Recent news that BBVA is shutting down neobank Simple, that it had acquired for $117 million a few years ago, is telling us one thing: banks cannot buy their way into innovation. It is a pity because at the time of the acquisition in 2014, Simple was a neobank at the forefront of the US fintech industry. As we have said before, partnerships between banks and fintechs can be a good idea. But that’s not the same thing as an acquisition though. The execution is slightly more complicated with the latter.
Read more about it here 👉 https://fintechreview.net/why-banks-cannot-buy-their-way-into-innovation/