Vancouver’s capital markets regulator surveys fintech firms
The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) wants to serve the fintech firms in the state better.
Innovation
Siam Commercial Bank to invest $1.1 billion in fintech
Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) intends to invest about THB 40 billion ($1.1 billion) in creating, acquiring and developing its technology infrastructure over the next three years. The Thailand-based bank says this investment will help it provide products and services that are better suited to serving its younger and more affluent clients. SCB’s innovation-focused subsidiary, Digital […]
Google’s AI software beats humans at writing AI software
Economists worry that artificial intelligence (AI) could make many workers obsolete. Now, AI researchers could be putting their own jobs at risk. Researchers at Google and elsewhere are writing AI software that’s better than humans at writing AI software, reports Light Reading (Banking Technology‘s sister publication). Researchers at the Google Brain artificial intelligence research group […]
Fintech funding round-up: 23 January 2017
Want to save some time but be in the know of the latest funding initiatives in the fintech space? Then read on. Featuring Habito, Dwolla and H2 Ventures.
Deloitte opens blockchain lab in Dublin
Deloitte has launched its new EMEA blockchain lab at Whitaker Court in Dublin’s “Silicon Docks” district in the Republic of Ireland. The new lab follows Deloitte’s recent lab launch in New York. At that time, Eric Piscini, principal with Deloitte Consulting, said 2017 could be its “make-or-break year” for blockchain. The Dublin-based blockchain team will […]
IBM: AI needs more than just technology
Artificial intelligence (AI) on its own isn’t enough to compete – companies need industry-specific solutions to business problems. So said Martin Schroeter, IBM’s senior vice-president and chief financial officer, on the company’s quarterly earnings call.
Samba Bank to go paperless with BenchMatrix
Pakistan-based Samba Bank has signed for BenchMatrix’s retail loan origination system, RiskNucleus LOS. The solution will automate the bank’s consumer lending processes across its entire network of 37 branches and facilitate “moving towards a fully paperless environment”, BenchMatrix says.
Singapore’s POSB launches banking chatbot
POSB, one of Singapore’s oldest banks and part of the DBS Banking Group, has launched an online virtual assistant. It is powered by the KAI conversational bot/AI platform from a New York-based fintech start-up, Kasisto.
Fifth Third Bank teams with QED Investors for fintech innovation
Fifth Third Bank is partnering with venture capital (VC) firm QED Investors to bring new products and services to their banking customers. The VC firm will advise the Ohio-based bank and support its NorthStar strategy to “enhance offerings through technology”. Tim Spence, executive vice-president and chief strategy officer for Fifth Third Bank says the partnership […]
New investment firm Motive Partners to focus solely on fintech
New venture Motive Partners plans to invest in fintech firms in the UK and US. It looks to raise $150 million.
FIs and fintechs set up new industry group, Consumer Financial Data Rights
Financial services and fintech firms in the US come together to form a new industry group – Consumer Financial Data Rights (CFDR) – “to defend consumers’ access to their data and fuel innovation in fintech”.
Fintech tour Hong Kong: Blueprint for start-up success
Hong Kong-based tech accelerator Blueprint is calling out to the region and the world for start-up applicants.
Top fintech stories this week – 20 January 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Fintech tour Hong Kong: Ayannah triumphs in start-up final
Philippines-based Ayannah, a provider of financial services to migrants and the unbanked, was the overall start-up winner in the Next Money Fintech Finals 2017 in Hong Kong.
Finra highlights possibilities of blockchain tech for the securities industry
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (Finra), a non-governmental organisation that regulates member brokerage firms and exchange markets in the US, has published an extensive report, evaluating the implications of blockchain for the securities industry.
Blockchain can help investment banks save $8bn per year, Accenture says
Accenture and operations benchmarking consultancy firm McLagan evaluate the applications of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in investment banking operations in the “Banking on Blockchain” report.
Rabobank to modernise payments ops with ACI Worldwide
Rabobank is implementing ACI Worldwide’s UP Immediate Payments solution to support SEPA instant payments.
Financial innovation – a lifeline for SME funding
Financial innovation is unlocking additional funding for small businesses that have been declined by their bank. Katrin Herrling, co-founder and CEO of Funding Xchange, explores.
Fintech tour Hong Kong: Park and ride
Park and ride? A visit to the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) and an opportunity for fintechs to ride the start-up wave.
CMA comments on current account switching plans & VocaLink’s takeover by Mastercard
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in the UK has accepted undertakings from the Bacs payment scheme that commit it to delivering the improvements required by the CMA retail banking market investigation within a year.
