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A leading payments industry news source for more than 17 years. Glenbrook curates the news and keeps you abreast of the important daily headlines in payments.
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April 5, 2021
On the web
Plaid Is Said Close to Financing at About $13 Billion Valuation
Bloomberg
“Financial-technology firm Plaid Inc. is close to a new round of funding at a valuation of about $13 billion, almost three months after scrapping its sale to Visa Inc., according to people familiar with the matter. The funding round will be led by Altimeter Capital , said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information was private. Many of its existing investors are expected to participate in the latest round that could raise hundreds of millions of dollars, the people said. Investors with significant stakes include NEA, Spark Capital, Index Ventures and Kleiner Perkins.”
January 19, 2021
On the web
Plaid Plans to Double Europe Staff After Visa Deal Falls Through
Bloomberg
“Financial-technology firm Plaid Inc. is planning to nearly double its size in Europe, focusing on expanding the business’s global reach after Visa Inc. ’s $5.3 billion acquisition fell through . Plaid will have about 80 employees in its London and Amsterdam offices by the end of 2021, up from 40 to 50 currently, Keith Grose, head of the San Francisco-based company’s international business, said in an interview.”
October 27, 2020
On the web
Visa’s Planned Purchase of Plaid Faces Antitrust Scrutiny at the Justice Department
Wall Street Journal (pay wall)
“Visa Inc.’s $5.3 billion deal to buy a key player in the financial-technology space is in jeopardy because of antitrust concerns, according to people familiar with the matter. The Justice Department could decide soon whether it will sue to block Visa’s acquisition of Plaid Inc., a firm that provides the technological infrastructure underpinning an array of next-generation financial apps . After spending the better part of the year scrutinizing the deal, the department is concerned it could limit nascent competition in the payments sector, people familiar with the matter said. The Justice Department has been making preparations for potential litigation, including lining up potential witnesses for a trial, some of the people said. No final decision has been made. Representatives of Visa, Plaid and the Justice Department declined to comment.”
April 6, 2020
On the web
Plaid Gives Lenders Access to Small Business Payroll Data to Speed Emergency Loan Approval
CNBC
“Start-up Plaid is looking to solve a pain point in the emergency loan process: Access to payroll data. Small businesses looking to survive the coronavirus slowdown are rushing to apply for emergency government loans. But as a part of that process, they need to download their payroll data and share it with their bank, who then needs to verify and process the information and application. The process can take days or weeks, and is often done manually, according to Plaid.”
July 19, 2019
On the web
Plaid Introduces Liabilities to Create Debt-tracking Apps, Starting With Student Loans
TechCrunch
“Plaid is introducing a new product called Liabilities to help developers build applications around debt. For starters, Plaid is taking aim at a big problem in the U.S. — student loan debt . The product will expand to cover other kinds of debt over time, but the company wanted to start with student loans because of the depth of the problem. “We’re launching with student loan data given the crisis levels it has reached in the U.S., where it is the second largest debt category behind mortgage. Over 44 million people, hold $1.6 trillion in outstanding loans,” Plaid’s Kate Adamson wrote in a blog post introducing the new product.”
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