\Fintech News/ French fintech begins 2021 with a bang as Pennylane raises $18.4m France hopes to compete with the UK to become Europe's fintech capital By Freya Pratty 7 January 2021 \Fintech 21 fintechs to watch in 2021, according to top founders By Isabel Woodford 20 January 2021 \Fintech News/ French fintech begins 2021 with a bang as Pennylane raises $18.4m France hopes to compete with the UK to become Europe's fintech capital By Freya Pratty 7 January 2021 France’s fintech year has got off to a flying start already with Paris-based Pennylane raising an $18.4m Series A round to expand its tools to help businesses navigate the financial repercussions of the pandemic. The company is part of a growing number of French fintechs and its raise comes after Cedric O, junior minister for digital economy, said he believed Paris could come to overtake London as the fintech capital in Europe, particularly in the context of Brexit. Paris is currently home to 1,200 fintechs, according to data from Dealroom, while London has three times as many, but an acceleration in funding in France suggests the country could catch up with its neighbour. Advertisement Pennylane, which was launched in January last year, raised the new investment from Global Founders Capital and Partech, who also participated in its seed round in May, raising $4.3m. The book keeping startup supplies businesses with real-time financial data, including information on purchasing, sales and banking transactions and aims to give financial managers more insight into their accounts than a third party accountant alone can offer. The idea is not to remove outsourced accountants entirely from the process, however. “For Pennylane, digital only solutions can do nothing, they must serve and empower managers and accountants,” said Arthur Waller, CEO and cofounder of Pennylane. Having a comprehensive, real-time understanding of finances will become more critical for businesses “in the context of crisis and forced digital transformation” brought on by the pandemic, Waller said. Pennylane’s services are now used by over 500 customers, all based in France, and it reported $2.4m in revenue at the end of last year. Freya Pratty covers news at Sifted. She tweets from @FPratty Advertisement Help Sifted get bigger and better (and get a sneak peak at our future plans). Please take our reader survey. Take the survey Terms of Use Related Articles The fintechs taking on Klarna in Europe By Isabel Woodford Click here to read more Monzo founder Tom Blomfield is quitting the digital bank after asking execs for “help” By Isabel Woodford Click here to read more 21 fintechs to watch in 2021, according to top founders By Isabel Woodford Click here to read more Meet Twisto, the Czech Republic’s answer to Klarna By Freya Pratty Click here to read more Get the best of Sifted in your inbox By entering your email you agree to Sifted’s Terms of Use Sign up to \Future Proof Sifted’s weekly \Corporate Innovation roundup email By entering your email you agree to Sifted’s Terms of Use Most Read 1 \Fintech Inside Revolut’s bid to become a bank 2 \Venture Capital Europe’s top climate tech investors 3 \Mobility Glovo partners with real estate investor to pile €100m into ‘dark stores’ 4 \Venture Capital Klarna cofounder Niklas Adalberth’s Norrsken Foundation launches €100m impact fund 5 \Mobility Last-mile-delivery startup Budbee raises €52m as ecommerce booms Join the conversation Subscribe Notify of new follow-up comments new replies to my comments
Monzo founder Tom Blomfield is quitting the digital bank after asking execs for “help” By Isabel Woodford Click here to read more