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Financial rates comparison platform Ratehub receives “major” investment from Novacap (BETAKIT)
Novacap has acquired a majority stake in Ratehub, but the firm is refusing to disclose the amount it invested and the size of its stake. However, a spokesperson notes that Ratehub’s “founders and the rest of the management team retain a large proportion of the shares.”
Caisse-backed crypto company Celsius Network files for bankruptcy protection (THE GLOBE AND MAIL)
Cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network Ltd. has filed for bankruptcy protection as token prices plunge to multiyear lows, leaving the Caisse de dépot et placement du Québec vulnerable to losing its investment in the troubled company.
EQ Bank latest bank to join Flinks’ open banking environment (BETAKIT)
This deal, and the integration of Flinks’ open banking environment (OBE) offering, is expected to provide EQ Bank with the framework to deliver open banking capabilities and launch new API data sharing methods while providing the bank with new data management capabilities.
Klarna Funding Round Cuts Value to $6.7 Billion from $46 Billion (BNN BLOOMBERG)
The buy-now-pay-later giant said it raised $800 million from new and existing investors, according to a statement Monday. “It’s a testament to the strength of Klarna’s business that, during the steepest drop in global stock markets in over fifty years, investors recognized our strong position and continued progress in revolutionizing the retail banking industry,” Chief Executive Officer Sebastian Siemiatkowski said in the statement.
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Payments Canada appoints Wealthsimple’s chief compliance officer to member advisory council (BETAKIT)
The MAC is a 20-person council that provides advice to Payments Canada’s board of directors on Canada’s clearing and settlement systems, as well as the development of new technologies.
NFT marketplace OpenSea lays off about 20% of its team (THE BLOCK)
“The changes we’re making today put us in a position to maintain multiple years of runway under various crypto winter scenarios (5 years at the current volume), and give us high confidence that we will only have to go through this process once,” said OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer in a written statement on twitter.
Hackers are smart but lazy. Here’s how startups can take advantage (BETAKIT)
When multi-factor authentication became widely available, many believed it was enough to stop all hacker attacks. Now, even multi-factor authentication is being targeted by hackers.
Stripe Cuts Internal Valuation by 28% (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)
Payments giant Stripe last valued by private investors at $95 billion, cut the internal value of its shares by 28%, people familiar with the matter said. Stripe told employees in an email Friday that the internal share price was about $29, compared with $40 in the most previous internal valuation.
Solana Ventures, Twitch co-founder buy into Bravo Ready’s play-to-earn, Web3 video game (BETAKIT)
According to Bravo Ready co-founder and CEO Evan Ryer, initial NFT hype led to a flood of “random, no utility, no value crypto projects” that drained liquidity from the market.
Wefox grabs $400M at $4.5B valuation to buck the insurtech downturn trend (TECHCRUNCH)
Founded out of Berlin in 2015, Wefox sells various insurance products through a combination of in-house and external brokers, bypassing the direct-to-consumer model of insurtech competitors which include rival German startup Getsafe.
Customer alleges Vena Solutions “falsely asserted” SOC report was independently audited (BETAKIT)
Verra Mobility may not be the only customer taking issue with Vena’s SOC compliance. One source familiar with Vena’s operations, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that Vena has misled multiple customers about its SOC compliance, and alleged that Vena is currently undergoing audits to rectify the situation.
Crypto Funding Numbers Fall During Bumpy First Half Of Year (CRUNCHBASE NEWS)
Investment in VC-backed crypto companies slowed during the first half of the year, from a record $12.5 billion invested during last year’s first half to about $9.3 billion invested through the first six months of this year, according to Crunchbase data.
As crypto crashes, WonderFi closes deal to acquire another regulated crypto trading platform in Coinberry (BETAKIT)
“It’s basically [WonderFi’s] thesis playing out in real time, which is being compliant and regulated,” said WonderFi co-founder and CEO Ben Samaroo. “We wouldn’t have been able to do something like that with being regulated by the [Ontario Securities Commission].”
MetaMask Co-Founders: ‘We Can’t Stop People From Making Ponzis on Blockchains’ (VICE)
“It feels too little too late, but putting your money in cryptocurrencies is gambling,” MetaMask co-founder Aaron Davis, who goes by the pseudonym “Kumavis” online, told Motherboard. “I’m not saying what we have right now is the future of finance and [you should] move your life savings over. A lot of people are advocating that and I think that is extremely dangerous behavior.”