Fintech · Industry brief

Global fintech investment surged to $103.1 billion in H1 2026 across 2,100 deals, rising from $72.2 billion in H2 2025, driven significantly by a $24.3 billion acquisition of a major global payments company. M&A dominated investment activity with $67.9 billion across 394 deals in H1 2026, including two acquisitions exceeding $10 billion, with cross-border M&A particularly notable at $20.2 billion as corporations and fintechs expanded capabilities internationally. VC investment reached $31.5 billion across 1,641 deals while corporate venture capital hit $16.3 billion, positioning fintech for a four-year investment high by year-end 2026. The Americas led regional funding with $86.9 billion in H1 2026, with the US accounting for $80.8 billion, while EMEA and ASPAC regions faced headwinds, declining to $11.3 billion and $4.6 billion respectively amid geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties. Investment concentration intensified on proven business models and market leaders, particularly in payments consolidation where deal volume fell to 168 transactions in H1 2026 from 577 in 2025, reflecting investor preference for scaled, profitable, infrastructure-focused businesses over early-stage ventures.

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Nigerian payments startup Nomba secured a US$3 million debt facility through CardinalStone Finance Company Limited to scale its cross-border payments infrastructure from US$480 million to US$1 billion monthly, expanding from its Democratic Republic of Congo base into Zambia and Uganda. The funding will provide increased USD liquidity for Nomba's near-instant cross-border payment network connecting African businesses with Asian trading partners. Nomba, founded in 2017 and formerly known as Kudi, raised a US$30 million pre-Series B round in 2023 and operates as a profitable omnichannel payment service provider with Canadian-licensed money service operations (Source: Disrupt Africa).

Phoenix Venture Partners led a $3.5 million Pre-Series A funding round in Sav, a UAE-based fintech platform offering savings, investments, payments, and wealth management services. The company, founded by Purvi Munot and Mithil Ajmera, operates under a DFSA Category 4 license in the UAE and is expanding into Saudi Arabia as a key growth market. The funding will support go-to-market expansion in Saudi Arabia, product development of its AI infrastructure (SavCore), and user acquisition across the GCC region. Sav has previously raised approximately $2.5 million and generates revenue through interchange income, wealth management fees, commerce commissions, and subscriptions.