#392
It's Coming Home?
Published:
Jun 19, 2021
Author:
Share:
Europe and the UK are miles behind the US when it comes to capital markets innovation - appropriately expressed by the number of SPACs since 2018: 37 in Europe and 698 in the US.
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) had its first direct listing with Wise, f.k.a. Transferwise, going public. Profitable, with 10m customers transferring ~$80b+ annually, Wise didn’t need to raise new capital. Direct listings are uncommon in Europe but they have gained traction in the US - with Coinbase, Spotify, Slack, and Roblox all going public directly.
Wise is also granting its users direct access to the listing via the app. Adyen’s blockbuster IPO proved that Europe’s premier technology companies could command robust valuations while listing at home. Britain's separation from the EU earlier this year meant some trading outflow from the LSE towards other markets, including Amsterdam (which requires its companies to be EU-based). The value of daily share trading has decreased from £14.6b to £8.6b post-Brexit.
A London direct listing thus isn’t just a win for EMEA tech -- it's a win for the LSE. With Euronext consolidating exchanges across Europe and Amsterdam forcing volumes to the continent, Wise’s LSE pick is a win for Europe’s original, albeit beleaguered, financial hub.
The question then becomes - will the English football team continue the streak of wins into the Euro 202(0) and bring football home?
Portfolio News
NYDIG, FS Investments and Morgan Stanley launch new Bitcoin fund - The fund, called FS NYDIG Institutional Bitcoin Fund LP, is the second product born from the formal partnership between the two companies available to Morgan Stanley’s wealth management clients –– making MS the first prominent US bank to offer bitcoin exposure to its clients in this way. Read more
Outfitting commercial brokerage teams with technology to fuel business growth - Portfolio company Reonomy's Richard Sarkis to be featured on Thursday, June 24 1pm EDT for a fireside chat with Stephanie Gilezan, Global Director of Operations at eXp Commercial. Read more
Meet the insurtech: Embroker - Check out Matt Miller, Portfolio Company Embroker CEO's interview with Digital Insurance, an industry publication, discussing the path to becoming a full-stack insurance play. Read more
It's Coming Home?
Payment firm Wise plans direct listing in tech win for UK - Reflecting a significant win for the London exchange and European tech in general, and a sign of potential deregulation to come, Wise plans to list their stock on the LSE. By listing directly, Wise aims to price their offering with full transparency. Already profitable, Wise does not need to raise money during their offering. Read more
London hits the SPAC scene - Is late better than never? New UK exchange rule changes are creating room for European SPAC deals just as the sensation fades in the US. Read more
Industry News
FBI seizure of crypto assets fuels discussions around government policing capabilities in the crypto era - The FBI's public announcement that they had seized much of the $4m ransom paid to the Colonial pipeline hackers highlights a broader discussion surrounding the government's cyber crime fighting capabilities in the crypto age. Read more
South African government working group considers crypto regulation - With surging trading volumes and a rise in fraud and crypto-enabled ransom payments, the South African government is beginning to lay the groundwork for a regulated cryptocurrency environment. Read more
JPMorgan buys investment platform Nutmeg in UK retail push - Nutmeg has over 140k customers and $4.8b+ AUM. Though undisclosed, the acquisition price was rumored to be c. $700m. Read more
Stripe launches Stripe Identity, an identity verification tool for online businesses - The self-service tool is designed to let businesses deploy a verification flow fully hosted by Stripe as a means of reducing fraud, preventing account takeovers, and stopping bad actors. Read more
Adyen granted US branch license - The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has approved Adyen’s application to establish a Federal Foreign Branch in San Francisco. Read more
Hedge funds expect to hold 7% of assets in crypto within five years - A survey of 100 hedge fund CFOs globally, conducted by fund administrator Intertrust, found that executives expect to hold an average of 7.2% of their assets in cryptocurrencies in five years’ time. Read more
AmEx debuts first checking account in push beyond business cards - The firm’s new checking account -- which comes with an annual percentage yield of 1.1% -- will target small enterprises across the U.S. Read more
Credijusto becomes the first Mexican fintech to acquire a bank - Credijusto, the leading technology-enabled lending platform in Mexico, announced the acquisition of Banco Finterra, a Mexico City-based bank that specializes in financing solutions for small businesses and the agriculture sector. Read more
Latin America-focused SPAC DILA Capital acquisition IPOs - DILA Capital Acquisition, a blank check company formed by DILA Capital targeting tech-enabled sectors in Latin America, raised $55m by offering 5.5m units at $10. Read more
DailyPay focuses on real-time payments of earned income - The on-demand payment company DailyPay is working with PNC Bank and The Clearing House to offer real-time employee payments of earned income over the RTP network. Read more
Select Financings
|
FinTech Collective Newsletter
Curated News with Context
Delivered every Monday, the weekly newsletter, produced by our team, provides a tightly edited rundown of global fintech news, along with a bit of our original analysis.