What happened: A few days ago, I came across a LinkedIn post from Auric founder Koen, who described their pivot from a B2C Fintech app to an Embedded Finance infrastructure provider (LinkedIn).
My comment: Auric, previously known as Bonsai, started as a Fintech app for Gen Z and Millennials and reached over 100,000 registered members with more than 50,000 linked bank accounts and issued payment cards. However, B2C can be a tough business, and the team soon realised that other companies struggled with the implementations they had built. This resulted in their pivot to B2B and rebrand from Bonsai to Auric. The company now offers loyalty and payment services, for which it has partnered with Mastercard, Monavate, Marqeta, and Checkout.com.
Most notably, it announced a partnership with football team Club Brugge. While concrete details are still missing, Club Brugge seems to leverage Auric’s loyalty and payment components to increase connections between the club and fans. Sports is often used as a B2C area where financial services can be leveraged, and some infrastructure providers have a specific focus on this area.
Personal note: Writing about infrastructure providers is always a fine line. On the one hand, they are an essential pillar in the market, and all Embedded Finance products leverage at least one of these providers. On the other hand, when I write about one, some readers might believe I am biased or consider the content a sales pitch.
That said, I have already decided to publish more content about infrastructure providers, and I will figure out how to make the content relevant and educational. But I do wonder what the best format is. Maybe you can help me?
