Fintech powerhouse: Understanding the rise of Singapore
Singapore has emerged as a global magnet for fintech entrepreneurs.
Financial Services/Finserv
Video: Top fintech stories this week – 27 March 2020
FinTech Futures’ weekly news round-up.
SoftBank attacks Moody’s after debt downgrade
Moody’s cited SoftBank’s “aggressive financial policy” as it cut its rating from Ba1 to Ba3.
DataGuard raises $20m in Series A to provide GDPR-as-a-Service
The Munich-based firm claims to already have 1,000 customers.
Coronavirus: FCA announcements round-up
We collated a round-up of these notices to assist our readers on COVID-19 updates.
Cash flow firm Plastiq raises $75m in Series D funding round
Plastiq has raised more than $140m in funding since its founding in 2012.
VoxSmart raises £5.5m from NatWest in Series B funding round
Surveillance firm completes its second round since 2006 founding.
US Fed Reserve & ECB ramp up bond buying to steady markets
Fed pledged to buy unlimited amount whilst ECB eyes up €750bn additional bonds.
Coronavirus: UK cash usage halves during pandemic
Shop closures, contactless and hygiene concerns taking its toll on cash.
Spanish regulators approve $2.8bn SIX takeover bid for BME
SIX has been going head-to-head with Euronext for the Spanish exchange firm.
CFTC publishes final guidance on cryptocurrency actual delivery
The CFTC announces new guidance after lengthily market consultation.
Refinitiv invests in Microsoft Teams partner ModuleQ
The two firms have held a partnership since 2018.
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.
Barclays makes new executive hires in Asia Pacific
Carrie Chen and Sung-Min Chung join the bank to boost its client footprint.
N26 expects 70% of bank branches to disappear in 10 years
The coronavirus is accelerating a permanent change in consumer behaviour, says N26.
Moven shuts all consumer accounts, pivots to B2B-only service for banks
Founder says “major multi-year funding” was withdrawn due to coronavirus.
TransferGo hires former Revolut man as new compliance chief
Francesco Fulcoli will work on KYC, AML and CFT for the remittance firm.
UK auto-saving app Chip lands authorisation from FCA
The app has seen an influx of savers using its platform as of late.
Remaking traditions to reinvent industries
Innovation and the need for diversity.
Love in the time of COVID-19
Amazing teams have teams that care. That’s how leadership works. It’s a team sport.
OpenPayd appoints Fidor founder as senior advisor
Matthias Kröner joins the firm to drive its international plans.
Australian telco ZipTel buys up challenger bank Douugh
Douugh uses AI to help customers get better insights on their money.
Brex acquires trio of San Francisco start-ups
Neji, Landria, and Compose Labs all brought under the Brex umbrella
Russia’s PM introduces new bill for fintech sandboxes
These new sandboxes will be subject to lighter regulations.
Survey: Corporate Banking & APIs – the state of play
Are there concrete API plans and strategies in place? We’d greatly appreciate your input in this survey.
Draft coronavirus stimulus bill considers ‘digital dollar’ to help unbanked
House Democrats have drafted a bill which, if enacted, would create a ‘digital dollar’.
Erste Bank Hungary integrates OneSpan into mobile banking
The bank hopes to keep transactions secure and comply with PSD2.
Aussie challenger Xinja lands $255m from Emirates’ World Investments
Xinja will receive the bulk of the investment over 24 months.
big xyt hires SocGen’s Richard Hills
Data analytics firm snaps up electronic equities trading man.
US non-bank financial firms push Congress for SME lending relief
Legislators are currently working on a bill which addresses small business loans.
Revolut heads stateside with US launch
The London-based unicorn expands to North America.
UK contactless limit raised to £45 to prevent coronavirus cash handling
“The changes were already under consideration by the industry,” says UK Finance
HSBC joins Alibaba to offer Hong Kong’s online merchants quick loans
This is the first time HSBC will use third-party data to approve trade finance loans.
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.
National Bank of Canada migrates Murex system to Amazon Web Services
Major Canadian bank shifts MX.3 to the Amazon cloud.
Will Asia’s Big Tech European expansion stick?
Asia’s mega funding rounds make Europe’s look like child play.
Are enhanced security procedures more important than faster payments?
The industry is doing all it can to fulfil the SCA requirements laid out by the EBA.
World Bank issues $300m loan to boost Indonesian financial sector
International bank seeks to support Indonesian fintech and banks.
Path Solutions signs Somalian challenger MyBank for iMAL core
Path Solutions says it now has a “stronger focus” on the Somali market.
