London calling to the Chinese renminbi
Standard Chartered and Agricultural Bank of China have launched renminbi-denominated clearing services in the UK in a deal that reflects the ongoing internationalisation of the currency.
BankingTech
Banks! Stop fadding about – talk to customers
Is there an industry more obsessed with fads than banking?. Maybe it’s because it is such a follow-the-leader industry. Perhaps it’s because banking is a very me-too business with few (if any) real brand distinctions. Or is it simply that senior management is so obsessed with the needs of shareholders.
Is it safe to trust the machines?
Bank algos may superficially appear to be well-tested – but the process may be open to any number of unexpected flaws, according to Steve Wilcockson, industry manager at big data specialist firm MathWorks.
HSBC and Lloyds losing in switching stakes
Santander, Nationwide and Halifax have gained the most from the UK’s account switching service, while traditional banking names Barclays, HSBC Lloyds & TSB and NatWest have lost out, according to new figures released by advisory firm TNS.
RBS commits to V.me by Visa mobile wallet as Nationwide beats it to roll-out
RBS has confirmed that it is to launch V.me by Visa, the digital wallet built by Visa Europe. The decision follows a pilot programme, and will mean that RBS follows in the footsteps of Nationwide Building Society, which has just become the first UK high street brand to roll out the wallet to its customers.
Big banking is watching you
Online retailers have become sophisticated at observing customer behaviour, and then marketing based on the individual’s inclinations and past actions. Now, banks are starting to do it too. That could lead to some interesting scenarios, according to Charles Radclyffe, chief executive officer at business intelligence consultancy BIPB.
Breaking dawn: the new reality for the buy-side
Enlightened buy-side firms are facing the challenges of high-touch regulation, fragmented liquidity and ongoing cost pressures head on and developing new business models and approaches at every stage of their workflow.
Moving Money: the ATM makers’ view of the future
With the rise in mobile payments and wallets, cash is dead and so is the ATM business, right? Not according to the ATM manufacturers, who are all being remarkably sanguine.
TCS Bank readies Russian mobile wallet for Christmas
Russian bank Tinkoff Credit Systems has become the latest financial institution to launch a mobile wallet service, which is due to go live on 1 December 2013. The new wallet will target Russia and will be available on both Android and Apple iOS devices.
Volante rolls out T2S Accelerator
Fintech vendor Volante Technologies has launched its T2S Accelerator, which is designed to help financial services firms to prepare for the T2S settlement platform.
FIS: making a mark in mobile
Financial software giant FIS is sitting in the middle of the move to mobile, with its customers serving 21 million users. Doug Brown, senior vice president, e-banking, says that’s just the beginning.
Fidessa and Celent call for MiFID II clemency on dark pools
Regulators should consider carefully the implications of their actions, and not be too hasty to censure or restrict trading activity on dark pools, according to a report released by analyst firm Celent this week. The findings have been supported by senior financial services executives at Fidessa, who have called for investor choice to be maintained.
Metro Bank all about customer care, says Donaldson
Staff at Metro Bank don’t have sales targets – instead, they are incentivised to enhance the customer experience, says Craig Donaldson, chief executive at Metro Bank. The bank is hoping this approach will pay off as it continues its campaign to win over the UK high street with the launch of a new branch at Cheapside in the heart of London.
Aktia aims to save €5m a year with 2015 Temenos roll-out
Finland’s Aktia Bank has begun staff training on a new Temenos T24 core banking system that it plans to start implementing next year with an expected go-live date in 2015
India’s first women-only bank launches on FIS technology
India’s first women-only bank has launched in Mumbai and six other Indian cities, offering a service aimed at increasing financial inclusion for women in one of the world’s most populous countries.
ICE acquires Singapore Mercantile Exchange and clearing house
IntercontinentalExchange is to acquire Singapore Mercantile Exchange, including the venue’s clearing house, in a deal that will give it a foothold in Asia for the first time. SMX offers futures for metals, currencies, energy and agricultural commodities.
Intelligent Environments rolls out Pebble smartwatch banking app
A UK technology company has created a banking app that promises to help customers keep track of their finances at a glance, interfacing with the Pebble smartwatch which launched launched in January 2013.
UK building society trio switch to Unisys cloud
Three independent UK building societies – Ipswich, Loughborough and Dudley – have agreed to use a new software as a service solution from Unisys to handle their mortgage and savings accounts. The deal represents the latest move in a series of steps by the UK’s building society sector to adopt cloud platforms.
Swift: capitalising on customer collaboration
Swift’s head of banking talks about how the industry co-operative plans to build services based the data flowing through its interbank messaging systems.
