The San Francisco-based online loan firm will pay US$185 million for Boston-based Radius Bank. LendingClub said it will break even after two years if the deal, which is expected to take up to 15 months to close, goes through. (The Logic)

Talking point: LendingClub is not only the first U.S. fintech to buy a bank—it’s also leapfrogging rivals like Square and Varo Money, which are looking to offer bank-like services by securing their own federal licences. Banks are able to offer a wider array of products than the fintechs seeking to take away their customers. LendingClub was a pioneer of personal online loans: it had the largest U.S. tech IPO in 2014, hitting an US$8.5-billion valuation. Its shares have dropped significantly since then—its current market cap is US$1.1 billion—but the firm is hoping today’s news will improve its prospects. LendingClub expects to save US$40 million a year in bank fees and other costs from the deal, and it will also be able to make money off the approximately US$1.4 billion in assets that Radius holds. In Canada, fintechs are offering bank-like products in an attempt to grow their market share. Both Wealthsimple and Koho have chequing accounts. U.K-based fintechs Revolut and TransferWise both have acquired money-service licences in Canada, as well.