Walmart Creates Fintech Partnership With Ribbit Capital

The new company will be majority-owned by Walmart, and the board will include the CEO of Walmart U.S. John Furner, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Brett Biggs, as well as Meyer Malka Owner, Managing Partner of Ribbit Capital.

Ribbit has supported several well-known fintech startups, including digital brokerage firm Robinhood Markets Inc.,buy-now-pay-later lender Affirm Inc. And personal-finance website karma inc.

Shares of Wal-Mart were up 1.3% in after-hours trading. Retailer inventory has increased by nearly 27% in the last 12 months.

 Walmart said it expects the new company's growth to come through partnerships and acquisitions with leading fintech firms. Walmart's current financial services offerings, which it says it will continue to offer, include a reloadable credit and debit card, cash transfers, and check to cash. In prepared remarks, Mr. Furner said his clients "have made it clear that they want more from us in the financial services business."

In the mid-2000s, Walmart followed an industrial loan charter from banking regulators, which would have allowed it to operate a banking unit. Faced with enormous resistance from the traditional banking industry, Walmart eventually abandoned the effort.

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