Keeping the customer profitable
Separating customer billing from core systems can have dramatic effects on the bottom line – a study by Boston Consulting Group at one bank found that 17% of clients were unprofitable.
Exchange tie-ups “not worth the air miles they are written with”
The wisdom of emerging market exchange deals was a subject of controversy at the Mondo Visione exchange forum in London on Wednesday, with some participants lambasting such deals as “not worth the air miles they were written on”. Others had a more positive view.
A world of payment possibilities
As Ts are crossed and Is are dotted by financial institutions and corporates preparing for the Single Euro Payments Area some recent announcements point to the glittering world of opportunity beyond mundane SEPA compliance.
Focus on raising capital or lose out to private equity, exchanges told
Large exchange groups face a backlash from businesses trying to raise capital if they do not change to address this part of their function, leading to the emergence of private equity markets and more political interference and protectionism.
AIBK Bank Egypt adopts Temenos T24 banking tools
Arab Investment Bank Egypt has chosen Temenos T24 as its technology platform as it draws up its expansion plans for North Africa’s largest economy.
Banks “turning away business” because of regulations says Aite
Compliance concerns are causing nearly one-third of banks to turn away business, according to a new report from Aite Group.
Banking is all a game in Bulgaria
Bulgaria’s DSK Bank has launched a mobile savings application called DSK Gameo, which is designed to encourage customers to save by making banking more fun, while helping the bank better understand its user-base.
First trades on LCH.Clearnet FX platform use Traiana CCP link
LCH.Clearnet’s ForexClear service has cleared its first trades through a partnership with pre-trade risk and post-trade processing company Traiana, which matched and affirmed the FX derivative client trades using its Harmony CCOP Connect service.
Swansea Building Society upgrades Sopra savings system
Swansea Building Society has just upgraded its lending and saving platform to the latest version of vendor Sopra Banking Software’s mortgage and savings suite – a move that it says will help it to handle its regulatory reporting obligations much more effectively and launch new products quicker when needed.
February start for derivative reporting as EC rejects ESMA request for delay
The European Commission has rejected a request from the European Securities and Markets Authority to delay the reporting of exchange traded derivatives, with the effect that all derivatives trades will have to be reported to registered trade repositories from 12 February next year.
PKO Polski bets on mobile replacing card formats
Mobile phone-based payment solutions will eclipse cards by allowing bank customers to pay directly from their accounts, says a PKO Polski executive.
Standard Chartered Hong Kong rolls out digital branch
Standard Chartered Hong Kong has opened its first ‘digital’ branch, in which customers are greeted by giant screen TVs, the bank’s mobile apps in a special experience zone, and QR code scanning on an iWall, as well as e-signature pads and virtual queuing.
Comarch launches UK host-to-host banking for corporates
Polish IT specialist Comarch has launched a host-to-host banking solution designed to allow corporates to issue bank instructions directly from their enterprise resource planning software.
Standard Bank launches West Africa expansion drive via Côte d’Ivoire
Standard Bank of South Africa has launched a major expansion drive in West Africa, starting with the opening of a new representative office in the Côte d’Ivoire. The bank plans to use the Abidjan office to become familiar with the region and identify further opportunities within it.
MasterCard allies with EMP to sponsor Egyptian card issuers
MasterCard has formed a deal with electronic payments processing company Emerging Markets Payments to sponsor issuers in Egypt and other African markets, in a move intended to help small issuers reach the region’s unbanked population.
Bank branch “not dead” says report – but banks must be more mobile
Mobile banking may be on the rise around the world but the bank branch is not dead, according to new research by IT firm GFT Technologies.
Who are you? Identity in a mobile world
Cover story: Who are you? Identity in a mobile world Biometric technologies are becoming mainstream in for ID, with voice recognition taking a fundamental role. Also in this issue: Going Mobile: FIS’s plans for mobile technology. Bargain: investing in customer loyalty Anyway, Anywhere, Anyhow: Will mobile money kill the cash machine? Join Together: Big banks, Bitcoin, […]
Nedbank South Africa launches Africa’s first ‘green’ bank branch
South Africa’s Nedbank has opened a bank branch powered entirely by renewable energy, a move that it claims is the first of its kind in Africa.
India’s first women-only bank plans November launch
India’s first all-female bank, Bharatiya Mahila Bank, plans to open on 19 November, the birthday of former Indian female Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Portugal’s CGD Securities embraces cloud connection to Brazil
Portugal’s Caixa Geral de Depositos bank is planning to grow its trading business in Brazil, using a hosted service provided by SunGard.
Crane Bank of Uganda adopts Temenos banking system
Uganda’s Crane Bank has chosen a core banking system from Temenos, together with various add-on systems, to support the bank’s Uganda head office as well as its expansion into neighbouring Rwanda.
