Brazil Super App Inter Acquires FinTech Usend

Brazilian super app Inter announced Tuesday (Jan. 25) that it has received authorizations in both the U.S. and Brazil to purchase Usend, a U.S. FinTech.

Inter provides both financial and non-financial services to its clients, while Usend’s digital money transfer platform allows users to send international transactions to over 60 destination countries.

Additionally, the FinTech offers an American digital account for both individuals and companies to make transfers in U.S. dollars. Per the release, it processes payments from numerous international platforms in Brazil, including Payoneer, Google, Airbnb, Hotmart, Taboola, Udemy and more.

The acquisition will let Inter bolster and strengthen its position among U.S. FinTechs and add new products and services. The company plans to roll out Inter’s Super App capabilities to U.S. clients, including its marketplace and cashback.

According to the release, integrating the companies will help build a new platform offering financial and other types of services for immigrant clients living abroad, Brazilian clients who want to access international products and U.S. residents who want to use it.

“Our digital account will allow the client to buy its air ticket, transfer U.S. dollars to the international account and pay its expenses in the trip, all in a single app,” Inter CEO João Vitor Menin said in the announcement. “And these are just the first steps. Our planning includes an international account for U.S. residents that is scheduled to be launched in the second semester.”

The idea of a “super app” has gained popularity as of late, and PayPal hopped on the bandwagon late last year with its own app, which came with promises of a new “connected economy” to bridge gaps.

See also: PayPal’s New Super-App Positioned to Deliver Next-Level Connected Experience

PayPal president and CEO Dan Schulman told PYMNTS that it would result in much less need for “40 or 50 apps” on one’s phone, through consolidating various things people need.