NEWS
NEWS
NatWest announces the five FinTechs joining new FinTech Growth Programme
The programme is an exciting opportunity for FinTech startups to use the resources , expertise and networks of an established high-street bank to help them scale-up sustainably , supporting NatWest ’ s ambition of leading the future of banking with the hope that some of the participants will help drive the bank ’ s innovation pipeline .
The five FinTechs , all pre-Series A UK based startups looking to develop their business ideas , provided innovative solutions addressing challenges in the payments space .
The FinTech Growth Programme allows FinTechs to work collaboratively with NatWest ’ s Innovation team and senior decision makers across the bank while benefiting from a curated scale-up curriculum and opportunity to build a meaningful network . The small cohort boasts opportunities to connect , learn and build networks with other fellow
FinTechs , coaches and NatWest ’ s dedicated Innovation function .
David Grunwald , Director of NatWest Innovation , said : “ We ’ re pleased to welcome these five FinTechs onto the NatWest FinTech Growth Programme . Their solutions and remarkable potential align with our commitment to create better outcomes for our customers . Collaborating closely with such talented UK entrepreneurs not only enhances our ability to be future focussed , but reinforces our dedication to fostering the growth of the innovation community .”
Stripe ’ s total payment volume reaches US $ 1.4tn , fuelled by long-standing investments in AI
Stripe , the financial infrastructure platform for businesses , has shared that it processed US $ 1.4 trillion in total payment volume in 2024 , up 38 % from the prior year and equivalent to around 1.3 % of global GDP .
In their annual letter to the Stripe community , co-founders Patrick and John Collison attributed the rapid growth to long-standing investments in Artificial Intelligence that “ continues to pay off , increasing revenue for existing customers , encouraging more businesses to switch to Stripe , and helping new companies reach significant scale unprecedentedly quickly . . . In each of the last six years , Stripe has reinvested a much higher proportion of our earnings in R & D than any comparable company . We believe this ability will prove particularly important in the coming years , as stablecoins , AI and other forces reshape the landscape . Stripe ’ s growth to date is evidence of the intense market demand for programmable financial services . The associated transformation is still early .”
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