As 2025 Closes, Is It Time to Accelerate, Partner, or Exit?

Coming off the Global WealthTech Summit in London and Web Summit, I’ve been reflecting on the shifting mood among fintech founders. Twelve months ago, conversations centered on hunkering down and extending runway. But as we approach FY2025’s end, a new theme is emerging: Should we seize the M&A momentum or double down on growth? The chatter in London’s and Lisbon’s corridors was personal and candid, founders swapping stories of unexpected acquisition offers, rising valuations in certain fintech niches, and a cautious optimism that capital is (selectively) flowing again.

In this newsletter, I want to unpack these signals and what they mean for you, a founder of a revenue-generating fintech scale-up in Europe. No grandstanding, just an honest look at the landscape as you consider your next strategic move.

M&A Momentum and Inbound Interest

After a quiet 2022-23, fintech M&A is undeniably heating up. In Europe alone, disclosed fintech deal value in the first half of 2025 hit $3.9 billion, nearly double the total for all of 2024. Globally, 400+ fintech M&A deals have been announced year-to-date, a 5% increase YOY, putting 2025 on track to surpass 2024. It’s not just a few mega-deals skewing the numbers either – deal counts have held steady at ~50-60 transactions per quarter in fintech and mid-market momentum is real. In fact, buyers are largely targeting the “maturing middle tier” of fintech: companies with up to ~£100M in revenue that are growing steadily and often already profitable. These aren’t splashy unicorns like Klarna or Revolut, but commercially proven scale-ups, companies a lot like yours.

What’s driving this wave? In many cases, strategic acquirers (established banks, payment giants, larger fintech platforms) are on the hunt for fill-in capabilities and market expansion. Of the six biggest European fintech M&A deals over $100M in 2025, strategic buyers accounted for ~95% of the total value. Founders report that inbound interest is rising; it seems every week another peer gets a knock on the door from a would-be buyer. The logic is straightforward: for many of us in the middle tier, growth has become more expensive.

Hitting a growth ceiling can actually make an acquisition more attractive: your platform could be worth more in the hands of a big strategic that can instantly scale it or plug it into a broader offering. As one industry analysis put it, “The consolidation wave is no longer coming — it’s already reshaping the market in real time”, with buyers keen to fold fintech platforms into their ecosystems.

Notably, this isn’t just about huge players swallowing each other (we’ll skip the Goldman Sachs headlines and $20B mergers). The action is squarely in the mid-market and lower-mid-market, think acquisitions in the $20M–$500M range that founders like you can actually relate to. Recent examples include a UK trading app selling for £160M and a fraud detection scale-up bought by a payments company. These deals might not make front-page news, but they do move the needle for the teams and investors involved. The takeaway: strategic exit options are very much alive for fintech scale-ups, and valuations in many cases are trending up, not down.

Fintech Sector Signals: Valuations by Niche

Of course, “fintech” is broad, the dynamics differ by sector. Public market comps and recent deals provide a useful benchmark as you gauge your own strategic position. Overall, fintech valuations span a wide range, roughly ~2.5× EV/Revenue for mature, slower-growth businesses up to ~15× for high-growth crypto/blockchain plays.. Here’s a quick tour of key segments and what’s resonating in each:

• E-Commerce Enablement: Fintechs that power online commerce (payments gateways, BNPL platforms, merchant tools) are seeing healthy multiples. Public e-commerce enabler comps trade around 6× forward revenue and ~16× EBITDA, reflecting renewed investor appetite for digital commerce growth. These valuations are substantially above the fintech average EV/Revenue (~4×), signaling that if you’re helping businesses sell online, you could command a premium. Founders in this space report more inbound partnership offers as retail volumes stay robust post-pandemic.

• Cryptocurrency & Blockchain: After a rollercoaster couple of years, crypto-focused fintechs have rebounded in valuation. Many public crypto players now trade at 10–15× revenue – the high end of the spectrum.. The market seems to be pricing in future growth (and volatility); For founders building crypto infrastructure or digital asset platforms, this means rising valuations and potentially more capital availability, but also pressure to show a path to profitability. Strategic interest is picking up from mainstream financial services players dipping into blockchain, so an exit could attract a hefty multiple if you’ve proven your model (conversely, if you need funding to scale, investors are again willing to pay up, as long as they believe you’re a category-winner).

