F|T: The FinTech Times – Diagram Ventures Adds $100M to FinTech Effort

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Diagram Ventures Closes $100M for Latest Fund as It Continues to Bet on FinTech (BETAKIT)

Diagram Ventures remains bullish on FinTech companies as it launches its latest venture fund with an initial close of $100 million CAD.

This bullish focus on FinTech comes as the state of the sector has been a mixed bag over the past year.

Payment regulations may be revised due to concerns from FinTechs, says Bank of Canada’s Morrow (THE LOGIC)

Bank of Canada’s Ron Morrow said in an interview with The Logic that there could be changes to proposed regulations that will govern the country’s payments sector. Consultations on the proposal revealed widespread concern about the burden the rules could place on small players, and that they could stifle innovation.

Canadian venture capital investments in Q1 2023 fall by 82 percent compared to last year (BETAKIT)

In the first quarter of 2023, offers in Canada’s tech ecosystem fell. The latest data from Briefed.in shows that Canada experienced an 82 percent decrease in the amount invested compared to the same time last year, and a 67 percent decrease in the number of deals.

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Crypto Exchange Coinbase Posts Losses But Beats Expectations
(WALL STREET JOURNAL)

Coinbase Global reported a fifth straight quarter of losses as individual investor enthusiasm for crypto trading on the platform remained stagnant.

The largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States posted a loss of $79 million in the first quarter, narrowing the loss of $430 million a year ago. The improvement was largely driven by operating cost cuts, including a 20% reduction in the workforce announced in January.

Shopify Backs Nigeria-Based FinTech Nomba in $30M Round (BETAKIT)

Shopify has made an investment in Nomba, a Nigeria-based FinTech firm that raised $30 million in what it classifies as a “pre-Series B” funding round.

Nomba is one of the latest additions to Shopify’s investment portfolio, which largely focuses on financing companies that support Shopify’s commerce ecosystem, as well as online stores more generally.

Ant’s financial license in limbo as China shakes up regulatory system (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)

For more than a year now, Ant has been waiting for Beijing to sign off on its restructuring. The final step in the overhaul is to obtain a financial holding company license that would see Ant regulated in the same way as banks and other financial institutions in China.

Approval of the license has been held up by the creation of a powerful new financial regulator in China, which must sign off on the plan.

Brightspark Seeks To Recreate Home Run Exits From Think Dynamics, Radian6 As It Launches $120M Fund (BETAKIT)

Brightspark Ventures believes now is the right time to invest in early-stage Canadian technology companies as it holds the first close for its latest fund, which has a target size of $120 million CAD.

‘Pirate’ crypto platform Kraken makes adjustments to satisfy Canadian regulators (THE LOGIC)

Prominent US crypto trading platform Kraken is evaluating which stablecoins it can list and plans to close margin trading in the remaining provinces where it is offered by mid-June as it works towards registration with Canadian securities regulators.

Lift to Return for 2023 with Lisa LaFlamme, Dragons’ Den and Shark Tank Stars Among the Speaker Lineup (BETAKIT)

Canadian tech conference Elevate is returning for its second year in person since the COVID 19 pandemic, and will run from September 26-28 in downtown Toronto.

Elevate’s presenters for this year will include Canadian celebrities such as Lisa LaFlamme as well as two “dragons” from CBC’s Dragons’ Den: Arlene Dickinson and Wes Hall.

CEO explains how Koho has navigated Canada’s ‘oligopolistic market conditions’ for financial innovation (DANIEL EBERHARD)

Koho CEO Daniel Eberhard explains in a LinkedIn post that the company is just now getting to grips with the transaction error rate problem it previously faced. He questions whether the Canadian market is built to allow innovation.

“A pay rail that fails 1% of the time is considered broken, and we regularly operated at 20X that level,” Eberhard wrote.

Conference Board of Canada, MaRS launches new innovation group as growth in Canadian ecosystem lags (BETAKIT)

The group, called the Canadian Center for the Innovation Economy (CCIE), will bring together Canadian innovation hubs, institutions, entrepreneurs, governments, business partners and investors to research critical issues facing the innovation community.

When it comes to innovation, Canada has lagged behind, the CBoC found. This new center is intended to address Canada’s “innovation paradox,” as Canada’s workforce and research fail to deliver long-term success.

Crypto platform ezBtc committed fraud, claims BC securities regulator (THE GLOBE AND MAIL)

Canadian cryptocurrency trading platform ezBtc committed fraud by lying to customers and diverting their money to gambling websites, according to British Columbia’s securities regulator.