For two years, Netflix subscribers have been able to download tons of mobile games, all included for free with their subscription.
Netflix has developed more than 75 mobile games, boasting popular IPs like Grand Theft Auto, Love is Blind, Monument Valley, and Oxenfree, among many others.
Now, Netflix could potentially be exploring ways to generate revenue from its gaming business, a recent report suggests.
These methods are common (and effective) in the mobile gaming world, with consumers expected to spend $111.4 billion on mobile games in 2024.
Netflix appeared to shut down the idea of ads and in-game payments during an earnings call in April 2023.
With so much in the rearview mirror, it’s hard to predict what will happen with AI startups in 2024.
But some people, like investors, make their living from shrewd bets, so TechCrunch+ recently asked more than 40 investors what they think AI investing could look like in 2024.
Most investors told TechCrunch+ that they expect the current swell of funding to continue but were optimistic that the industry is moving past its initial hype cycle and toward more durable businesses.
Lisa Wu, a partner at Norwest Venture Partners, expects opportunities in verticalized AI to be particularly attractive this year.
“For example, law firms that effectively leverage AI will be able to offer their services at lower cost, higher efficiency and higher odds of favorable outcomes in litigation.”
EUR wallets also come with bank details, which means that Zing customers can receive SEPA payments to their EUR wallet directly.
When it comes to sending money, Zing supports dozens of currencies — more currencies than the ten I listed above.
When you convert GBP to EUR, Zing charges 0.6% in exchange fees.
Plus accounts can exchange up to £3,000 per month without exchange fees.
Premium, Metal and Ultra customers don’t pay exchange fees, but they pay £7.99 to £45 per month in subscription fees.
Exponent Founders Capital, an early-stage venture firm founded by alumni of startups such as Plaid, Robinhood and Ramp, has closed on $75 million in capital commitments, TechCrunch is the first to report.
The firm, which is emerging from stealth today, raised $50 million for its first fund in November of 2021.
Managing Partners Charley Ma and Mahdi Raza co-founded Exponent after meeting while Ma was leading fintech growth at Plaid, and Raza was leading growth and payments at Robinhood.
Exponent, which focuses on enterprise SaaS, fintech, infrastructure and GTM (go to market) software companies, invested in about 40 startups out of its first fund.
He worked in growth and payments at Robinhood before joining Stytch to lead early growth there.
You may be looking to switch out your current budgeting app for a better one, or perhaps you’re someone who has traditionally relied on spreadsheets.
For individuals, a good budgeting app can help you save money by creating and sticking to a monthly budget.
For startups and small businesses, a good budgeting app can help you understand your company’s financial health and make informed decisions.
Best apps for startups and small businessesFreshBooksFreshBooks is a simple tool that can help startups and small businesses create a budget and stick to it.
Although it’s marketed as a personal budgeting app, Toshl can be a good tool for new startups looking to understand and manage their finances for a fraction of the cost of budgeting apps marketed toward small businesses.
Love ’em or hate ’em, NFTs can survive thanks to the communities that drive themNFTs have suffered everything from ridicule and scams to a broad dip in demand due to the crypto winter.
Sometimes it almost feels like some of the projects in the space are kept going simply on hopes and dreams.
Most people are holding on to their NFTs regardless of their monetary value, according to Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands.
Making money from NFTs validates their holders’ conviction, but Siu thinks there are more important factors driving the persistent ownership.
“It’s not a crazy idea, but NFTs make [the experience] more powerful by bonding them together.
As 2023 comes to a close, we’re here to look back at the biggest fintech stories of the year.
In April, Apple shared that Apple Card customers in the U.S. could open a savings account and earn interest through an Apple savings account, as reported by Romain Dillet.
Another one of our most read stories of the year also involved a financial services giant rather than a startup.
X1, which offers an income-based credit card with rewards, had raised a total of $62 million in venture-backed funding.
Why X1 in particular over the many other credit card startups out there?
Vestwell, which provides the infrastructure for employers to power workplace savings programs, has raised $125 million in what the company describes as a “preempted” round of funding.
Vestwell CEO Aaron Schumm started the company in 2016 and launched the cloud-native platform in 2017.
Over 1 million people working across 300,000 businesses use the Vestwell platform, which the company said has helped power the savings of nearly $30 billion in assets over time.
As an extension of its partners, Vestwell says it enables a suite of programs, including retirement, health and education, such as 401(k), 403(b), IRA, 529 Education, ABLE disability and Emergency Savings programs.
“We’re now the leading partner in this field, and currently power 80% of the live state auto-IRA savings programs in this country,” he said.
Tamara, a buy now pay later platform for consumers in Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC region, has raised $340 million in a financing C round that values the fintech at $1 billion.
Both startups, albeit competitors, highlight the surging growth in BNPL usage, particularly in Saudi Arabia, the market that makes up more than 80% of Tamara and Tabby’s customer base.
“Saudi Arabia and the GCC deserves its place on the world stage for financial technology.
Before launching Tamara, Alsukhan co-founded Nana, a digital grocery shopping platform where he was the chief financial officer for three years.
Tamara is also allocating part of the investment to introduce new products and services beyond BNPL and capitalizing on opportunities in shopping and financial services across Saudi Arabia and the GCC.
What a yearThis is the last edition of The Interchange for 2023 — it’s hard to believe that the year is almost over.
In May 2022, Mary Ann reported at least 185 employees, or one-third of its workforce, were let go.
Mary Ann reported on a couple of high-profile executive departures this week.
Mustard’s decision to step down marks the third known high-profile executive departure at Credit Karma in 2023.
Then she wrote about how Opendoor co-founder Eric Wu is leaving the real estate fintech company after 9 years to get back to his startup roots.
