The Weekly Wrap: all you need to know by Friday COB | July 24th

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

Ant International has raised around $1.2 billion in a Series A equity financing round to accelerate the expansion of its cross-border payments business and AI-powered financial technology solutions for enterprises and SMEs.

The funding round included participation from existing shareholders, including Ant Group and Alibaba Group, alongside several international investment institutions. The company said the capital will be used to support global growth and further investment in merchant payments, account management and inclusive financial services.

Operating independently since 2024, Ant International has expanded its presence across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. Through its ecosystem of banking, card scheme, mobile payment and technology partners, the company connects more than 150 million merchants with over 2 billion user accounts worldwide. The company’s operations are built around four business units—Alipay+, Antom, WorldFirst and Bettr—which provide cross-border payment, treasury management, merchant acquiring and financial technology services. The latest funding is expected to strengthen these platforms while supporting the development of AI-enabled payment infrastructure and agentic commerce capabilities for businesses operating across multiple markets.

Ant International said the investment will also help enhance payment interoperability, enabling merchants to access a broader network of payment methods while improving operational efficiency through digital financial tools. The company has increasingly focused on embedding AI into merchant payment, treasury and credit technology, aiming to simplify cross-border commerce and financial management for businesses of different sizes. It also continues to expand collaborations with financial institutions and payment providers to extend access to digital financial services globally.

The Series A financing marks one of the largest fundraising rounds in the global FinTech sector this year and reinforces investor confidence in the growing demand for digital payment infrastructure and AI-driven financial services supporting international trade and cross-border commerce.

Deals of the week

• Indifi secures $8.3m to expand MSME lending
• Monzo partners with Nest to boost self-employed pension savings
• KEO Capital expands into Canada with $50m financing facility
• UAE launches first Jaywan-Mastercard co-badged credit card
• MariBank Philippines secures digital banking licence from BSP
• Saible secures $3.9m to tackle construction payment delays
• Zaggle acquires UnoBank stake to expand FinTech ecosystem

Be on the lookout for

KOHO, a Canada-based FinTechs, secured C$93 million in fresh funding in June 2026 to accelerate its ambition of becoming a licensed bank and expand its portfolio of digital banking products. The investment marks another significant milestone in the company’s growth as it strengthens its position in Canada’s digital banking market.

The new capital will support KOHO’s banking licence strategy while enhancing its offerings across everyday banking, payments, savings, credit and financial wellbeing. The funding comes at a time when venture capital investment has become more selective, with investors increasingly backing FinTechs that demonstrate a clear path to profitability and sustainable growth.

Why it matters: The funding underscores continued investor confidence in Canada’s challenger banking sector and highlights the resilience of mature FinTechs despite a more cautious investment environment. It also reflects the broader shift towards digital-first banking, as FinTechs seek to compete more directly with incumbent banks through expanded products and regulated banking capabilities.