• Merchant Acquiring & Processing: This is the bread-and-butter of fintech payments – serving merchants with card acquiring, payment processing, POS systems, etc. It’s a more mature space, and the valuations reflect that maturity. Public merchant acquirers trade around 2.5–3× revenue and ~6–7× EBITDA. Growth rates here are lower, but these businesses throw off strong margins (40%+ EBITDA margins are common). Mid-market M&A is especially active in this value chain: larger payment companies and private equity firms are constantly looking to acquire processors to consolidate volume. For a founder, that means your exit multiple might not be eye-popping, but there are plenty of interested buyers if you’ve built a solid, profitable processor in a niche or region. Scale matters – the bigger players are scooping up smaller ones to expand geographically or vertically. If you’re sub-scale, consider whether partnering up could unlock the next stage of growth.

• Wallets & Payment Apps: Fintechs offering digital wallets, neo-banking, or mobile payment apps are still growing nicely (~20%+ revenue growth in public comps) and trade at modest but respectable multiples (roughly 2× forward revenue, ~8–10× EBITDA in the wallet-centric payments segment). The story here is user base and ecosystem: valuations hinge on active users and engagement. Strategics (think big banks or tech companies) are interested in wallet players when they bring a loyal user base or unique tech (as seen in a few deals where banks acquired fintech wallets to get younger customers). If you’re a founder in this space, you likely face a classic scale-up question: do I push for mass scale (possibly requiring significant capital and marketing), or do I align with a larger partner who already has scale? The current multiples suggest these businesses are valued more like consumer tech – reasonable revenue multiples, with extra credit for those who can show a path to strong monetization.

• Money Transfer / FX: Companies focused on remittances, cross-border payments, and foreign exchange are at the low end of the valuation range. Many trade at or near 1× revenue (essentially valued on their current sales) and mid-single-digit EBITDA multiples. It’s a tough, competitive market with thin margins, and growth has been flat for some incumbents. If you’re building in this space, you probably feel the pressure of high volume, low margin dynamics. The upside is that consolidation can be a way out, larger players or banks might acquire smaller FX fintechs to grab their licenses or customer base (even if at lower multiples). Also, any differentiation (like a digital-only approach, superior tech, or niche corridor focus) could help you punch above the baseline valuation. But realistically, investors and acquirers here will be looking at efficiency and scale. This may be a segment where partnering or merging for scale makes more sense than pouring money into customer acquisition.

• Other Payment Infrastructure & Processors: This catch-all includes specialized processors, B2B payment platforms, and niche services (fraud, loyalty, payouts, etc.). Valuations in this bucket tend to cluster around 2× revenue and ~10× EBITDA, though there’s variability depending on the exact business model. The common theme is “pick-and-shovel” fintech infrastructure not household names, but vital services that bigger fintech or bank platforms might want to bolt on. Founders here are often fielding interest from larger fintech companies that need to fill a product gap. If your KPIs are strong (e.g. sticky enterprise clients, developer adoption of your API, etc.), you could argue for a premium above these averages. On the flip side, purely SaaS-like metrics can help too: high recurring revenue and moderate growth might get valued more like software (potentially 4–5× revenue). Keep an eye on adjacent public comps and recent deal multiples to sanity-check any offers you get.

Key takeaway: Know where you stand relative to your sector’s benchmark multiples. If public peers trade at 5× revenue and 15× EBITDA, an acquirer is unlikely to pay you 10× revenue without compelling reasons. Likewise, if your niche is “hot” (crypto, e-commerce enablement, etc.), you might justify a richer valuation in your next fundraise or exit – use that as leverage. On the other hand, if your space is valued on fundamentals, be prepared for buyers to focus on your profitability and efficiency metrics. Public comps are by no means the whole story, but they’re a real-time reality check for what the market might bear.

Accelerate, Partner, or Exit? – A Year-End Reflection

With these trends in mind, now is the perfect moment to step back and ask: Where do I go from here? Broadly speaking, founders have three paths as we head into 2026:

• Exit (M&A): Finally, there’s the option that used to be taboo to say out loud: selling your company. Thanks to the uptick in fintech M&A, this option is more viable now than it has been in years. Importantly, selling doesn’t mean failure – not when you’ve created real value and can join forces with a partner to take it further. An exit can mean anything from a full acquisition by a larger fintech or bank, to a PE buyout that gives liquidity to you and your investors (and perhaps a second bite at the apple if they roll you into a larger platform). If you’ve been approached with offers, or even soft inquiries, it’s wise to evaluate them seriously. With fintech deal multiples averaging around 4–6× revenue (depending on sector) and strategic buyers willing to pay premiums for the right fit, you might find that an exit in the next 6-12 months could lock in an excellent outcome for all involved. One founder told me that after seeing peers struggle through downturns, the idea of de-risking via acquisition became a lot more attractive. It comes down to your personal goals and the belief that your product can have a bigger impact within a larger organization’s ecosystem. Just remember, the window can close: today’s favorable valuations and eager buyers may cool off if the macro environment shifts. If you’re leaning this way, consider engaging advisors or starting quiet conversations sooner rather than later.

