FinTech IPO Index Gives Up 6.4% as Platforms Plummet Ahead of Earnings

If there was a theme marking the past five days of trading, after the big banks reported earnings, and as the digital lenders that populate the FinTech IPO Index showed, this was the week the platforms plummeted.

Hippo Insurance slipped 14.8%, and Opendoor gave up 12.4%. OppFi slipped 12.1%.

Though company-specific headlines might have been scarce, it may have been the case that macro concerns were enough to shake investors loose from their holdings ahead of the slew of earnings reports that will come across the wires in the next several weeks. The Fed seems set to hold rates higher for longer, and the banks noted that consumer spending has been volatile.

Huize Stands Out

Huize shares were among the few positive contributors, up 5.3%,

The company said that it has partnered with Aviva-COFCO Life Insurance Co. to launch “Fu Man Jia,” a customized participating whole life insurance product. The policies are available to customers from 30 days after birth to 70 years old, with options in receiving dividend payout, including cash payment, dividends on deposit, premium reduction, or purchasing paid-up additional insurance.

Upstart detailed in a release that PriorityONE Credit Union of Florida has partnered with the FinTech to provide personal loans across the communities it serves. PriorityONE became an Upstart Referral Network lending partner in April 2023. In terms of the new pact, qualified personal loan applicants on Upstart.com who meet PriorityONE’s credit policies will receive tailored offers.

Upstart shares gave up 9.8%.

Elsewhere, PYMNTS reported this week that Rapid Finance has teamed up with Galileo Financial Technologies on a small business financing solution. Galileo’s parent firm, SoFi, saw its shares slip 6.7%. This collaboration has created Rapid Finance’s Rapid Access Mastercard program, which Galileo manages, the companies said.  As reported, the Rapid Access Mastercard is a prepaid commercial card program that provides Rapid Finance’s small and medium-sized business (SMB) customers with a line of credit.

Marqeta lost 5.5%. Marqeta is expanding its earned wage access program with assistance from financial wellness provider Rain. The card-issuing platform announced its collaboration as Marqeta is powering the Rain Card, a branded debit card that lets employers easily disburse earned wagers onto the cards.

Toast detailed that it had launched its restaurant management suite with new features for multi-unit enterprise brands. These features join the company’s cloud-based digital technology platform, which is built for restaurants of all sizes and is used in more than 100,000 restaurants.

One of the features added to the Restaurant Management Suite is an improved Multi-Location Management tool that enables leaders to use an expanded list of key performance metrics. The offering also enables users to schedule menu items and price changes for the future and to make changes across multiple locations. Toast shares were off by 9.7%.

Janover shares declined 8.7%.

The company announced this week that during 2023, it had seen a 766% increase in banking originator sign-ups and a 647% increase in credit union originator sign-ups. Approximately 11% of all active FDIC-insured banks are now represented by a verified banker on Janover’s platform, the company said.