Raiffeisen Bank Romania in digital tech revamp with Backbase
Raiffeisen Bank Romania, a subsidiary of Austria’s Raiffeisen Group, is modernising its channels delivery with Backbase.
Mobile
Top fintech stories this week – 24 March 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
UnionBank launches New EON, the first “selfie” banking in the Philippines
UnionBank of the Philippines (UnionBank) has launched the New EON, a new digital banking platform (a revamped version of the original EON, launched at the start of the millennium). The mobile biometric authentication tech is provided by Daon.
RBS continues with branch closures and job cuts
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is closing 30 of its own branches and 128 of its subsidiary, NatWest, putting 470 people out of work. The bank says this decision is a result of the changing consumer behaviour, which has now shifted to digital banking.
Proposed M-Wallet Rules Don’t Hinder Samsung Pay Launch
While the Indian government works toward a digital economy, the Reserve Bank of India is soliciting feedback through March 31 on guidelines for prepaid payment instruments that could adversely affect issuers of prepaid products, including mobile wallets.
Samsung Pay makes its India debut
Digital payments app, Samsung Pay, has been launched in India. Access is limited to those who signed up for the early access programme and available only on its mid-segment and flagship Samsung Galaxy devices.
Samsung moves on Siri with Bixby AI
Watch out Siri and Alexa, Samsung has unveiled its own artificial intelligence (AI) solution called Bixby. This will be a new interface on Samsung’s devices – with the imminent Galaxy S8 getting it first – and when an application becomes Bixby-enabled, it will be able to support “almost every task” that the application is capable […]
Walmart Pushes Omnichannel Shopping with New Tech Incubator
Walmart recently announced another step toward further developing its e-commerce business with the creation of a technology incubator called Store No. 8 to create new retail online businesses as well as help the retail giant better compete against Amazon.com.
Illinois Regulator Joins Global Virtual Currency Consortium
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has become the first U.S. regulatory agency to join the R3 Consortium, a global partnership of banks and other parties working to develop distributed ledger-based applications for financial services. The agency oversees the regulation and licensing of banks and financial institutions, among other businesses, in the state.
Faster Loans for Consumers with Little Credit History? Experian and Finicity Think So.
New underwriting technology developed by Experian and financial data aggregator Finicity could speed up borrowing and enable millennials and other consumers with thin or no credit files to receive money. The product emerges amid a federal call for more work on helping those potential borrowers build credit scores.
Everyone is a bank with Babb’s blockchain plan
London-based fintech start-up Babb App says it is creating a bank based on a “permissioned” blockchain implementation of a distributed ledger using Ethereum smart contracts. The Babb banking platform will operate a decentralised information model to “minimise costs while maximising data fidelity and security” – i.e. the usual suspects. It expects to do a soft […]
QNB Finansbank’s tablet the right dose for core banking
QNB Finansbank, QNB Group’s subsidiary in Turkey, has developed TouchFinans, a core banking application for the bank’s SME division to carry on their Windows tablets.
Introducing the internet of McThings
McDonald’s has made its first step towards the internet of things (IoT) with the introduction of a mobile ordering app as a means of streamlining the in-store customer experience. Banking Technology‘s sister publication telecoms.com reports that using apps to deliver services in this segment is hardly a new idea, though experiences to date have been […]
Top fintech stories this week – 17 March 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
India to Open Payment Interface, Ease Transactions between M-Wallets
As India’s war on cash wages on, mobile wallets continue to reap the rewards. Although some experts suggested the advent of the Reserve Bank of India’s Unified Payment Interface platform could make mobile wallets obsolete, a new plan for interoperability could be a boon for Paytm, MobiKwik, Freecharge and other mobile wallet providers.
Consumers Are Open to Payment Innovation, But First Improve Existing Tools
Retail transactions promise to become more vocal and mobile in 2017, according to a new U.K. survey report. Even so, the mainstreaming of chat bots and other new tools appears a while off, given the relatively low level of awareness enjoyed by those innovative technologies.
N26 mobile bank powers to 300,000 users
Berlin-based mobile bank N26 says its user base grew to more than 300,000 over the last year, tripling in size since the last announcement of 100,000 users in January 2016. As Banking Technology reported late last year, N26 took its business fully across 17 European countries, including Spain, Italy, Greece, Ireland and Slovakia. Before that […]
Poland’s mBank to invest €50m in fintech start-ups
Poland-based mBank will set up the “first” fund in Central and Eastern Europe that will specialise in developing and selling new technologies. The Polish bank says it has an ambition to influence digital transformation in the banking sector and its mAccelerator project will provide €50 million in investment to start-ups. mBank CEO Cezary Stypułkowski says […]
Fill ’Er Up: Samsung Pay Is Now Good at ExxonMobil Stations
Samsung Pay took another stride this week, with ExxonMobil announcing that its customers can now use the mobile wallet at the pump to pay for gas. This expansion comes only months after Samsung launched a points-based rewards program for Samsung Pay.
