Tensec Raises $12 Million to Promote Real-Time X-Border Payments

Cross-border payments FinTech Tensec raised $12 million in new funding.

The financing will help the company provide payments and financial services for companies in the $190 trillion cross-border payments market, according to a Wednesday (June 18) press release. These companies will be able to access real-time payments and transaction banking services that have typically been available only via large financial institutions.

“SMBs drive nearly half of global trade but have long been excluded from the financial tools that larger players rely on,” Tensec CEO and co-founder Helcio Nobre said in the release, referring to small- to medium-sized businesses. “We’re flipping the model by empowering global trading companies to deliver these services directly to their partners — making global commerce faster, cheaper and more accessible.”

Tensec’s platform uses artificial intelligence, real-time payments and global FinTech infrastructure to allow trading companies to offer foreign exchange (FX) services, cross-border payments, treasury and other financial services to their SMB customers, the release said.

While there has been FinTech innovation in consumer and enterprise payments, SMB cross-border payments lag behind, even though they make up more than 40% of the $25 trillion annual physical goods trade, per the release.

“Legacy banks built their cross-border infrastructure when fax machines were cutting-edge,” Nobre said in the release. “We’re skipping that entire stack. Our services let the companies already engaged in global trade offer their own financial services innovations.”

PYMNTS examined some of the challenges facing SMBs earlier this month, noting that many of these firms seem reluctant to use digital wallets to ease their cross-border payment pains.

The PYMNTS Intelligence report “Global Money Movement: U.S. Edition” found that the reasons given by SMBs for this reluctance are pragmatic. One-third of businesses pointed to the lack of digital wallets as an industry standard, while more than a quarter were concerned about whether international partners can accept the method.

Security remains an ongoing concern, mentioned by close to a third of non-adopting businesses. Integration, complexity and regulatory uncertainty also factor into decision making.

“Still, the disconnect presents an opportunity for financial service providers,” PYMNTS wrote June 12. “Digital wallet platforms and FinTechs that can streamline onboarding, clarify compliance and provide seamless interoperability across global networks stand to gain by converting an underserved business segment.”

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