Chinese-backed and Africa-focused fintech company OPay raised $400 million in new financing led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Bloomberg reported Monday, valuing the company at $2 billion. The round, which marks the Fund’s first investment in an African startup, drew participation from existing investors like Sequoia Capital China, Redpoint China, Source Code Capital, and Softbank […]
Extra Crunch roundup: Corp dev handbook, Chicago startups, Brazil’s e-commerce landscape
If you’re a founder who finds yourself in a meeting with a VC, try to remember two things — you’re the smartest person in the room, and investors are looking for a reason to say “yes.”
Bird shows improving scooter economics, long march to profitability
Newly reported financial data from Bird, an American scooter sharing service, shows a company with an improving economic model, and a multi-year path to profitability. However, that path is fraught.
Revolut introduces salary advance feature in the UK
Fintech startup Revolut is launching a new feature called Payday. It is an alternative to credit card debt and short-term credit as it lets you unlock a portion of your wage early. If a business decides to integrate with Revolut, users can then access the feature from the financial super app directly. Right now, the […]
A VC shares 5 things no one told you about pitching VCs
The success of a fundraising process is entirely dependent on how well an entrepreneur can manage it. Here are five pointers that founders should consider while pitching to venture capitalists.
Indian fintech CRED launches peer-to-peer lending feature Mint
India’s CRED, which rewards users for paying their credit-card bills on time, is broadening its offerings to help its 7.5 million members gain more from the service. The Bangalore-based startup said on Thursday that CRED users can now lend to one another at an interest rate of up to 9% annually. Kunal Shah, founder and […]
One banks $40M to offer ‘all-in-one’ financial services to the middle class
One, a startup that aims to bring “all-in-one banking” to the middle class, announced today that it has raised $40 million in a Series B round of funding. Progressive Investment Company (the insurance giant’s investment arm) led the round, which included participation from Obvious Ventures, Foundation Capital, Core Innovation Capital and others. The financing brings […]
Amazon backs Indian wealth management service Smallcase in $40 million funding
Amazon has entered the financial services and insurance markets of India in recent years. Now it is paving the way to foray into the wealth management category. The American e-commerce giant has backed Bangalore-based startup Smallcase in a $40 million Series C financing round. The round was led by Faering Capital and Premji Invest as […]
Brazil’s Kovi closes $104M Series B to make car ownership ‘more inclusive’ in LatAm
We sometimes take for granted that most anyone who wishes to become say, an Uber driver, can do so. But that assumption is a narrow view considering there are many people who would love to earn income in that way but can’t because of lack of car ownership (and all that goes with it) — […]
Extra Crunch roundup: The Nuro EC-1, early-stage growth tactics, understanding Salesforce+
“With these self driving cars, it’s only a matter of time before a country song is written about a guy’s truck leaving him.”