Fintech acquisitions returned to the deal table in March 2024 after a quiet 2023, with several announcements landing across UK retail banking, Danish SME lending, Swiss revenue-based financing, open banking payments, and UK adviser technology. The fintech acquisitions covered below were announced between 4 March and 26 March 2024, with buyers based in the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland.
The fintech acquisitions backdrop in 2023 was a year of reduced deal flow. Only 128 M&A deals were recorded in the first half of 2023, compared with 248 in the first half of 2022 and 188 in the second half. According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, payments, treasury management software, and corporate spinoffs were drawing renewed M&A interest by early 2024, signalling a return of activity after 2023’s deal slowdown.
Fintech Acquisitions in March 2024 at a Glance
The five fintech acquisitions covered span a £2.9 billion UK mortgage and savings consolidation, two undisclosed deals in SME alternative finance, a reported €32.75 million open banking payments deal, and a £500,000 majority stake in adviser technology. Three of the five fintech acquisitions involved buyers expanding into new geographic markets, while two added new product capabilities to existing offerings.
1. Nationwide Acquires Virgin Money for £2.9 Billion
Nationwide Building Society, a UK member-owned mutual, agreed to acquire Virgin Money UK PLC in an all-cash deal valued at approximately £2.9 billion (around $3.7 billion). The deal was announced on 7 March 2024. Virgin Money shareholders received 220 pence per share, including a proposed 2 pence dividend, which represented a 38% premium to the Virgin Money closing price on 6 March 2024.
The combined entity was expected to hold approximately £366.3 billion in total assets and around 700 branches across the UK. Nationwide stated the acquisition would allow it to enter business banking and to expand its share of the UK mortgage and savings market. Slaughter and May advised Nationwide on the transaction. The Competition and Markets Authority cleared the deal in July 2024, finding that the merger did not give rise to a realistic prospect of a substantial lessening of competition. Virgin Money shareholders voted in favour of the transaction in May 2024, with over 89% support, surpassing the 75% threshold required. The acquisition completed on 1 October 2024. Virgin Money chief executive David Duffy stepped down on completion and was succeeded by Nationwide chief financial officer Chris Rhodes. Nationwide has stated that it will phase out the Virgin Money brand within six years. The deal was the largest of the March 2024 fintech acquisitions by disclosed value.
2. CapitalBox Acquires Omniveta Finance
CapitalBox, the SME alternative finance unit of Helsinki-listed Multitude SE, announced its acquisition of Copenhagen-based Omniveta Finance on 4 March 2024. The transaction took effect from 1 March 2024, and the parties did not disclose the deal terms.
Omniveta, founded in 2012, is an invoice purchasing company focused on improving liquidity for Danish SMEs. Through its KontantVedAccept programme, Omniveta pays suppliers up front while buyer SMEs retain agreed credit periods. CapitalBox said the deal would add invoice purchasing to its alternative finance offering in Denmark and across other European markets it serves. Omniveta is operating under the CapitalBox brand, and its team has joined CapitalBox’s Danish division, led by Country Manager Anne Trampedach. Multitude CEO Jorma Jokela said the transaction reinforces the group’s SME banking segment, and that fintech acquisitions remain part of its strategy to expand non-bank SME lending across Europe.
3. Levenue Acquires MidFunder
Levenue, a Dutch revenue-based financing marketplace, announced on 13 March 2024 that it had acquired Zurich-based MidFunder for an undisclosed sum. Levenue framed the acquisition as a move to strengthen its operations in Switzerland, which sits outside the EU regulatory perimeter.
Patrick Frei and Pascal Schumperli founded MidFunder in 2020. The company started as a crowdfunding platform for SMEs before pivoting to revenue-based financing for digital businesses. The platform assesses companies within 48 hours, with funds typically received within three days. Levenue, founded in 2021 by Benjamin Rieder and Zahra Alubudi, said it had funded over 500 companies and facilitated approximately €300 million in trade across 16 European markets. The MidFunder deal followed Levenue’s earlier fintech acquisitions of Belgian firm Cake and Dutch firm Requr.
4. GoCardless Acquires Nuapay from EML Payments
UK bank payments company GoCardless signed an agreement on 15 March 2024 to acquire Sentenial Ltd, which operates globally under the Nuapay brand, from Australia’s EML Payments. The deal was reported at €32.75 million and was subject to regulatory approval from the UK Financial Conduct Authority and France’s Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution.
EML Payments had acquired Sentenial in 2021 for an upfront enterprise value of approximately €70 million. EML stated that the Sentenial business was non-core to its operations, with a projected A$2 million EBITDA loss for full year 2024. The disposal was intended to simplify EML’s organisational structure and strengthen its balance sheet. GoCardless said the Nuapay business would scale its indirect channel proposition across Independent Software Vendors and Payment Service Providers, and would let GoCardless add disbursement capabilities to its existing collections platform. Target use cases include payroll, financial services, utilities, insurance, gaming, and gambling. GoCardless co-founder and CEO Hiroki Takeuchi said the deal would accelerate the company’s strategy to become the world’s bank payment network. Nuapay co-founder and CEO Brian Hanrahan continued in his role following the agreement. GoCardless completed the acquisition on 2 September 2024.
5. Fintel Acquires ifaDASH
Fintel’s deal closed out the five fintech acquisitions tracked at FintechBits in March 2024. Fintel, a UK provider of fintech and support services to the retail financial services sector, announced on 26 March 2024 that it had acquired an initial 70% stake in ifaDASH for £500,000. The agreement included up to £1 million in further contingent cash consideration tied to specified profitability and revenue targets, plus a two-year option to acquire the remaining 30% stake at an agreed multiple of EBITDA.
Fintel conducted the acquisition through Fintel IQ, the firm’s technology and knowledge platform. ifaDASH, based in Southampton, was developed by former IFAs. The platform connects front and back-office CRM data, training and competence management information, and vulnerable client data into a single integrated platform for adviser firms. Fintel Joint CEO Neil Stevens said ifaDASH addresses adviser visibility and transparency requirements that have intensified since the FCA’s Consumer Duty came into force.
These five fintech acquisitions sit alongside other March 2024 deal flow tracked in the UK fintech investment data for the same period, and the deals appear in the corporate acquisitions category on FintechBits.
