Top 5 VC Deals of the Week in Fintech (10/20/25)

Overview: This week (Oct 14–20 2025) witnessed a resurgence in fintech investment as global venture capital backed five standout deals, spanning AI-powered banking, crypto rails, embedded payments and digital advice platforms—highlighting renewed investor appetite in the space.

Key Highlights:

• $165 M for Upgrade, Inc. – U.S. consumer-finance fintech raised US$165 million at a ~$7.3 billion pre-money valuation, signalling confidence in credit-driven fintech.

• $65 M for Campfire – An AI-powered accounting/fintech startup closed a US$65 million Series B round to accelerate growth in the embedded-finance stack.

• $50 M each for Yendo & Jito – Two fintechs — one focusing on vehicle-secured credit and digital banking, the other on DeFi infrastructure for the Solana ecosystem — each secured US$50 million, underscoring diversity across the sector.

Top 5 VC Deals in Fintech (10/14–10/20/25)

1. Upgrade, Inc. – United States (Equity round)
   Overview: U.S.-based consumer finance fintech offering credit cards, loans and savings tools; preparing for IPO.
   Amount Raised: US$165 million
   Lead Investors: Not fully disclosed; verified valuation ~US$7.3 billion pre-money.

2. Campfire – United States (Series B)
   Overview: AI-enabled fintech/accounting startup raising for embedded finance growth and scaling its platform.
   Amount Raised: US$65 million
   Lead Investors: Accel (lead).

3. Yendo – United States (Series B)
   Overview: Dallas-based fintech focusing on vehicle-secured credit and transitioning toward a broader digital bank to serve underserved Americans.
   Amount Raised: US$50 million
   Lead Investors: Spice Expeditions, Autotech Ventures, Pelion Venture Partners, Mark Cuban and others.

4. Jito Foundation – United States / Crypto-DeFi (Token sale / funding)
   Overview: Infrastructure play in the Solana ecosystem, securing funding to expand DeFi rails and crypto wallet/settlement platforms.
   Amount Raised: US$50 million
   Lead Investors: a16z crypto (lead).

5. Basis Theory – United States (Series B)
   Overview: Fintech infrastructure startup enabling commerce/finance use-cases with APIs; raised to scale operations and product.
   Amount Raised: US$33 million
   Lead Investors: Costanoa (lead), participation from other VCs.