Istanbul, Turkey · Startup iyzico is an Istanbul-founded payment processor and merchant-acquiring platform that became Turkey's most visible fintech exit when it was acquired by Naspers-owned PayU in 2019 for around USD 165 million, at the time one of the largest fintech deals in Turkish history. Founded in 2013 by Barbaros Özbugutu and Tahsin Isin, iyzico built a developer-friendly API stack for accepting card payments, recurring billing, marketplace split payments, and fraud detection in the Turkish market, and layered a 'buy now, pay later' product on top that became a default installment option for thousands of Turkish e-commerce merchants. Even inside PayU, iyzico continues to operate as the Turkish merchant payments brand and has expanded into additional financial services, making it a canonical reference for how a CEE/MENA fintech can convert a tough local regulatory environment into a defensible commercial wedge.
Prague, Czech Republic · Startup Twisto is a Prague-based fintech founded in 2013 by Michal Smida, offering buy-now-pay-later and digital payment solutions across Central Europe. The platform allows consumers to defer payments at checkout and manage spending via a mobile app and virtual card, while merchants benefit from higher conversion rates. Twisto expanded into Poland and Romania before being acquired by Zip Co (Australia) in 2022 for approximately $97 million. The company helped pioneer BNPL adoption in CEE and remains a notable Czech fintech exit story.
London, United Kingdom · Startup Zilch is a London-based fintech founded in 2018 that offers a buy-now-pay-later and payments app funded partly by advertising, letting customers pay over time at any merchant while earning rewards. It reached unicorn status and reports over one hundred million pounds of annualised revenue, positioning itself as an ad-subsidised alternative to traditional credit.