Binance-backed Xend Finance launches DeFi platform for credit unions in Africa

Nigerian startup Xend Finance uses decentralized finance (DeFi) to address currency devaluation. DeFi aims to bridge the gap between decentralized blockchains and financial services. Aronu Ugochukwu and Abafor Chima founded the startup in 2019, and Ugochukwu is quite familiar with currency devaluat

The Station: Uber’s new battles in the UK, Lucid Motors’ second life plans and Cruise acquires Voyage

The Station is a weekly newsletter dedicated to all things transportation. Sign up here — just click The Station — to receive it every Saturday in your inbox. Hi friends and new readers, welcome to The Station, a newsletter dedicated to all the present and future ways people and packages move

Astroscale launches its ELSA-d orbital debris removal satellite

Space startup Astroscale has launched ELSA-d, the demonstration mission for its End-of-Life Services by Astroscale (ELSA) technology, which aims to dock with, and then safely remove, orbital debris. Astroscale’s demonstrator package includes two separate payloads: a servicer that represents i

The 'Frankencloud' model is our biggest security risk

Recent testimony before Congress on the massive SolarWinds attacks served as a wake-up call for many. What I saw emerge from the testimony was a debate on whether the public cloud is a more secure option than a hybrid cloud approach. The debate shouldn't surround which cloud approach is more se

NFTs could bridge video games and the fashion industry

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) offer new ways for consumers to collect, wear and trade fashion online, and now that most fashion shows have scaled back or gone virtual, they may become an important tool for the industry. Because some of the most profitable NFTs are produced by celebrities with teams, i

Tile brings its lost item-tracking service to wearables with Google Fitbit deal for Inspire 2 owners

Lost item finder Tile, the maker of the popular Bluetooth-powered tracker that can help you find your misplaced keys, bag, wallet or more, is bringing its tracking service to a wearable device for the first time with the launch of its Fitbit partnership. Starting today, all new and current Fitbit I

Revolut applies for bank charter in the US

London-based fintech startup Revolut has announced that it is applying for a bank charter in the U.S. The company has submitted a draft application with the FDIC and the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. If the company manages to get a charter in California, it would let

Zoom introduces new SDK to help developers tap into video services

One clear sign of a maturing platform is when the company exposes to other developers the services it uses for its own tools. Zoom has been doing that for some time, introducing Zoom Apps last year and the Marketplace to distribute and sell these apps. Today, the company introduced a new SDK (softw

No-code business intelligence service y42 raises $2.9M seed round

Berlin-based y42 (formerly known as Datos Intelligence), a data warehouse-centric business intelligence service that promises to give businesses access to an enterprise-level data stack that’s as simple to use as a spreadsheet, today announced that it has raised a $2.9 mlion seed funding roun

Camunda snares $98M Series B as process automation continues to flourish

It’s clear that automated workflow tooling has become increasingly important for companies. Perhaps that explains why Camunda, a Berlin startup that makes open-source process automation software, announced an €82 million Series B today. That translates into approximately $98 million U.S. In

Waterfund commits $50M to OurCrowd’s water and agtech portfolio

Waterfund, an investment and trading firm that specializes in acquiring and managing water-related infrastructure assets, today announced a deal with Israel-based crowdfunding platform OurCrowd that will see the Waterfund team commit $50 million to build a water- and agtech-focused portfolio of 15

Mithril dives into chips again with a $55M infusion to Flex Logix

The once untouchable semiconductor sector continues to attract fervent attention from VCs. The latest news this morning is that Ajay Royan of Mithril Capital has led a $55 million Series D round of financing into Flex Logix, which builds chips designed to bring AI workflows to the compute edge. Tha

Nuvemshop, LatAm’s answer to Shopify, raises $90M in Accel-led Series D

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to people everywhere shopping more online, and Latin America is no exception. São Paulo-based Nuvemshop has developed an e-commerce platform that aims to allow SMBs and merchants to connect more directly with their consumers. With more people in Latin America getting

Swedish fintech Zaver raises $5M to bring cardless payments and BNPL to ‘durables’ sector

Zaver, a Swedish fintech that enables merchants to accept cardless payments and offer buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) as an option, has raised $5 million in new funding. The company, which began life focused on P2P payments for marketplace transactions, is now doubling down on the durables sector (think: