Walmart expands financial services with new FinTech startup

With the aim of further growing its financial services offer, big box retailer Walmart Inc. has announced it is launching its own fintech startup in a joint venture enterprise with venture capital firm Ribbit Capital.  

Fusing the retail know-how and scale of the world’s largest retailer with the expertise of Ribbit Capital, the new company will be majority owned by Walmart, and will offer next-generation digital financial products for both the retailer’s employees and customers. 

“For years, millions of customers had put their trust in Walmart to not only save them money when they shop at Walmart, but also to help them manage their financial needs, and they’ve made it clear they want more from us in the financial services arena,” Walmart President and CEO John Furner said in a statement. 

While the company name is not yet known, nor the specific products it will develop, Furner did state that this brand-new venture would deliver “tech-driven financial experiences tailored to Walmart’s customers and associates” and with the technical expertise of investment company Ribbit Capital would “help us deliver needed and innovative options to our customers and associates, with speed and scale”. 

While Walmart has a number of financial products, including credit cards, cheque cashing, money transfers and instalment financing, under its retail belt, this is its first foray into fintech and as a result it plans to build a management team of “experienced fintech leaders”, read the statement. 

Managing partner Meyer Malka of Ribbit Capital, which has backed several well-known fintech startups including online stock market trading platform Robinhood, believes that a combination of Ribbit Capital’s deep knowledge of technology-driven financial businesses and ability to move at speed with Walmart’s mission and reach, will ultimately “deliver financial offerings that are second to none”.