FinTech IPO Index Gains 4.2%, Boosted by BNPL Momentum

As stocks touched new highs in the holiday-shortened trading week, the FinTech IPO Index gathered 4.2%.

Most names were higher.

As reported this week, BILL announced the launch of BILL Supplier Payments Plus. The offering is geared toward helping large suppliers quickly and efficiently process and reconcile high volumes of payments from thousands of SMBs with greater speed and accuracy.

The company said in the release that missing details and over- or underpayments often force cash application teams to spend hours or even days manually tracking down information. The new solution works with existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) and automation systems; suppliers can receive custom reports and the conversion of checks to digital payments.

BILL shares were 6.4% higher through the last five sessions.

Affirm shares got a 3.4% tailwind.

The company announced that video game commerce firm Xsolla has inked a partnership with Affirm. Affirm’s pay-over-time options are now available to game developers using Xsolla’s payments tools in the U.S., with plans to expand to Canada and the U.K. in the coming months.

Affirm’s buy now, pay later (BNPL) options enable players to split purchases into interest-free biweekly payments or longer-term monthly installments for carts starting at $50 as they buy games or in-game content.

Also in the BNPL realm, Sezzle has introduced features it says are designed to help customers weather increased financial pressure. Among the new features are Sezzle Balance, which aims to simplify the repayment process for consumers through a pre-loadable digital wallet.

There are two additional products in beta, as PYMNTS reported this week: “Express Checkout,” described as a “streamlined flow that reduces friction for returning shoppers,” and Browser Extension, a tool that automatically prompts shoppers to earn Sezzle Spend and save with available coupons.

Sezzle shares were nearly 11% higher through the week.

PYMNTS also reported that Circle Internet Group has applied for a national trust charter, aiming to establish a national trust bank called First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A. If the application is approved by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the bank would oversee the management of the reserve of the USDC stablecoin on behalf of Circle’s U.S. issuer, Circle said. First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A. would also offer digital asset custody services to institutional customers, according to the release.

For Circle, the charter would also help it meet the expected requirements of the proposed stablecoin legislation, the GENIUS Act, Circle said. Circle shares sank more than 11%.

Lemonade’s stock slipped 0.7%. The company said in a release that its reinsurance program is being renewed.

“Given strong progress in the company’s diversification, underwriting prowess and loss ratio trajectory, the company has chosen to reduce the ceded proportion of its quota share reinsurance from approximately 55% to approximately 20%, effective July 1,” the company said.