State Street’s new private credit ETF and BondBloxx’s pending launch are pushing illiquid assets into daily-traded retail vehicles. This type of product promises to open up private credit and equity markets to a wider base of investors, but is also sparking serious concerns across the funds industry. Insiders warn that assets built for long-term commitments — and historically shielded from the daily churn of markets — may not survive the stress of real-time trading without major risks.
Despite the SEC’s cautious sign-off on State Street’s fund and plans from BondBloxx to maintain liquidity buffers and redemption gates, critics remain unconvinced. Morningstar, DBi, and others question how private credit deals, notorious for their complexity and infrequent valuations, can be properly priced and redeemed on demand. If volatility strikes, even a 20% cash buffer or a credit line might not be enough to protect investors from losses or fund managers from fire sales.
Still, the ability to democratize private assets remains highly sought after. Retail investors, shut out of the private markets boom for decades, could finally gain access to strategies once reserved for pensions and endowments. Issuers are betting that the promise of outsized returns will outweigh the structural risks — and that savvy engineering can keep liquidity mismatches in check. Can they?

Portfolio News
FinTech Collective invests in Grâce - We are thrilled to announce FinTech Collective’s lead role in the €5.9m raised by Grâce, a Paris-based company redefining embedded insurance for the global luxury goods industry. This investment positions Grâce to transform how brands engage with clients post-purchase—beginning with theft and loss coverage for high-value items. Read more
Flutterwave launches Send App in Ghana for seamless remittances - The app simplifies cross-border payments for individuals and businesses, supporting transactions for family needs, school fees, and business operations. This launch aligns with Send App’s mission to enhance secure and seamless international transfers across Africa through advanced technology. Read more
Ocrolus, Entech unite to improve loan application reviews - By combining Ocrolus’ intelligent document processing technology with Entech’s loan origination platform and technology services, lenders can accelerate application reviews, automate manual steps and improve data accuracy. Read more
Fintech Plaid raises $575m at a $6.1b valuation - Franklin Templeton led the “oversubscribed” raise, which also included participation from new backers Fidelity Management and Research, BlackRock, and others in addition to existing investors NEA and Ribbit Capital. The proceeds of the round will be used to address employee tax withholding obligations related to the conversion of expiring RSUs to shares, and to offer some liquidity to its current team via an employee tender offer. Read more
Private Assets, Meet ETFs
Launches of private asset ETFs raise concerns in funds industry - A flurry of new exchange traded funds is widening retail access to the fast-growing markets for private credit and equity, sparking concerns that these assets are a poor fit for small-scale investors and could prove tough to sell during a crisis. Read more
Industry News
Rocket to buy mortgage firm Mr. Cooper in $9.4b deal - The combined company will service a book of $2.1t of loans and nearly 10m clients. With the deal, Rocket is expanding its reach into the mortgage-servicing market and cementing its position as a one-stop shop for many parts of the homebuying process. Rocket has recently leaned into artificial intelligence to streamline that process, which has saved the company’s underwriters thousands of hours of manual work. Read more |
Select Financings
Atomic - Salt Lake City based financial connectivity platform raised $10m in new funding from Capital One Ventures and Citi Ventures. Read more
Cambrian - New York based AI infrastructure platform for finance raised $5.9m in Seed funding led by a16z Crypto Startup Accelerator (CSX). Read more
Djamo - Ivory Coast based digital banking startup raised $17m in Series B funding led by Janngo Capital. Read more
Felix Pago - Miami based remittance platform raised $75m in Series B funding led by QED Investors. Read more
FurtherAI - San Francisco based AI startup for insurance underwriting and claims raised $5m in new funding led by Nexus Venture Partners. Read more
Fuse - London based cross-border payments startup raised $6.6m in Seed funding led by Northzone. Read more
Incentify - Los Angeles based tax credit startup $9.5m in Series A funding led by Innovent Capital Group. Read more
Kay.ai - New York based AI co-worker platform for insurance brokers raised $3m in Seed funding led by Wing VC. Read more
LightSource - San Francisco based supply chain software platform raised $33m in Series A funding led by Bain Capital Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Read more
RapidClaims - New York based revenue cycle management startup raised $8m in Series A funding led by Accel. Read more
Roam - New York based assumable mortgage startup raised $11.5m in Series A funding led by Khosla Ventures. Read more
Scapia - Bangalore based travel credit card startup raised $40m in Series B funding led by Peak XV Partners. Read more
Sohar Health - New York based AI platform for insurance eligibility verification raised $3.8m in Seed funding led by Kindred Capital. Read more
Sourcetable - San Francisco based AI spreadsheet platform raised $4.3m in Seed funding led by Bee Partners. Read more
Thatch - San Francisco based health benefits platform enabling ICHRA adoption raised $40m in Series B funding led by Index Ventures. Read more
Venteur - San Francisco based health benefits startup raised $20m in Series A funding led by Informed Ventures and American Family Ventures. Read more
Vivere Partners - California based specialty insurance platform raised $7.5m in Series A funding led by General Catalyst. Read more
WeeFin - Paris based ESG data management platform for financial institutions raised €25m in Series B funding led by BlackFin Capital Partners. Read more
FinTech Collective Newsletter
Curated News with Context
Delivered every Monday, the weekly newsletter, produced by our team, provides a tightly edited rundown of global fintech news, along with a bit of our original analysis.