#494
Tick Tock
Published:
Jun 26, 2023
Author:
Sarah Parsons Wolter
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The median age in the US is almost 39 years old today, up from 35 in 2000 and 30 in 1985. And the US is not alone - many European and Asian countries are experiencing the same set of aging and in some cases declining population dynamics.
There are several sets of drivers as to why the population is aging and even declining in absolute terms. The first is lower fertility rates, which can be a function of both voluntary and involuntary causes. On the one hand, people are generally prioritizing work and education compared to the previous generation, leading to later marriages and having fewer children. On the other, scientists like Shanna Swan have proposed that certain chemicals in our everyday household products can interfere with our body’s natural hormones, which could lead to lower sperm counts.
Governments around the world are acutely aware of the direction of travel of their nations population, and some have taken active steps to encourage reproduction. Australia introduced a “Baby Bonus” program two decades ago, while many European countries have child care subsidies and extended parental leave policies. Nonetheless, it has historically been very difficult for governments to reverse population trends entirely.
The social and economic implications of aging and declining populations are immense - wealth is held on for longer and pensions need to be funded with longer durations in mind, to name just a few. In the meantime, let’s stay tuned on 39 year old Muck Zuckerberg reportedly fighting 51 year old Elon Musk in a cage match in Las Vegas…
Portfolio News
Devron awarded 2023 "Best Machine Learning Company" - Congratulations to portfolio company Devron for being selected as the winner of the “Best Machine Learning Company” award in the sixth annual AI Breakthrough Awards program, which received more than 3,200 nominations from over 20 countries. The award program recognizes today's top companies, technologies, and products in the global Artificial Intelligence (AI) market. Read more
Flutterwave and Microsoft enter 5-year strategic partnership - The partnership will see the fintech company build a new generation of payment services on Microsoft Azure, powering payments infrastructure across the African continent and beyond. This partnership will also enable the African payment firm to service multinational firms. Read more
Plaid launches anti-fraud network - The new Plaid Beacon network is open to fintech companies, financial institutions of all sizes and Plaid-powered customers and allows them to share information about stolen identities and compromised accounts. Read more
Tick Tock
The U.S. population is older than it has ever been - The median age in the United States reached a record high of 38.9 in 2022, according to data released this week by the Census Bureau, which is a rapid rise. While many 38-year-old millennials may still feel young, that age is an unusually high median for the country. The new data adds to the evidence that, like many European and Asian nations, the United States is graying, posing challenges for the work force, the economy and social programs. Read more
Global sperm counts are falling. This scientist believes she knows why - In the glare of orange spotlights, Swan laid out her conclusion: that the innocuous products in your kitchen cupboard, bathroom cabinet or garden shed may be lowering sperm counts. They could also affect the reproductive systems of your unborn children. The implications of EDCs for human health don’t stop there: they can disrupt thyroid function, trigger cancer and obesity. Read more
Can China reverse its population decline? Just ask Sweden - With 850,000 fewer births than deaths last year, at least according to the country’s official report, China joined an expanding set of nations with shrinking populations caused by years of falling fertility and often little or even negative net migration, a group that includes Italy, Greece and Russia, along with swaths of Eastern and Southern Europe and several Asian nations like South Korea and Japan. Read more
Industry News
One-percenters keep shopping at the Dollar Store - That Mercedes in the dollar-store parking lot isn’t an illusion. High-earners joined the rest of the country in flooding discount retailers such as Dollar General, Aldi grocery store and Five Below as prices for food and staples rose. Now, with inflation at half its peak, they aren’t letting up. Read more
PayPal and KKR announce multi-year relationship for European pay later receivables - PayPal and KKR announced the signing of an exclusive multi-year agreement for a €3b replenishing loan commitment under which private credit funds and accounts managed by KKR will purchase up to €40b of BNPL loan receivables originated by PayPal in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Read more
Robinhood acquires credit card startup X1 for $95m - The acquisition of X1 gets Robinhood into the credit card business with the interchange fee revenue that comes with it. Robinhood currently earns interchange fees from its debit card, but has seen declines in its core trading business overall recently (in addition to crypto trading), most likely prompting that desire to diversify its business. Read more
