Top 5 FinTech deals of June 2021 (UK & Europe version)

By Megha Bhattacharya

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the process of digitalisation for the financial services industry. Amidst the unprecedented market volatility, the industry’s appetite for digital technology has been on the rise. The new year saw some significant deals being undertaken by FinTech companies.

Check out the top 5 FinTech deals that took place in June 2021 (UK & Europe) :

• SimCorp and SIX 

SimCorp, a provider of integrated, front-to-back, multi-asset investment management solutions and services, and SIX, the Swiss financial data provider and operator of the Swiss and Spanish Stock Exchanges, announced an extension of their partnership, providing the former’s clients with global reference, pricing and regulatory data directly within SimCorp Dimension.

The extension deepens the collaboration between the companies which already includes the provision of corporate actions and sanctions data from SIX to SimCorp clients. Looking ahead to February 2022, with the go-live of CSDR, SimCorp clients will be able to integrate SIX CSDR data as part of their regulatory responsibilities.

• iBanFirst and Klarna

iBanFirst is further enhancing its services with the rollout of new open-banking capabilities in its ambition to become the European leader in B2B cross-border payments. The iBanFirst Open Banking Barometer evaluates the open banking coverage across Europe for SMEs. This tool will provide a country-by-country effective measurement of the availability of both account aggregation and payment initiation.

FinTech iBanFirst has opted for a multi-partner architecture, along with Klarna Open Banking, the European open-banking network. iBanFirst can now offer its clients ways to interact with their finances, no matter where their accounts are located and how compliant their banks are with PSD2’s provision.

• JCB International and Nets 

JCB International Co., Ltd., the international operations subsidiary of JCB Co., Ltd. and Nets Group, the Nordic-based payment service provider, have announced the latest expansion of their partnership to bolster JCB Contactless acceptance in the Nordic region. JCB cardmembers can now use JCB Contactless on 244,000 merchant POS systems across Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland.

JCB cardmembers can simply tap their card or other JCB Contactless-embedded devices close to the merchant terminal reader for quicker payment without inserting the card. International NFC payment protocols make it possible to enable JCB Contactless acceptance around the world, while EMV technology ensures highly secure payment transactions. By enabling this function across more merchants in the Nordics, JCB cardmembers will have increased access to secure and fast payment options when travelling in future.

• GPS and Currencycloud 

Payments processor, Global Processing Services (GPS), announced that it has joined forces with FinTech  Currencycloud to widen access to cross-border payments for financial institutions and FinTechs, providing a passport to a post-COVID world. The combined value proposition will deliver a complete, enterprise-grade, off-the-shelf and pre-integrated solution. It will enable businesses to offer customers compliance and regulatory infrastructure, cross-border payments infrastructure, real-time FX for overseas card transactions, access to a global banking network, multi-currency accounts, banking cards and much more.

FinTechs can now upgrade their existing product offerings and launch dynamic new services, including multi-currency wallets and Point of Sale FX. Using Currencycloud rates, customers can fund up to 34 foreign currency wallets with real-time wholesale rates, allowing consumers to purchase currencies ahead of travelling and while on the go. Cardholders benefit from transparent, competitive, real-time FX rates when making purchases abroad and can choose to be notified of the amount spent in their domestic currency via push notifications on mobile devices in real time.

• Raisin and Deposit Solutions 

FinTech companies Deposit Solutions and Raisin have announced the completion of their merger. The two companies are forming Raisin DS, a provider of savings and investment solutions, servicing banks and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic. Both companies’ current management will take over leadership roles at Raisin DS. Thus, both CEOs – Dr. Tamaz Georgadze and Dr. Tim Sievers – will initially lead the new company as co-CEOs. Dr. Tim Sievers will then move to the company’s Advisory Board at the end of the year.

According to the companies, the merger will allow for more product choice and decision power. Incumbent banks will benefit from more implementation options and product access for their own marketplaces, and deposit-taking banks will receive better access to deposit funding.