<p>Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech!&nbsp; This week, we’re looking at the latest with embattled fintech Bench, Robinhood’s $45 million settlement, a couple of M&amp;A deals, some cool fundraises, and more. To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important fintech stories delivered to your inbox every Tuesday at 8:00 a.m. PT, subscribe here. The big [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech!&nbsp; This week, we’re looking at the latest with embattled fintech Bench, Robinhood’s $45 million settlement, a couple of M&amp;A deals, some cool fundraises, and more. To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important fintech stories delivered to your inbox every Tuesday at 8:00 a.m. PT, subscribe here. The big [&hellip;]</p>

<p>For many emerging market economies, remittances have become a lifeline. Inflows surpassed $669 billion in 2023, according to World Bank research, and they now represent significant portions of GDP in these countries, often outpacing foreign direct investment as the primary source of foreign exchange.  Traditional banks and agents maintain a firm grip on the remittance [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Robinhood has agreed to fork out $45 million to settle an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission over several alleged violations, reported the Wall Street Journal on Monday. The settlement is being made via two of Robinhood’s brokerage units. One of the violations relates to Robinhood’s November 2021 confirmation that it was hacked “with [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Clearwater Analytics, a company developing accounting, compliance, and risk reporting tools for asset managers, said on Monday it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire investment management platform Enfusion for $1.5 billion. Clearwater, which says it has obtained an $800 million loan to fund the transaction, along with a $200 million revolving line of [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Clearwater Analytics, a company developing accounting, compliance, and risk reporting tools for asset managers, said on Monday it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire investment management platform Enfusion for $1.5 billion. Clearwater, which says it has obtained an $800 million loan to fund the transaction, along with a $200 million revolving line of [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Financial services firm Moody&#8217;s announced on Monday that it has agreed to acquire Cape Analytics, a geospatial AI startup, for an undisclosed sum. The deal, which is expected to close in Q1, subject to customary closing conditions, will give Moody&#8217;s access to Cape&#8217;s geospatial AI analytics technology for insurance underwriting. With the tech, Moody&#8217;s plans [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Financial services firm Moody&#8217;s announced on Monday that it has agreed to acquire Cape Analytics, a geospatial AI startup, for an undisclosed sum. The deal, which is expected to close in Q1, subject to customary closing conditions, will give Moody&#8217;s access to Cape&#8217;s geospatial AI analytics technology for insurance underwriting. With the tech, Moody&#8217;s plans [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Float Financial, an expense management and corporate card startup focused on the Canadian market, has raised $48.5 million in a Series B funding round. The Toronto-based fintech likens itself to U.S.-based fintech giants Brex and Ramp but says it is different in that its sole focus is on Canadian SMBs, which CEO and co-founder Rob [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Float Financial, an expense management and corporate card startup focused on the Canadian market, has raised $48.5 million in a Series B funding round. The Toronto-based fintech likens itself to U.S.-based fintech giants Brex and Ramp but says it is different in that its sole focus is on Canadian SMBs, which CEO and co-founder Rob [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Groww, India&#8217;s largest retail stockbroker, is preparing to file for an IPO in 10 to 12 months, seeking a valuation between $6 billion and $8 billion, sources familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. The Bengaluru-headquartered&#8217;s listing would be the first IPO by a digital trading platform in India. The targeted valuation is more than double [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Groww, India&#8217;s largest retail stockbroker, is preparing to file for an IPO in 10 to 12 months, seeking a valuation between $6 billion and $8 billion, sources familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. The Bengaluru-headquartered&#8217;s listing would be the first IPO by a digital trading platform in India. The targeted valuation is more than double [&hellip;]</p>

<p>After accounting startup Bench abruptly shut down on December 27 and was bought in a fire-sale by Employer.com, Bench customers are now learning they can’t easily just take their financial data and leave.&nbsp; And some are very unhappy about it, three customers told TechCrunch. To recap: When Bench, a startup based in Canada that raised [&hellip;]</p>

<p>After accounting startup Bench abruptly shut down on December 27 and was bought in a fire-sale by Employer.com, Bench customers are now learning they can’t easily just take their financial data and leave.&nbsp; And some are very unhappy about it, three customers told TechCrunch. To recap: When Bench, a startup based in Canada that raised [&hellip;]</p>

<p>As digital payments morph into strategic assets, India is offering a template for other nations seeking to reduce dependence on Western payment networks. Regulators around the world are notching up scrutiny on Visa and Mastercard over the fees they charge merchants, but India has chosen a different path: creating rival payment networks that are increasingly [&hellip;]</p>

<p>As digital payments morph into strategic assets, India is offering a template for other nations seeking to reduce dependence on Western payment networks. Regulators around the world are notching up scrutiny on Visa and Mastercard over the fees they charge merchants, but India has chosen a different path: creating rival payment networks that are increasingly [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Wirecard, a German fintech that raised hundreds of millions of dollars only to collapse in 2020 in a sea of scandal and insolvency, still makes headlines today as lawsuits continue against different entities and people once connected to the business. But not all that came out of it was rotten. A Dublin-based startup called NomuPay [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Wirecard, a German fintech that raised hundreds of millions of dollars only to collapse in 2020 in a sea of scandal and insolvency, still makes headlines today as lawsuits continue against different entities and people once connected to the business. But not all that came out of it was rotten. A Dublin-based startup called NomuPay [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech! It’s good to be back.&nbsp; This week, we’re looking at the wild ride that was Bench’s shutdown and acquisition; dozens of companies that are hiring in the fintech space; lawsuits against PayPal; an IPO update; and more! This edition is a bit longer than normal since we were on a hiatus [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Employer.com has offered to acquire Level, a fintech startup that just last week abruptly shut down after failing to find a buyer, according to The Information. But Level is still mulling over the offer, its Employer.com CMO Matt Charney told TechCrunch. &#8220;It&#8217;s with legal,&#8221; he said. Update: There are other details, beyond legal, that are [&hellip;]</p>