It’s all about the data.
SaaS banking platform Mambu is paying close attention to one important trend in the fintech market when it comes to their growth strategy, according to its CEO Eugene Danilkis: “Interestingly, we are seeing more and more non-financial or non-fintech related institutions getting into this space because of their access to very sophisticated data,” Eugene Danilkis told Bank Innovation. “One example is the telecom industry.”
Danilkis is probably thinking about his recent deal with a subsidiary of Filipino telecom giant Globe Telecom. Mambu will be powering the consumer and business lending products of Fuse, the lending arm of Filipino fintech firm Mynt, by September 2017, the company announced yesterday.
The Philippine market is an interesting one, Danilkis said, because there’s about 113% mobile penetration but a meager 31% banking penetration. Fuse, which was launched by Mynt in 2016, is trying to bridge that gap by increasing access for small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to financing opportunities through its digital lending services.
For Mambu, Danilkis said the partnership aligns with the company’s short-term expansion strategy of making way into unchartered markets.
For Fuse, Mambu’s platform provides it with the right tools to provide loans to customers who do not typically have access to loans.
Fuse CEO Anthony Thomas said in a Thursday statement:
In Mambu we have found the right partner to accelerate and scale our lending business, as well as power innovative and secure consumer and business loan products.
And while Mambu already has some presence in the Philippines, working with Fuse (its first telecom customer in the country) will open its services to a larger audience, he said.
Founded in 2011, Mambu is a SaaS banking service offering loan and deposit products. It allows its customers to design, launch, service and scale their banking and lending portfolio. Those customers include fintech companies, banks and businesses. The company powers over 5,000 loan and deposit products, according to the website, and has operations in over 40 countries.
In January 2016, Mambu raised $8.7 million in funding in January 2016 in a round led by Acton Capital Partners and CommerzVentures, with the intention of using these funds to expand in Asia and the Americas.