Settle Group

Settle Group is a Norwegian, venture-backed financial-technology company headquartered in Oslo. Its business is focused on providing banks with technology that can be offered under the banks’ own brands, rather than primarily operating as a consumer-facing payments brand. The platform supports mobile payments, peer-to-peer transfers, peer-to-merchant transactions, and application programming interfaces intended to help financial institutions meet PSD2 open-banking requirements. The company was founded in 2010 under the name mCASH. It launched a mobile-payment platform in Norway in February 2014, at a time when the country was becoming one of the most advanced markets for smartphone-based payments. In October 2015, SpareBank 1 acquired the Norwegian mCASH service and retained the mCASH name for that service. The original company subsequently adopted the corporate name Auka. In early 2017, the mCASH service was integrated into Vipps, the mobile-payment platform developed by DNB, marking a significant change in the company’s original Norwegian consumer-payment footprint. Following the separation from the mCASH service, Auka broadened its focus from a domestic mobile-payment product to banking infrastructure. It developed white-label payment products, API-hosting capabilities, and PSD2-compliant services for banks in Norway and other European markets. The company’s software-as-a-service model was intended to allow financial institutions to launch branded payment experiences, acquire and retain customers, and create additional revenue opportunities without building an entire payment stack internally. The platform was designed to be independent of a particular mobile-network operator or smartphone operating system. Its peer-to-peer functionality could support payments identified through mobile telephone numbers, bank-account details, card numbers, or social-media profiles. Its peer-to-merchant functionality enabled retailers and small and medium-sized businesses to accept mobile payments. The company stated that its technology had been integrated by 17 Scandinavian banks. Auka also positioned its core technology as an open-banking platform. Its API catalogue was designed to support financial institutions affected by PSD2, the European Union’s revised Payment Services Directive, which required relevant institutions to provide compliant access to payment-account information and payment-initiation capabilities. The company described its platform as compliant with applicable financial-services requirements and reported that it was the first licensed financial-services company to operate entirely on Google Cloud Platform. The company attracted institutional venture funding, including a Series A round led by Northzone Ventures with participation from Entree Capital. During its Auka period, it received recognition in European fintech rankings and awards, including Deloitte’s Fast 500 EMEA and a 2017 European mobile-payments award from CFI magazine. In 2017, the company employed 26 people and was led by chief executive Daniel Döderlein. It later changed its name from Auka to Settle Group. Publicly supplied reference material does not establish its current ownership, leadership, website, financial performance, or operating status, so those details remain unconfirmed in this entry.

Settle Group originated in Norway in 2010 as mCASH, a company created around the emerging opportunity for smartphone-based payments. Norway subsequently became one of Europe’s most advanced environments for mobile-payment adoption, giving the company a favorable domestic market in which to develop and test its technology. In February 2014, mCASH launched its mobile-payment platform in Norway. The service was designed to support payments between individuals as well as transactions involving merchants. Its model connected smartphones with existing funding sources and was intended to work independently of a particular mobile-network operator or mobile operating system. A significant corporate and product transition occurred in October 2015, when SpareBank 1 acquired the Norwegian mCASH service. SpareBank 1 retained the mCASH name for the acquired service, while the original company adopted the name Auka. In early 2017, the mCASH service was integrated into Vipps, DNB’s payment platform. This separated the original mCASH consumer-service identity from the technology company that had developed it. Under the Auka name, the company changed its strategic emphasis. Rather than concentrating only on a branded Norwegian payment application, it developed white-label services that banks could present to their own customers. These services included mobile-payment functionality, peer-to-peer transfers, peer-to-merchant acceptance, and software delivered through a SaaS model. The company’s stated objective was to help banks acquire customers and generate revenue through branded digital-payment products. Auka also expanded into open banking and regulatory technology. Its platform included API-hosting capabilities and an API catalogue intended to help financial institutions meet PSD2 requirements. PSD2 required relevant European financial institutions to expose compliant interfaces for regulated third-party access to payment-account information and payment-initiation services. Auka’s technology was positioned as infrastructure that banks could use to address those requirements while also launching customer-facing services. The company attracted venture investment, including a Series A financing round led by Northzone Ventures and joined by Entree Capital. During 2016 and 2017, Auka received attention from European technology and fintech organizations. It was recognized in Deloitte’s Fast 500 EMEA, described by Business Insider as one of the prominent Nordic fintech startups, named European Mobile Payments Platform of the Year by CFI magazine, and included in the European Fintech Awards Top 100 for 2017. In 2017, the company employed 26 people and was led by chief executive Daniel Döderlein. It reported integrations with 17 Scandinavian banks and described its platform as the first licensed financial-services platform to run entirely on Google Cloud Platform. The company later adopted the name Settle Group, completing another stage in its evolution from a Norwegian mobile-payment provider into a bank-oriented financial-technology infrastructure business. The supplied reference material does not provide confirmed details about the exact rebranding date, current management, ownership, financial results, or present-day operations.

