Is PayPal Becoming Obsolete?

As central banks dabble with digital currencies, commercial lenders are ramping up efforts to influence policy and technical plans, according to more than half a dozen industry executives and public filings.

Apple is working on a service to let shoppers pay for purchases in instalments, Bloomberg reported, a move that could help the iPhone maker tap into the thriving “buy now, pay later” sector.

British fintech firm Revolut said Thursday it had raised $800 million in a new funding round led by SoftBank and Tiger Global.

Railsbank, which builds APIs for banking, payment cards and credit products for use by fintechs but also a wide range of other kinds of businesses, has raised $70 million in new equity funding, money that the London startup plans to use to continue growing internationally and to add more features to its product set.

French startup Younited Credit has raised a $170 million funding round. Goldman Sachs is leading the round with existing investors Eurazeo, Bpifrance and AG2R La Mondiale also participating. The company offers several credit products to European consumers. It also has a diversified distribution strategy.

Tradesocio’s presence across EMEA and India is set to grow Bambu’s reach in a rapidly expanding and evolving global digital wealth market

Just over four months after announcing a $75 million Series D, M1 Finance today is announcing a new $150 million Series E round of funding led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2. The financing, which also included participation from existing backers, propels the Chicago-based fintech to unicorn status with a valuation of $1.45 billion.

The European Central Bank took a first step on Wednesday towards launching a digital version of the euro, part of a global drive to meet growing demand for electronic means of payment and tackle a boom in cryptocurrencies.

No amount of fines or lawsuits will stop Robinhood from going public and getting a $30 billion valuation with its IPO. Its claim to “democratize finance for all” is pure nonsense, however, and its users should wake up to the Anti-Robinhood alternatives.

JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) are taking on a consumer finance market many outsiders have tried and failed to crack: Britain.