China’s CredEX Fintech lending app surges past $4.3bn mark
China-based CredEX Fintech says its mobile lending app’s total credit extended has exceeded CNY 30 billion ($4.3 billion) since its launch ten months ago. According to the firm, its user base has gone beyond five million, daily credit has been extended up to CNY 100 million ($14.4 million), and the average credit extended stands at […]
Do collect $200 on Android, don’t get out of Gmail
Google has revealed that Android payments can now be made within the Gmail app. Whether it is “splitting a dinner bill or planning a group trip”, it offers a “fee-free way” to work out the details and settle up without leaving the Gmail app on Android. Users can exchange money with “anyone” – and are […]
Analysis: banking innovation in the US
Banking Technology puts the banking innovation in the US under the spotlight. The market is not short of digital offerings: Simple, Moven, Kabbage, Acorns, Earny, Debitize, MagnifyMoney and more – take your pick!
Commercial Bank of Africa goes Loop-y for millennial entrepreneurs
Kenya-based Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA) has unveiled its mobile-based banking service as it targets millennial entrepreneurs. The new service, created in collaboration with software provider Strands, is called CBA Loop and core banking services will be available on the mobile phone app. Users can manage their personal finances, send money, schedule utility bills payments, […]
Cachet Prices Public Offering, Looks toward a $9.3 Million Payday
Cachet Financial Solutions expects to raise nearly $9.3 million in its public offering this week, according to an SEC filing. The Minneapolis-based financial technology provider and Pay Award winner, which priced its offering at $4.50 per share, plans to use the proceeds for working capital, to pay down debt and other, unspecified purposes.
Barclaycard gets Uber momentum
Barclaycard and Uber have agreed a new commercial agreement that will see Barclaycard customers get “exclusive offers” when they use their personal card to pay for their Uber rides. The deal means Barclaycard’s personal credit card customers can get a free Uber ride, up to the value of £15, for every ten that they take […]
Alexander Graham Bell’s influence on tech innovations in today’s financial services
“Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you.” These were the first words ever spoken over a telephone line and said by the man fondly described as the father of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, who would have turned 170 on 3 March this year.
Chase Pay Acquires MCX Mobile Payments Technology
Another bell has tolled for the mobile payment service operated by the nearly 3-year-old MCX, a consortium of large retailers. JPMorgan Chase, whose own Chase Pay mobile wallet has been making serious strides, has acquired the technology that underpins CurrentC, the MCX mobile payment product that never went beyond pilot stage.
Acquisitions Drive Record Start for Meta’s Tax Business
Meta Financial Group’s heavy investment in the tax refund space is paying dividends, with the company’s MetaBank subsidiary originating a record $1.26 billion in interest-free tax advance loans between Dec. 12, 2016, and Feb. 28, 2017—up from less than $100 million in advance loans during last year’s tax season, according to the parent company.
The Monday mindset: 13 March 2017
Fintech zeitgeist! 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. This week we welcome the views of our editor, Tanya Andreasyan, as she gives us the lowdown on going digital.
Capital One launches SMS chatbot, Eno
Capital One is introducing virtual assistant Eno, a chatbot that communicates with the bank’s customers via text messages.
SEB supports Samsung Pay in Sweden
SEB is among the first banks in Sweden to offer Samsung Pay functionality to its customers.
JPMorgan Chase acquires MCX payments technology
The technology behind CurrentC, the QR-based mobile payment service created by MCX, a consortium of the largest merchants in the US, has been acquired by JPMorgan Chase. The bank says it will help expand Chase Pay, the mobile and digital wallet for Chase customers.
Penta and SolarisBank team for business bank accounts for German SMEs
Two Berlin-based fintech firms, Penta and SolarisBank, have joined forces to provide German businesses with “fast access to bank accounts”.
IDFC Bank launches “breakthrough” biometric payment app, IDFC Aadhaar Pay
India-based IDFC Bank has launched an e-payment app, IDFC Aadhaar Pay, developed in association with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
Nordea brings Samsung Pay to customers in Sweden
Nordea has launched the beta version of Samsung Pay in Sweden. The bank’s customers can use this new payment service to make in-store payments with their mobile phones.
Top fintech stories this week – 10 March 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Digital bank bunq goes international with open API
Digital-only banking start-up, bunq, has expanded beyond its native Dutch market to Austria and Germany with the launch of its open API.
Flagship Community Bank buys BankMobile for $175m
Florida-based Flagship Community Bank has bought mobile-only BankMobile from Customers Bancorp for $175 million. As Banking Technology reported last month, BankMobile, which was launched by Customers Bancorp two years ago, was expected to be sold this quarter, according to Customers’ president and CEO, Jay Sidhu. Customers Bancorp says after accounting for all expenses, the deal […]
Android Pay heads down Belgium way
Android Pay is now available in Belgium – becoming the tenth country in the world to get it. It can be used at more than 85,000 retail locations throughout Belgium that accept contactless payments. Its purchase button can also be seen in apps like Deliveroo, TransferWise and Vueling, with other unspecified apps on the way. […]
Abu Dhabi, Singapore to Promote Fintech Innovation
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) have signed an agreement to assist fintech entrepreneurs and support financial services innovation in Singapore and Abu Dhabi, according to Paybefore sister publication Banking Technology.
