UK-based fintech challenger Allica Bank has secured £ 100mn in a Series C funding round led by technology investor TCV – the backer behind industry heavyweights Nubank , Brex and Revolut .

TCV is joined in the Series C round by existing investors Warwick Capital Partners and Atalaya Capital Management . Allica intends to use the money to scale rapidly and accelerate its presence in the UK market , having already lent £ 1bn and reached the milestone of being profitable on a month-bymonth basis .

Allica is a London-based digital challenger bank that provides banking services to SMEs and entrepreneurs including lending , savings and payments . Despite accounting for a third of the UK ’ s economy , these SMEs , which typically employ up to 250 people , are often neglected by high-street banks and other fintechs , Allica says .

The bank is led by Richard Davies , a vastly experienced executive whose CV includes stints at both HSBC and Revolut .

� YOUNITED The French fintech , which provides up to € 50,000 of instant credit to European consumers at checkout , has raised € 60mn in funding itself . The company hopes to expand beyond its five current markets .

� OTB VENTURES The Warsawheadquartered venture capital firm has launched a € 150mn deeptech fund , which will invest in fintech , cybersecurity and AI among others .

� BINK The chairman of loyalty fintech Bink , which is backed by two of the UK ' s biggest banks , is stepping down as the company reportedly seeks investment that will keep the lights on .

� PLAID US fintech Plaid is laying off more than 250 employees – roughly a fifth of its workforce – to ensure that a year defined by fintech layoffs went out in the worst possible fashion .

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