EMEA Daily: Nord Security Crosses $1B in Funding; Arf Launches Credit Service for MSBs

In today’s top Europe, Middle East and Africa news, NordVPN’s parent company Nord Security has raised $100 million, making it a unicorn. Plus, Swiss payments company Arf launched Arf Credit for money service businesses (MSBs).

Zilch, Experian Partner on Customer Affordability

London-based Zilch’s partnership with Experian aims to exchange reporting of payment plan data under the United Kingdom’s Credit Reporting Act (CRA) and continues Zilch’s efforts to ensure its customers’ financial health. The partnership with Experian allows Zilch to connect to the comprehensive database to determine how much its 2 million customers can afford.

NordVPN Parent Reaches Unicorn Status

Lithuanian cybersecurity firm Nord Security, whose products include the popular NordVPN, completed its first external fundraising round and in the process broke the $1 billion valuation barrier. The round totaled $100 million, according to Nord, and will help the company add to its 1,700-person workforce and expand into new markets.

AgriTech Better Origin Raises $16M for AI-Powered Sustainable Farms

U.K.-based AgriTech company Better Origin has raised $16 million to hire staff to fill engineering, biology, marketing and operations positions. In addition, the latest cash infusion will allow for further product and technology development to help grow the company.

Adyen Adding Tap to Pay to iPhones by End of 2022

Dutch payments group Adyen has teamed up with Apple to bring Tap to Pay to iPhones for U.S. customers later this year, allowing them to accept contactless payments on their mobile devices without adding other hardware or payment terminals. This innovation enables businesses to accept contactless payments using their iPhone XS or later and a supporting app.

Mastercard Opens European Tech Hub in Dublin

Mastercard has opened “One South County,” its European technology hub in Dublin. The 138,210-square-foot property allows Mastercard to accommodate more than 2,000 workers by 2025, as the payments technology company grows its 975-person workforce.

Payments Network Arf Launches MSB Credit Offering

Swiss cross-border payments network Arf has launched Arf Credit, a product designed to provide instant working capital credit lines for money service businesses (MSBs). The company said the idea for the credit product came about when its founders noticed that most MSBs had to deal with steep pre-funding requirements and limited access to capital.