Jack Henry & Associates, a major bank technology provider, acquired Payrailz, a digital payments platform. The acquisition strengthens Jack Henry's embedded payments capabilities for its community bank and credit union clients. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Kansas City-based Lead Bank, a known fintech sponsor bank, agreed to be acquired by Luna Parent Inc., led by fintech executive Jacqueline Reses. The deal aims to expand Lead Bank's fintech banking-as-a-service capabilities. This represents a significant move by a fintech-experienced leader to scale sponsor bank infrastructure.
Entities: Lead Bank · Luna Parent Inc. · Jacqueline Reses
WebBank announced a $250 million investment commitment in Avant's loan securitization program. WebBank, a prominent BaaS sponsor bank, deepened its financial relationship with fintech lender Avant. The commitment underscores the growing role of sponsor banks in supporting fintech loan securitization pipelines.
Apiture announced a $29 million funding round to scale its API-first digital banking platform for banks and credit unions. The platform offers consumer and business banking solutions. The investment supports Apiture's growth as banks increasingly seek modern digital infrastructure partners.
Deutsche Bank partnered with Vienna-based fintech Credi2 to launch a white-label buy now, pay later (BNPL) solution for online merchants and e-commerce marketplaces in Germany. The product allows merchants to offer invoice and installment payments under their own branding. Pilot projects were planned for 2022, giving merchants full control over transactions.
Cross River Bank announced a BaaS sponsor bank partnership with SmartBiz on July 12, 2022. The deal integrates SmartBiz's AI-powered digital application for SBA 7(a) loan processing with Cross River's core banking infrastructure. The partnership aims to accelerate funding access for U.S. small businesses by combining SmartBiz's customer-facing technology with Cross River's embedded lending capabilities.
Quiltt, a low-code fintech infrastructure platform offering APIs and no-code UI modules for banking services, announced $4 million in seed funding. The company integrates with providers like Plaid, Spade, and ApexEdge, targeting startups and small businesses. Quiltt simultaneously launched its public beta and plans a paid infrastructure-as-a-service tier.
Brazilian fintech Creditas acquired the banking license of Banco Andbank (Brasil) S.A. as part of an extension to its Series F funding round. The license acquisition enables Creditas to diversify its funding sources and operate more like a full-service financial institution. This move strengthens Creditas's embedded finance capabilities in the Latin American market.
Kasheesh launched a digital payments platform in the US that allows consumers to split online purchases across multiple debit and credit cards via a browser extension. The platform is built in partnership with Stripe and Plaid. It represents a novel embedded payments use case at the point of checkout.
Velexa launched an embedded investing-as-a-service platform enabling banks and neobanks to integrate investing capabilities alongside accounts and payments. The platform provides access to over 500,000 assets. This launch expands the embedded finance toolkit available to financial institutions seeking to offer wealth management features.
BKN301, a Banking-as-a-Service and digital e-money platform, raised €15 million in Series A funding at a €63 million valuation. Investors included Abalone Group, PayU, Azimut Digitech Fund, CRIF, and GNB Swiss Investments AG. The capital will fund technology infrastructure development and expansion into Africa and the Middle East.
Entities: BKN301 · Abalone Group · PayU · Azimut Digitech Fund · CRIF · GNB Swiss Investments AG
Paytrail and Mastercard partnered to enable millions of open banking payments in the e-commerce landscape across Europe. The collaboration combines Paytrail's payment platform with Mastercard's open banking capabilities. This partnership advances embedded payment options for online merchants.
BankiFi expanded into North America with embedded banking solutions for banks serving SMBs, focusing on payments and cash management. The platform enables banks to embed financial services into business workflows. This launch marks BankiFi's geographic expansion into the US and Canadian BaaS market.
Genesis Global, a low-code platform for financial markets, raised $20 million from major banks including Bank of America, BNY Mellon, and Citi. The investment follows a $200 million Series C earlier in 2022 and signals major bank interest in low-code infrastructure for financial services.
Entities: Genesis Global · Bank of America · BNY Mellon · Citi
mmob was selected for Mastercard's inaugural Start Path Open Banking class, joining four other startups focused on embedded finance and open banking. The program supports fintechs advancing open banking through embedded finance technology. This marks Mastercard's formal entry into nurturing embedded finance startups.
Indian payments company Pine Labs acquired Bengaluru-based API fintech provider Setu for approximately $70-75 million. Setu provides modular API infrastructure for payments, lending, and open banking services. The acquisition strengthens Pine Labs' online and embedded finance capabilities.
African API infrastructure startup Thepeer raised a $2.1 million seed round led by Raba Partnership. The platform connects business wallets and enables money movement between fintech platforms. Investors included RaliCap, Timon Capital, and fintechs Chipper Cash and Stitch.
Entities: Thepeer · Raba Partnership · RaliCap · Timon Capital · Chipper Cash · Stitch
BNP Paribas presented embedded finance partnerships at VivaTech 2022, featuring integrations with fintechs Instanea (open banking payments via Token), SIS ID (blockchain fraud prevention), and HOKODO (B2B BNPL). The bank supports startups through white-label embedding, technical assistance, and partnership models to enhance its payment services offering.
Narmi, which provides API-driven digital banking middleware for regional banks, raised $35M in Series B funding. The capital will be used to expand middleware API layers and business banking products. Narmi layers services like account opening and mobile banking on top of existing bank infrastructure, enabling banks to compete with digital-first challengers.
Highnote announced its end-to-end embedded fintech platform built on Google Cloud, enabling enterprises to embed payment cards, wallets, rewards, and credit. The platform allows companies to offer financial products without creating new financial organizations. The partnership with Google Cloud provides scalable infrastructure for Highnote's card issuing and program management capabilities.
WebBank announced an investment in iCreditWorks to advance digital lending innovations through embedded finance partnerships. WebBank, a prominent BaaS bank partner, is deepening its embedded lending capabilities. The investment strengthens WebBank's position as a leading sponsor bank for fintech lending programs.
Coastal Community Bank joined the newly launched Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB) Banking-as-a-Service Association as a founding member. The association supports BaaS sponsor banks through legislative advocacy, best practices, and collaboration. Coastal's CCBX division provides BaaS to broker-dealers and digital financial service partners. The initiative aims to promote responsible BaaS delivery by federally insured institutions.
Entities: Coastal Community Bank · Bankers Helping Bankers BaaS Association
Backbase raised its first-ever external funding round of approximately €120M at a €2.5B valuation. The company provides middleware for banks to integrate data sources and build engagement tools like digital onboarding. The funding signals strong market demand for platforms that help banks modernize customer-facing experiences.
UK-based open banking platform Bud Financial raised $80 million in a Series B round led by Bellis Phantom Holdco. The funding supports AI R&D, international expansion, and embedded finance tools including lending products. Bud's platform is used by banks and fintechs to power data-driven financial services.