The following is an excerpt from today’s Global Newsletter.

As Jason Mikula predicted on June 1, FIS has acquired embedded finance startup Bond in a deal where terms were not touted in a splashy press release.

While silent acquisitions often indicate a distressed sale, the incumbent core banking provider likely realized they needed to get into BaaS and probably bought Bond for their tech to be more agile. It may also be the attraction of the expedited route: buy the plug-and-play solution rather than spend many months developing one in-house.

This latest acquisition shows fintech M&A is getting hotter, with more activity in recent weeks.

Bond may have been struggling to raise money, so this would also be a good outcome for them, though we do not yet know the whole story.

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USA

FIS acquires banking-as-a-service startup Bond By Mary Ann Azevedo and Ingrid Lunden   San Francisco-based fintech infrastructure startup Bond was valued at $182 million the last time it raised money, in 2020.

From Fintech Nexus

USA Colorado residents could soon be in a mountain of hurt when it comes to access to credit By Peter Renton    Colorado passed a law this week that could have a dramatic effect on the ability of fintech lenders to do business in the state.

USA MoneyLion’s Engine brings holistic embedded finance By Isabelle Castro Margaroli    The love child of Moneylion’s Even acquisition, Engine, looks to create tools for even non-financial companies to embed personalized products.

USA Radiate Ventures looks to capitalize on market volatility By Tony Zerucha    Radiate Ventures bets on companies developing technologies that will drive change and leaders with the persistence to follow through.

LatAm Ualá set to expand ecosystem after ABC bank deal in Mexico By David Feliba    Fintech unicorn Ualá finally obtained a banking license in Mexico, clearing the way for the neobank to aggressively expand its product suite.

Global The Fintech Five news recap for June 9, 2023 By Todd Anderson    The Fintech Five brings you the top five stories of the week in under two minutes, delivered via newsletter, website, and social media channels.

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