• Accelerate (Go It Alone): If you believe your company has a clear path to increase scale and value, doubling down on growth is tempting. The good news is that capital is available, albeit selectively, to fuel that acceleration. After a slump, fintech funding has rebounded to “robust” levels in recent quarters. Q2’25 even saw a spike in fintech financing (payments companies globally raised ~$2.7B that quarter, the highest in years) before a pullback in Q3 to ~$1.8B (more typical of 2024 levels). Big late-stage rounds are back: for instance, UK-based payments firm Rapyd raised $500M in 2025 to fund an acquisition, and Airwallex secured $300M at a $6.2B valuation in May. Investors are showing they will write large checks for fintech leaders, especially in segments where valuations are rising. If your metrics are strong – say, solid revenue growth, improving unit economics, a sizable market – you might lean toward raising another round and keeping independent control. Just do so with eyes open: growth equity will expect you to hit ambitious targets, and the window for IPOs is only just starting to reopen. Accelerating on your own means betting that you can ultimately get a bigger outcome (whether via IPO or just a higher valuation later) than what a sale would net you now. It’s a risk-reward trade-off that depends on your conviction, your investors’ patience, and market conditions.

• Partner (Strategic Investment or Alliance): Between the extremes of going solo or selling outright, there’s often a middle path – partnering with a larger industry player. This could be a strategic minority investment, joint venture, or commercial partnership that gives you distribution and resources while you retain control. We’re seeing more incumbents take minority stakes in fintech scale-ups or form alliances (sometimes as a prelude to an acquisition down the line). If you’re getting inbound interest but not ready to sell, consider if there’s a way to test the waters: for example, could a big bank invest $20M for 10% and become a key distribution partner? Such arrangements can boost your credibility and reach, potentially bumping your valuation for a later round or simply buying you time to scale more efficiently. The downside is complexity – aligning with a corporate can slow you down or create expectations of an eventual sale. Still, in the current climate, some founders find this route attractive: you secure resources and validation without fully giving up the upside. It’s worth noting that many strategic investors are motivated by fear of missing out on innovation; they may accept being a junior partner now to keep an option on your future

Closing Thoughts: Don’t Wait for the Cycle to Turn

As FY2025 draws to an end, it’s a natural time to take stock. The market is sending mixed but encouraging signals – M&A activity is high, valuations in many fintech niches are rising, and even the funding faucet has opened a bit for top performers. For founders, the key is to be proactive. Reflect on your long-term vision: is this the moment to press the gas with a fresh capital raise, or to join forces with a bigger player for a combined future? There’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but doing nothing – simply drifting into 2026 without a strategic plan – is the one approach to avoid.

I’ll leave you with this call to action: consider your options before the market decides for you. The fintech landscape is cyclical. Today we’re in a favorable part of the cycle for sellers and fundraisers – but we all know how quickly tides can turn. By this time next year, we could be talking about a recession, or another valuation correction. So use the current momentum to your advantage. Even if you choose to stay independent, you’ll negotiate better (with VCs, partners, or acquirers) from a position of knowledge and preparedness.

Founders often ask, “How do I know if it’s the right time to exit?” While there’s no crystal ball, one practical gauge is to look at the public market comps and recent deals (we did that above), and to have frank discussions with your board and mentors about your growth trajectory versus those benchmarks. If the gap between what you have and what a strategic could offer is widening, an exit might be the smart move. If not, perhaps the better play is raising that next round and continuing to build. Either way, make it a deliberate choice.

As always, I aim to share what I’m seeing and hearing in our fintech community with an honest, founder-to-founder perspective. I hope these insights help inform your year-end strategic thinking. Whether you decide to accelerate, partner, or take the exit, now is the moment to reflect and plan – before the next cycle shifts beneath our feet. Here’s to ending 2025 on a high note, and to whatever exciting chapters lie ahead for you in 2026!

Don’t Be Shy

So here’s the point: before the year closes out, do you have someone outside the business who can give you that perspective? If not — you do now.

Don’t be shy. A quick conversation only helps you, and it strengthens the relationship.

Let’s make sure what you’re building aligns with where the market is going.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: [email protected]
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Securities Offered through Wellesley Hills Securities. Member FINRA/SIPC