EMEA Daily: Earlybird Catches $370M in Investments

In today’s top Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) news, Germany’s Earlybird Venture Capital closes a $370 million fund and backs two newly-minted unicorns. Plus, Mastercard teams up with MultiPay to provide installment payment options to customers in Ireland, and Oman’s Bank Muscat unveils new ePayment options.

Earlybird Investment Portfolio Includes 2 New Unicorns as It Closes $370M Fund

Berlin-based venture capital firm Earlybird has closed its seventh early-stage fund from its Digital West investment team at a cap of 350 million euros (about $370 million) and is among the backers in a pair of new unicorns — private companies with valuations of at least $1 billion. Earlybrid’s Fund VII is an oversubscribed fund that will support companies in the enterprise software, FinTech and sustainability sectors.

MultiPay Launches Installment Payments With Mastercard

MultiPay Global Solutions and Mastercard are collaborating on an installment product to give consumers payment flexibility when making purchases in-store and online. “Consumers now expect the same features and services they have become familiar with online to be part of the in-store experience too,” said MultiPay Global Solutions CEO David Maisey said.

Oman’s Bank Muscat Debuts QR Code Payments

Oman-based financial services provider Bank Muscat is rolling out new ePayment options designed to promote financial inclusion and digital payments. The bank has been expanding ePayment options for debit and credit cards, wearables and mobile wallets, while also adding QR code options. Bank Muscat has said its business clients can add QR code payments to adhere with new regulations for businesses to offer ePayment options for customers.

TreviPay Helps Compaynet Power B2B Trade Credit

B2B payment and credit management company TreviPay is working with payment processor Compaynet to power its B2B trade credit offering. By working with TreviPay, Compaynet — with headquarters in the U.K. and Italy — will now offer an embedded trade finance solution to these B2B customers, allowing them to offload accounts receivable (AR) administrative functions so that they can focus more on their business.

Zilch Expands D2C BNPL With Cashback Rewards in US

United Kingdom buy now, pay later (BNPL) startup Zilch is expanding its direct-to-consumer (D2C) platform to the United States. Based in London and co-founded by CEO Philip Belamant, Zilch has over 2 million customers in the U.K. and adds more than 250,000 new users monthly. The company has so far raised $400 million in debt and equity with investors that include Goldman Sachs.