• 2017

  mCASH integrated into Vipps

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The mCASH service was integrated into Vipps, the payment platform developed by DNB.

• 2017

  Auka expands into PSD2 banking infrastructure

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Auka broadened its offering to include PSD2-compliant APIs, API hosting, and white-label services for banks in European markets.

• 2017

  European mobile-payments award

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Auka was named European Mobile Payments Platform of the Year by CFI magazine and included in the European Fintech Awards Top 100.

• 2016

  Auka receives high-growth fintech recognition

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Auka was recognized in Deloitte’s Fast 500 EMEA and identified by Business Insider among notable Nordic fintech startups.

• 2015

  SpareBank 1 acquires mCASH service

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  SpareBank 1 acquired the Norwegian mCASH service, while the original company later became Auka.

• 2014

  Norwegian mobile-payment launch

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  mCASH launched its mobile-payment platform in Norway in February.

• 2010

  Company founded as mCASH

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The Norwegian fintech company was established under the name mCASH.

• Rebrand from Auka to Settle Group

  [1]Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The company subsequently changed its name from Auka to Settle Group; the exact year is not specified in the supplied source.

A bank-focused, white-label fintech infrastructure provider offering mobile-payment and open-banking capabilities as software-as-a-service.

• Mobile payments

  White-label mobile-payment platform

  A bank-branded mobile-payment platform delivered as software-as-a-service. It was designed to let financial institutions provide payment experiences under their own identities while using Settle Group technology for transaction processing and customer-facing functionality.

• Mobile payments

  Peer-to-peer payments

  A person-to-person payment capability allowing users to transfer money through mobile devices. The platform could be configured to use identifiers such as telephone numbers, bank-account numbers, card numbers, or social-media profiles.

• Merchant payments

  Peer-to-merchant payments

  A mobile-payment service for retailers and small and medium-sized enterprises. It enabled merchants to offer customers the option of paying for goods or services with a smartphone.

• Open banking

  PSD2 API platform

  An API catalogue and hosting environment intended to help banks expose interfaces aligned with PSD2 open-banking requirements. The platform formed part of the company’s shift from a single mobile-payment service toward broader financial-infrastructure software.

• 2017

  Shift toward white-label banking infrastructureStrategy

  Background

  After the mCASH service transition, the company sought to serve banks beyond its original Norwegian consumer-payment product.

  Action taken

  Auka expanded into white-label mobile payments, API hosting, and PSD2-compliant open-banking services for European financial institutions.

  Aftermath

  The business was positioned as a bank-focused SaaS and fintech-infrastructure provider rather than only a consumer mobile-payment brand.

  Source

• 2015

  Separate the mCASH service through the SpareBank 1 transactionM&A

  Background

  SpareBank 1 acquired the Norwegian mCASH service, creating a distinction between the acquired payment service and the original technology company.

  Action taken

  The acquired service retained the mCASH name, while the original company rebranded as Auka.

  Aftermath

  The mCASH service was later integrated into Vipps, while Auka pursued bank infrastructure, white-label products, and PSD2 capabilities.

  Source

• Rebrand from Auka to Settle GroupStrategy

  Background

  The company subsequently changed its corporate brand after operating as Auka.

  Action taken

  It adopted the name Settle Group.

  Aftermath

  The rebrand marked the company’s later identity as a broader payments and banking-technology group. The exact timing and subsequent business developments are not established by the supplied reference.

  Source

• Unconfirmed

  Reported2021.04.07

  mCash and Visa partner to enable QR payments[2]mCash与Visa合作启用二维码支付island.lk

  mCash, SLT-MOBITEL’s mobile money arm, partnered with Visa to let mCash merchants accept Visa payments through LankaQR.

• Unconfirmed

  Reported2021.04.04

  mCash and Visa partner to enable Visa payments on LankaQR[3]mCash与Visa合作，在LankaQR上启用Visa支付ft.lk

  mCash partnered with Visa to let mCash merchants accept Visa payments through LankaQR.

Read more

1. 1Settle Groupen.wikipedia.org
2. 2mCash与Visa合作启用二维码支付island.lk
3. 3mCash与Visa合作，在LankaQR上启用Visa支付ft.lk