Minna Technologies pilots subscription management for RBI’s Tatra banka
The pilot is part of RBI’s ‘Elevator Lab Programme’.
Consumer/Personal Finance
Trump’s COVID-19 stimulus plan needs to swap checks for digital dollars
The potential for a CBDC to make such disbursements more efficient and effective is multi-faceted.
Top 10 coronavirus initiatives by fintechs
Many fintechs have used this pandemic as an opportunity to show their mettle.
Top 10 coronavirus initiatives by governments and regulators
A brief overview of how governments and financial regulators have reacted to coronavirus.
Chime pilots instant $1,200 stimulus check payments
The US government plans to distribute stimulus checks from 13 April.
Banking Technology April 2020 issue out now
All things equal: Closing the gender gap in fintech.
Consumer fintech SoFi to acquire Galileo for $1.2 billion
Both CEOs say now is “the right time” for this deal.
Free Senegal migrates to Comviva to boost mobile money offering
The mobile network operator has 4.4 million subscribers for its digital wallet.
Coronavirus exposes gaps in innovation
The pandemic has given fintechs a time to shine.
Video: Top fintech stories this week – 03 April 2020
FinTech Futures’ weekly news round-up.
Manchester’s fintech scene needs a homegrown unicorn, says report
Manchester is already home to five homegrown ecommerce unicorns.
bunq promises its users “CO2 free” status in less than two years
The fintech is introducing a new upgrade called ‘SuperGreen’.
Banking industry publishes EU payments plan post-coronavirus
The paper puts a heavy emphasis on instant payments.
Trustonic lands security deal with South Korea’s biggest bank
“KB Bank are taking a more open market approach,” says Trustonic.
Japanese challenger Kyash lands $45m Series C
To date, the fintech has raised $73 million since its creation in 2015.
Virtual bank Airstar launches pilot in Hong Kong
The digital bank will onboard roughly 2,000 customers.
Plaid and Microsoft partner to turn Excel into a fintech app
“One of the earliest forms of ‘fintech’ is a budgeting spreadsheet,” says Plaid.
Phyre secures $1.7m to develop its e-wallet in Bulgaria
The fintech works with two major telcos in Bulgaria.
Canadian financial planner Finally to launch in May
“People don’t want to tell strangers how bad they’re doing with their finances,” says founder.
Moven shuts all consumer accounts, pivots to B2B-only service for banks
Founder says “major multi-year funding” was withdrawn due to coronavirus.
Australian telco ZipTel buys up challenger bank Douugh
Douugh uses AI to help customers get better insights on their money.
Dublin start-up My Money Jar lands investment from Enterprise Ireland
The fintech has raised a total of $1.4 million.
Russia’s PM introduces new bill for fintech sandboxes
These new sandboxes will be subject to lighter regulations.
Aussie challenger Xinja lands $255m from Emirates’ World Investments
Xinja will receive the bulk of the investment over 24 months.
UK contactless limit raised to £45 to prevent coronavirus cash handling
“The changes were already under consideration by the industry,” says UK Finance
UK challengers Revolut and Monzo combat claims they are going bust
Revolut dubs the claims “fake news”, and Monzo says it is “here to stay”.
Fronted, 11:FS and Credit Kudos create ‘Covid Credit’ for self-employed
Covid Credit uses open banking data to help the self-employed get income relief.
Will Asia’s Big Tech European expansion stick?
Asia’s mega funding rounds make Europe’s look like child play.
ID Finance’s revenues hit $86.6m across Spain, Brazil and Mexico
“Despite macroeconomic volatility, the company plans to continue its growth,” says CEO.
Mastercard set to propel bunq’s Green Card throughout Europe
The cards have seen a CO2 reduction of roughly 30.8 million kg so far.
Will regulators make an example of trading unicorn Robinhood?
“We don’t think they were set up to do it properly,” says class action lawyer.
Neobank for America’s middle-class One lands $17m Series A
The 40-person challenger has opened early access to its private beta.
US challenger Cogni to create lifestyle hub, starting with banking
The challenger wants to be the ultimate “operating system” for lifestyle.
Revolut launches accounts for under-18s in the UK
Only the children of Premium and Metal account holders will have access.
Cyber-incidents are on the rise: What can your firm do to defend itself?
Senior management should ask themselves five key questions.
Crypto start-up Bakkt lands $300m Series B from Microsoft and PayU
The fundraising was closed last Friday, the same day Bitcoin experienced a multi-month low.
Underpinned helps companies pay freelancers with Banked
“The number of people choosing freelance work has grown rapidly,” says UnderPinned CEO.
Amazon VP Maria Renz joins Californian fintech SoFi
For a time, Renz was Bezos’ first and only female adviser.
Over one million users migrate from Yes Bank’s to ICICI Bank’s UPIs
The collapse of Yes Bank is causing ripple effects for UPI partners.
UK challenger ikigai to launch flat-fee investment account
“I think the pain points are quite similar across different income levels,” says co-founder.
