Cash rained down on FinTechs in 2021, with venture capitalists almost doubling funding in both transaction value and volume, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
However, FinTechs shouldn’t plan on the same kind of financial love in 2022 — between dwindling valuations in the public equity market and interest hikes on the way, VCs just might think of other plans for those investment dollars.
Fyncr Unveils Credit Card Bill Payments Mobile App
FinTech startup Fyncr wants to help make it easier for people to pay their bills by offering the first all-in-one app compatible with every credit card in their wallet.
Beyond helping people manage their credit card bills more easily, the Fyncr app also aims to help users save money and spend smarter. Users can also earn rewards for deals, discounts and more.
Elevate Credit Ordered to Pay $3.3M for Predatory Lending Practices
Elevate Credit, a FinTech startup launched in 2014, got in some legal hot water in Washington, D.C., for making loans and providing credit lines above the District’s 24% interest rate cap. Way above the cap, in fact, to the tune of annual percentage rates (APR) running 99% to 251%.
Hauled into court by the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, Elevate now has to pay a minimum of $3.3 million to over 2,500 people, Attorney General Karl A. Racine said.
In addition, the FinTech was ordered to pay a $450,000 penalty to the district and waive over $300,000 in interest owed to Elevate by consumers.
Report: VC Funding to U.S. FinTechs Doubled in 2021
FinTechs had a good year in 2021, with VC firms happy to throw funding their way as startup valuations skyrocketed. Data from S&P Global Market Intelligence said that last year “will be a tough act to follow.”
With valuations dropping and interest rates more than likely on the way up, FinTechs might just find it a bit hard to find VC money in 2022.
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NEW PYMNTS DATA: 70% OF BNPL USERS WOULD USE BANK INSTALLMENT OPTIONS, IF AVAILABLE
About: Seventy percent of BNPL users say they’d rather use installment plans offered by their banks — if only they were made available. PYMNTS’ Banking On Buy Now, Pay Later: Installment Payments And FIs’ Untapped Opportunity, surveyed more than 2,200 U.S. consumers to better understand how consumers view banks as BNPL providers in a sea of BNPL pure-plays.
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