Fintechs around the world saw sizable funding rounds this week, with wealth management platforms, buy now pay later (BNPL) firms and cash-flush challenger banks raising billions of dollars.

FNZ
London-based wealth management firm FNZ today reported a $1.4 billion private equity round securing the platform-as-a-service (PaaS) provider at a $20 billion valuation.
The company, founded in 2003, provides investment and wealth management platforms to global financial institutions including Barclays, Lloyds Bank and Aviva. This was FNZ’s fourth private equity round and the first to disclose a dollar amount, according to Crunchbase. Leading the funding charge was Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), with Motive as an investing partner.
“We are excited to support FNZ and its leadership in continuing to deliver on their vision to expand FNZ’s global footprint,” Hafiz Lalani, CPP managing director of direct private equity, said in a statement.
The funding will be allocated toward enhancing research and development for the bank’s flagship platform, along with facilitating a move into the North American wealth management market, according to the release.
Selina Finance
London-based Selina Finance, a provider of digital home equity line of credit (HELOC) lending solutions, on Wednesday announced that it raised $150 million in a series B debt and equity financing round.
The company, founded in 2019, has raised $203 million over four funding rounds, according to Crunchbase. This new funding, which was led by Goldman Sachs and Lightrock, will allow Selina to work toward going public, while creating a card product to give customers access to their HELOC cash.
“European consumers are structurally under-served, and homeowners cannot access their wealth in an affordable or flexible way with existing products,” Leonard Benning, Selina chief operating officer, said in a statement. “We are confident that UK consumers will see the benefits of HELOCs.”
Tonik
Manila-based neobank Tonik announced Tuesday that it has raised $131 million in a series B round to provide digital consumer lending solutions to new and existing customers.
The round was led by Mizuho Bank, a Japanese banking group, with contributions from Prosus Ventures, Sixteenth Street Capital and Nuri Group. Daisuke Horiuchi, executive officer of retail business at Mizuho Bank, said he believes in Tonik’s ability to effectively service a Filipino market with a large underbanked population.
“Tonik’s unique track record so far validates the existence of massive demand for digital banking services in the Philippines, where over 70% of the population remains unbanked,” Horiuchi said in a statement.
Tonik, founded in 2021, is the first digital bank in the Philippines to operate on a regulator-issued license and is Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) insured. To date, it has raised $175 million over four funding rounds, according to Crunchbase.
Alma
Alma, a French BNPL firm with 6,000 merchant partners, announced Thursday that it raised $130 million in a series C funding round, along with a $109 million debt financing round.
Alma, founded in 2018, offers a variety of installment-based plans, and launched a mobile app to help customers manage payments. At present, the company operates in Spain, Italy, Belgium and Germany, but plans to expand to a range of other European countries, including Portugal and Austria. Investors included Tencent, GR Capital, Roosh Ventures and Cathay Innovation.
“We strive to be an efficient and sane alternative to traditional consumer credit,” Louis Chatriot, chief executive officer, said in a release. The company has raised $90.5 million over four funding rounds, according to Crunchbase.
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