Decisions in the right places (or why I wrote that book of mine)
Changing habits and everyday ways of working shouldn’t be a CEO initiative. It’s everyone’s job.
Innovation
Buy now, worry about it later: the future of BNPL
Buy now, pay later – is there a more apt fintech application for our times than BNPL?
Aussie paytech DataMesh lands $30m Series A led by NAB Ventures
Additional investors in the Series A round were Deutsche Bank and 1835i Ventures.
Riyad Bank taps SunTec for e-invoicing integration with Saudi tax office
The integration allows banks to share standardised e-invoices with Saudi tax office Fatoora.
National Australia Bank builds its own fintechs
A closer look at how National Australia Bank’s approach to innovation has evolved in recent years.
Hong Kong proposes tighter rules for digital asset exchanges
The proposed framework will bring virtual assets in line with securities brokers and automated trading venues.
Dutch challenger Bunq becomes first EU neobank to report a quarterly profit
Bunq reported a pre-tax profit of €2.3 million over Q4 2022.
European Commission launches blockchain regulatory sandbox
While blockchain is known for crypto, the Commission says the tech has a “wider utility” beyond financial services.
Bank of Russia to launch digital ruble pilot in April
Olga Skorobogatova, first deputy chair of the central bank, announced the news.
State of play: neobanks
Neobanks as a sector are now approaching their teenage years and quickly maturing.
Interview: How Opus is leading the financial services sector forward to a more sustainable future
“The way I see it, the fintech landscape has never looked better,” says TM Praveen, CEO of Opus.
Extended deadline announced for Banking Tech Awards USA 2023 nominations
The new deadline for nominations is now Friday, 24 February 2023. Apply today!
Bank of Japan to launch CBDC pilot programme in April
The pilot will test the technical feasibility of a CBDC and leverage the “skills and insights” of private industry.
FSB to study DeFi’s potential stability risks and vulnerabilities
The FSB states that “specific features” of DeFi may see some of its vulnerabilities “play out differently”.
Solving the cybersecurity puzzle
FinTech Futures speaks to City University of London’s Raj Muttukrishnan and Crossword’s Stuart Jubb.
AI regtech WorkFusion names Arthur Mueller VP of financial crime
Mueller joins from Rabobank North America where he served as AML and sanctions officer for more than six years.
Demystifying digital transformation
There are a lot of parallels among the big banks in terms of why digital transformation is so complicated.
Video: Highlights from the exclusive global launch of Leda Glyptis’ book, Bankers Like Us
Take a look at the highlights from Leda Glyptis’ global book launch.
Global fintech investment drops 31% in 2022 from record 2021 high
Despite the drop, it was still the third-best year for fintech investment ever.
Unity Small Finance Bank taps M2P for core banking upgrade
The Indian bank will deploy M2P’s Turing CBS offering.
Dubai’s VARA outlines new virtual asset framework
VARA says the new framework will offer “regulatory certainty”, giving market participants greater clarity.
Confronting confrontation
If you don’t like confrontation, get better at it. So you can at least only have it once and move on.
New app Tapeeno turns Android phones into card readers
Tapeeno “significantly” reduces the funding delay most businesses experience, the firms claim.
Dragonfly makes C-level hires as firm expands partnerships and portfolio
Alongside the senior appointments, the firm says it has also expanded its development and product teams.
Digital asset infrastructure provider Taurus lands $65m Series B
Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Pictet Group and Arab Bank Switzerland all participated in the round.
What the FinTech? | S.4 Episode 2 | Space Bank and financial inclusion
In this episode, we’re joined by Nika Kurdiani, deputy CEO at TBC Bank and CEO of Space International.
Swiss digital asset fintech Scrypt names Marc Wäckerlin as CTO
Most recently, Wäckerlin was CTO and executive director at Swiss crypto bank Sygnum.
Banking Tech Awards 2022 Winner: Updraft – Best Digital Initiative for Lending
Reinventing financial planning and disrupting unsecured lending markets.
Global ID verification platform ID-Pal names Tim Murphy as board chair
Murphy will be tasked with developing ID-Pal’s growth strategy and overseeing its governance requirements.
UAE’s central bank launches financial services digital transformation programme
The UAE is aiming to become a “financial and digital payment hub”.
Ghana’s Fortek partners Codebase for Digibanc platform
It is hoped the partnership will “accelerate digitisation” and boost entrepreneurship in Africa.
The future of financial services depends on global connectivity
To establish interoperability in global payments, a balance must be struck between collaboration and competition.
FinTech Futures: Top five stories of the week – 10 February 2023
Here’s our pick of five of the top news stories from the world of finance and tech this week.
Digital asset security firm Coincover bags $30m in funding
The funding will be used to boost recruitment, forge new partnerships and develop new products.
Finzly opens up access to FedNow via API connection
Developers from fintechs and banks can now access the sandbox environment of FedNow via Finzly’s API.
Why change your core?
If you treat core transformation like a standard large project, your chances of success are slim.
Deutsche Börse inks 10-year strategic partnership deal with Google Cloud
Deutsche Börse will leverage Google Cloud’s capabilities to develop its digital securities platform D7.
UK’s FCA names first members of its new innovation advisory group
The Innovation Advisory Group (IAG) will meet for the first time in February, the FCA says.
What are you not doing while you’re doing what you’re doing?
Hierarchy should be about an increasing level of complex accountability.
Bank of England and HM Treasury outline case for digital pound
The Bank and HM Treasury plan to “accelerate” work on the technology and policy architecture for a digital pound.