Google Cloud launches anti-money-laundering tool for banks, betting on the power of AI - Financial institutions have long relied on human judgment to calibrate systems that help spot potentially risky transactions and customers. Now, Google Cloud wants them to let its artificial intelligence technology take greater control of that process. Read more
SVB Financial to sell SVB Securities to management team - The group, led by SVB Securities CEO Jeff Leerink and backed by The Baupost Group, will acquire SVB Securities for a combination of cash, repayment of an intercompany note, assumption of certain liabilities and a 5% equity instrument in the buyer entity, SVB Financial Group. The securities branch will then be rebranded as Leerink Partners. Read more
Powell: Stablecoins are a ‘form of money’ the Fed needs to regulate - Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell appeared before the House Financial Services Committee Wednesday to discuss the state of monetary policy — fielding crypto-related questions in the process. Powell said that crypto appears to have staying power as an asset class and that payment stablecoins are a form of money. Read more
Bank mergers face fresh antitrust heat at Justice Department - Top Justice Department antitrust lawyers are weighing a revamp of how they scrutinize bank mergers, complicating further consolidation for an industry that’s facing some of its biggest challenges since the financial crisis. Read more
Crypto exchange backed by Citadel Securities, Fidelity goes live - EDX Markets, an institutional-only exchange announced in September 2022, will offer trading in four cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash. Unlike existing crypto platforms such as Coinbase and Binance, it offers a “non-custodial” model, meaning that it doesn’t hold clients’ digital assets during trading. Read more
Deutsche Bank applies for digital asset license amid growth push - The move is part of a wider strategy to increase fee income at Deutsche Bank’s corporate bank, David Lynne, who runs the lender’s commercial banking unit, said. It also mirrors efforts at Deutsche Bank’s investment arm DWS Group to expand income from offerings linked to digital assets. Read more
Car-insurance firm root gets takeover bid - Embedded Insurance, run by insurance-technology entrepreneur James Hall, has made multiple approaches and offered to acquire Carvana-backed Root for $19.34 a share, a significant premium to Root’s closing price Tuesday of $6.02. Read more
Fraudulent COVID aid drove up U.S. house prices, report says - Fraud against the Paycheck Protection Program was widespread enough to bump up real-estate prices within certain U.S. ZIP Codes, researchers at the University of Texas concluded, blaming the abuse on some of the financial technology companies that provided the loans. Read more
The trickledown consumerization of B2B payments helps firms win business - As B2B eCommerce expands and business operations transform digitally — particularly across legacy industries like manufacturing and distribution — a shift in behavioral expectations is driving the welcome digitization of B2B relationships. Read more
Select Financings
Accelerant - Atlanta based insurance risk exchange raised $150m in growth funding led by Barings. Read more
Aktos - New York based debt collection software platform raised $4.4m in Seed funding led by 8VC. Read more
Chexy - Toronto based payments and rewards platform for renters raised $1.3m in pre-Seed funding led by Crossbeam Ventures. Read more
Earn Network - Singapore based community driven marketplace for liquid investments raised $2.7m in Seed funding led by Shima Capital. Read more
Eze - Los Angeles based wholesale electronics marketplace offering financing solutions raised $3.7m in Seed funding led by Right Side Capital. Read more
Hyperline - Paris based billing and pricing platform for B2B SaaS companies raised €4m in Seed funding led by Index Ventures. Read more
Leap - Chicago based retail-as-a-service platform raised $15m in new funding led by BAM Elevate. Read more
Maverick Protocol - Singapore based defi infrastructure project raised $9m in new funding led by Founders Fund. Read more
Mypinpad - UK based provider of payments and identity authentification software raised $13m in new funding led by Crossfin Holdings. Read more
Outbound AI - Seattle based healthcare billing and claims automation startup raised $16m in Seed funding led by Madrona Venture Group. Read more
Rever - Barcelona based provider of smart returns management software for e-commerce raised €8.5m in new funding led by Global Founders Capital. Read more
TransBnk - New Delhi based provider of specialized account solutions and payments infrastructure raised $1m in Seed funding led by 8i Ventures. Read more
TreasurySpring - London based capital markets startup enabling new cash investment strategies raised £15m in Series B funding led by Balderton. Read more
Volt - London based open banking startup enabling global, real-time payments raised $60m in Series B funding led by IVP. Read more
Yellow - Malawi based asset financier for solar energy and digital devices raised $14m in Series B funding led by Convergence Partners. Read more
Yendo - Dallas based issuer of vehicle-secured credit cards raised $24m in Series A funding led by FPV Ventures. Read more
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