and adoption of digital financial services, reinforcing FinTech’s competitive edge.

Overall, the analysis suggests that Trump’s policy direction could act as a catalyst for FinTech growth, positioning these companies as key beneficiaries of a broader push to make financial services more inclusive and cost-effective