WeChat to offer credit scoring to its 600m users
Th Big Tech will attribute “payments points” to determine a “trust” value.
FinTech
UK fintechs Tide and Liberis land loan accreditation
Tide is aiming to get loan delivery up and running today.
HSBC launches e-wallet PayMe for teens in Hong Kong
The adult version already has 1.9 million customers across Hong Kong.
SME fintech ANNA bags £17.5m from ABHH Group
The investment values it at $110m, with the founders keeping a 40% stake in the start-up as part of the deal.
Video: Top fintech stories this week – 15 May 2020
FinTech Futures’ weekly news round-up.
Monzo’s valuation plummets 40% to £1.25bn in latest fundraising
The fintech was valued at £2 billion last June.
Green Dot bags Walmart exec as part of bigger strategic overhaul
The firm also appointed a new CEO in March.
Freetrade sets new record on Crowdcube with $5m raise
The round is its sixth crowdfund to date.
Ghana becomes first African country to introduce universal QR code
Both smart and ‘yam’ phones can pay through QR codes.
Ecosystems evolution
Five focus points on how organisations can coexist and grow in the ecosystem.
NICE Actimize and Infosys extend cybersecurity partnership
Technology firms tie up new collaboration.
Agora Services launches white label teen account for Finastra
Agora’s CEO says the app launch is “related to” the Revolut Junior launch in the UK.
Insurance financer Bexhill UK applies for banking licence
Founded in 2000, Bexhill UK works with roughly 250 brokers.
Starling Bank and Funding Circle team up to provide £300m in CBILS loans
The fintechs say the partnership will help more than 4,000 small businesses.
Marcus cuts easy-access saver rate again to 1.05%
On 19 March, the Bank of England cut its base rate to 0.1%.
Singapore launches $4.2m grant scheme for its fintechs
Applications for the grant scheme will open on 18 May 2020.
Featurespace raises £30 million in venture funding
Anti-fraud company nabs new injection to support growth.
Six fintech innovations that bank lenders must embrace – and fast
Here’s a review of cutting edge tech.
High school jocks living their best lives
Those who feel the place you are offering them into the future is not shiny enough, can and will be left behind.
Banking Technology May 2020 issue out now
Hope springs eternal: discovering alternative lending in times of crisis.
Fidor Bank loses O2 mobile banking contract
The contract began back in 2016.
Revolut announces redundancy of 60 employees due to coronavirus
“We have made every effort to protect every job,” says fintech.
Global fintech sees worst Q1 since 2016 for VC-backed deals
The quarter saw just 404 deals and ended on $6.1 billion.
Ask the expert: to outsource lead generation or not – that’s the question!
If you are a fintech undertaking lead generation for the first time, where do you start?
Fintech Dapi takes on MENA’s scattered open banking landscape
“The region is super scattered,” says co-founder, Mohammed Aziz, regarding open banking regulations.
Swiss private bank Lombard Odier launches fintech strategy
An active portfolio of 50 well-diversified stocks will be put together.
Goldman Sachs-backed fintech Flywire cuts 12% of workforce
A further 16 workers have been put on part-time contracts.
N26 lays off 10% of New York-based workforce
The losses are the first to be put down to operational reasons.
Monzo bags banking veteran as its new head of global financial crime
Laramy comes from Barclays, Santander and US bank Capital One.
Business banking app Countingup lands £4m led by ING
ING says Countingup is a “digitally disruptive solution”.
Aussie neobank Xinja loses 2.25% interest rate
The interest rate caused it to hit AUD 100 million in deposits after just 19 days.
Russia’s VTB turns to automation for customer claims
VTB wants to reach 70% automation in its claims’ operations.
Putting off a reorganisation? This could be rather costly
Throughout the process, involved parties must understand drivers for change.
Payments start-up Banked raises £2.3m in seed funding
Real-time payments firm aims to challenge incumbent dominance.
Kestrl to offer UK consumers ethical banking alternative
The debit card launch is expected sometime in Q3 following a June beta.
Japan wants to make it easier for banks to buy stakes in fintechs
The move follows the success of fintech financers during the coronavirus pandemic.
SadaPay drives contactless adoption with Mastercard in Pakistan
The digital wallet aims to deliver three million cards over the next five years.
Situation: not normal
Choose to act towards the next chapter. Choose to live each day of “not normal” as if more than survival is at stake.
Revolut seeks acquisitions with struggling travel firms
“A lot of travel aggregators are in trouble at the moment,” says CEO.
UK challenger 220 lands former Standard Chartered COO as adviser
Angela Knight worked at Standard Chartered for an uninterrupted 22 years.