Single point of access to all real-time payments schemes worldwide from ACI
Payments software and services vendor ACI Worldwide says its latest version of UP Immediate Payments provides “single point of access to all immediate payments schemes globally”.
Schroders in digital drive with Capriza
Global asset manager Schroders has selected Capriza’s enterprise mobility platform “to power its drive to digitisation”, according to the vendor.
HSBC to capitalise on tech innovation with technology advisory board
HSBC has appointed a technology advisory board of top-level specialists from around the globe as the banking giant is keen to capitalise on opportunities in artificial intelligence (AI), biometrics, blockchain and data science, combat cybercrime and leverage its global infrastructure.
Fintech tour Hong Kong: Spirit levels and start-ups
Hong Kong is telling its citizens and the world that fintech start-ups are welcome to do business and capitalise on the nation’s entrepreneurial spirit.
Smooth Commerce and Visa first in Canada for Visa Developer Programme
Smooth Commerce and Visa have completed the first integration of Visa’s Developer Programme in Canada and brought to market “a first of its kind innovation” in the mobile commerce space.
Fintech funding round-up: 17 January 2017
They said it. We read it. We edited. A round-up of the latest funding efforts in the fintech and payments space. Featuring Kasisto, BillGO, Gumption Labs and Fraugster.
Video: Banking Technology Awards 2016
Our dazzling event gathered together over 260 banking and financial technology specialists from all over the world – recognising the excellence and innovation in the use of IT in financial services, and of course the people that make it happen! Join us at the 2017 awards, which will be held at a 5-star venue in London in Q4 this year.
RosEvroBank builds blockchain platform for remote customer identification
RosEvroBank, a top-50 bank in Russia, has created a prototype of a blockchain-based system that enables remote verification of customers for other financial institutions. The decentralised system is built on the Microsoft’s Ethereum Consortium Blockchain infrastructure.
Five Degrees and SEI provide tech to new digital investment service, Munnypot
Munnypot, a new robo-advice and investment service in the UK, has fully launched with tech support from a number of partners.
RBI investigates blockchain for financial applications in India
The Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT), set up by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has recently issued a whitepaper, “Applications of Blockchain Technology to Banking and Financial Sector in India”. We summarise the report and highlight the key findings.
The White House unveils fintech framework for US
The National Economic Council (NEC) of the US, part of the Office of White House Policy, has published a whitepaper, “A Framework for Fintech”.
The Monday mindset: 16 January 2017
Fintech zeitgeist! Welcome to the first in a new series of brief reports. Every Monday, we might look back at last week; look ahead to this week; share a few thoughts (our own or others); or discuss anything that catches our eye. Anything goes, so here goes. Rome versus Carthage. Britain versus France. History shows […]
One in four UK card payments now contactless
According to the UK Cards Association, a trade body for the country’s card payments industry, a quarter of all card transactions are now made via contactless in the UK. 325 million purchases, altogether worth £2.9 billion, were made using contactless debit and credit cards in November 2016.
Seven European banks join forces for blockchain platform for SMEs
Seven European banks – Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Natixis, KBC, Rabobank, Société Générale and UniCredit – have agreed in principle to develop a blockchain-based shared platform for domestic and international commerce for SMEs.
BNP Paribas Wealth Management goes for digital client experience and “pizza” teams
BNP Paribas Wealth Management has unveiled its new Client Experience venture co-created with customers and fintech firms. The initiative focuses on digital solutions as the bank is keen to “create a new wealth management experience”.
Yes Bank opens fintech accelerator programme for start-ups
India’s Yes Bank is inviting fintech start-ups to take part in its Yes Fintech Accelerator Programme. The application process is open until 2nd February 2017.
Fintechs making strides in PSD2
In November last year, German fintech firm figo completed a financing round that totalled €6.8 million. Figo has developed a banking application programming interface (API) and various products and services related to the Payment Services Directive 2 (PSD2). It is just one of the many fintech firms that are poised to grab the considerable opportunities that PSD2 opens.
Wearable technology in investment banking: watch your money on your watch
How can wearable technology be made popular in investment/wealth management services? We suggest a number of features that can create value and relevance to individual traders and wealth managers, if made available on smartwatch trading apps.
Europe a pushover for machine takeover
In another example of glacial bureaucracy, a committee from the European Parliament has written a report which recommends a meeting about robots and artificial intelligence (AI).
Blockchain incubator Adel unveils P2P retail banking network
Blockchain incubator Adel has unveiled its project framework for people to create a peer-to-peer (P2P) network in retail banking. The firm says it will work in the “same way as Airbnb and Uber revolutionised the hospitality and taxi industries”. “Anyone with a car can be a taxi. Anyone with accommodations can be a hotel. Anyone […]
