Top fintech stories this week – 9 June 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Asia Pacific
Mizuho goes open banking on IBM cloud
Mizuho Bank has opted for a suite of IBM services to power its open banking ambitions in Japan. The bank will use IBM’s FinTech API solution, API Connect on the IBM Cloud and IBM DataPower Gateway. The shift to API banking is a common theme for many in fintech at present. According to IBM, the […]
Hong Kong regulator unveils private wealth management charter
Fair play is on its way as Hong Kong’s Private Wealth Management Association (PWMA) has adopted the “Treat Customers Fairly Charter for Private Wealth Management Industry”. Developed by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the PWMA, the charter has five “high-level principles” and examples of measures to guide PWMA members in their implementation. These […]
Singapore regulator gives and takes advice on robo-advice
The humans at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) have laid down some guidelines and want opinions on providing robo-advisory services. In a consultation paper released today (7 June), MAS says it seeks to support innovation in financial services by recognising the unique characteristics of digital platforms. MAS states that financial institutions (FIs) regulated under […]
Maybank launches fintech sandbox
Malaysia’s largest bank, Maybank, has unveiled its fintech sandbox to let ASEAN start-ups develop and test new ideas. As the “first in ASEAN”, the Maybank FinTech Sandbox offers a place “free of charge” to help developers throughout the region. The bank is keen to tap into ideas around cloud, the internet of things (IoT) and […]
Scale360 powers TPBank digital branch network in Vietnam
It’s another farewell to tradition as Vietnam’s TPBank has opted for Scale360’s “Digital Branch” network across the country. The digital option from Scale360, a UK-based fintech start-up with a development centre in Bangkok, replaces the usual brick-and-mortar branch with a video link. The bank plans to open 50 such branches across Vietnam. Branded as TPBank’s […]
OCBC Bank unveils “HR in your pocket” app
OCBC has become the first bank in Singapore to launch a human resource (HR) mobile app for its employees. The app, called “HR in your pocket”, includes an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbot that is integrated with the bank’s HR information system. This chatbot can provide responses that are specific to each employee. Examples of use […]
LG Electronics unleashes mobile payments in South Korea
Watch out Samsung Pay, but South Korean titan LG Electronics has unleashed its mobile payment service in the country. Called LG Pay, it will be offered first as a service that allows users to pay offline in the same way as a credit card. Its use is limited at the moment to Shinhan, KB, BC […]
Hong Kong launches IPO support system for start-ups
Hong Kong is looking to boost its fintech scene with an initiative to help tech firms take the right road for their initial public offering (IPO). Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) have launched their “Road to IPO” platform. It’s not purely for fintech as the […]
Top fintech stories this week – 2 June 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
R3 powers Japan’s blockchain derivatives prototype
R3 and four Japanese financial institutions (FIs) have joined forces to use blockchain in a derivatives prototype test. Nomura, Daiwa Securities Group, Mizuho, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and R3 have tested a prototype developed using Corda, R3’s distributed ledger technology (DLT) platform based on blockchain, to streamline International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) Master Agreement […]
Android Pay arrives in Taiwan
Android Pay has now launched in Taiwan and users can add an eligible Visa or Mastercard credit card from one of its supported banks, including CTBC and First Bank. It will have the usual rivals – Apple Pay arrived in Taiwan in March this year, while Samsung Pay was launched across the island nation just […]
People on the Move: Bryan Lewis and Edward Chandler, eNett International
eNett International, a Singapore-based provider of B2B travel payment solutions, has announced two new executive appointments.
OCBC Bank unveils first standalone mobile payments app
Singapore’s OCBC Bank has launched its first standalone mobile app for QR code cashless payments at nearly 2,500 NETS terminals. The new OCBC Pay Anyone app brings together all its Pay Anyone services – peer-to-peer e-payments, QR code payments, and integration with Siri and iMessage – into one place. Pranav Seth, OCBC Bank’s head of […]
Malaysia’s central bank unveils fintech sandbox
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the nation’s central bank, has approved four fintech start-ups to operate within its regulatory sandbox. As Banking Technology reported last month, BNM called out to fintech start-ups for ideas to improve the financial services sector. The bank’s Financial Technology Enabler Group (FTEG) announced it was open to concepts through its “Fintech […]
Mizuho ventures deeper into fintech
Japan’s Mizuho Financial Group will start a venture next month to create new fintech businesses and catch up with its rivals, according to Reuters. As Banking Technology reported last month, Mizuho Financial Group, Mizuho Bank and IBM Japan teamed up to build a blockchain-based trade financing platform – and so edged commercialisation ever forward. So […]
IFC and Singapore regulator are AFIN it large for Asian innovation
International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) are working together to establish and develop their ASEAN Financial Innovation Network (AFIN). IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and MAS have signed a memorandum of co-operation. Through AFIN, they plan to establish a regional network to help financial institutions, fintech firms […]
SoftBank finally wows with $93bn investment fund
SoftBank has announced its first major close with $93 billion of committed capital, and the promise to hit $100 billion within six months, reports Telecoms.com (Banking Technology‘s sister publication). While it has been circulating in the news for some time now, it should be worth noting this is the largest private equity fund ever raised, […]
Sumitomo Mitsui gets all chatty with AI
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) and its partners have unveiled an automated chat service using artificial intelligence (AI) to offer guidance to customers in Japan. SMFG is working with SMBC Nikko Securities, NTT Communications, with support from Accenture Japan, and their service will become available on 25 May at SMBC’s contact centre to improve its […]
Tokyo turns up volume in foreign fintech talent hunt
With its shrinking population and its growing interest in fintech, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) has turned to Accenture to support recruiting companies find the right stuff from abroad. According to Japan’s health ministry, the nation’s population is expected to fall from 127 million to 88 million in 2065, dropping further to 51 million by […]
China’s central bank sets up fintech committee
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has set up a fintech committee, aimed at strengthening financial research, planning and co-ordination. On its website, the nation’s central bank doesn’t offer specifics about the new committee, but says fintech has “injected new vitality”, but also “brought new challenges” for financial security. PBOC will study the impact of […]
UK regulator calls for freedom not free-for-all
Like that lacklustre movie Braveheart, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says you will never take away our freedom and the chances of a free-for-all for regulations will never happen. In a speech that had more repeats than the UK TV channel Dave, Christopher Woolard, FCA’s executive director of strategy and competition, told the audience […]
Hong Kong government pressured to keep up in fintech race
Hong Kong’s government has come under fire for perceived failings in the further development of fintech in the region. The Financial Services Development Council (FSDC) today (9 May) has released two research reports that look at the fintech scene in Hong Kong and it urges the government to step up the action. Chairperson of the […]
Philippines’ UnionBank picks IBM Cloud for app overhaul
UnionBank of the Philippines (UnionBank) has selected IBM Cloud to build, deploy, run and manage new apps for its digital customer base. Through the IBM Bluemix cloud platform and IBM API Connect, UnionBank says it can create, manage, secure and run APIs that the bank has made available internally and run them externally for consumption. […]
Singapore Test Tackles Paper with Digital Bank Account Opening
Singapore is testing an initiative enabling consumers to apply for a bank account without needing to submit supporting documentation.
Paper put in place by Singapore’s simpler banking plan
Singapore is piloting a new initiative to let people apply for a bank account without needing to submit supporting documentation. The Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, Government Technology Agency and Monetary Authority of Singapore, have begun a pilot with four banks to explore simplifying online banking transactions with the use of the government’s MyInfo […]
Temenos expansion plans turn to China and Japan
Temenos is looking to conquer the core banking software markets of China and Japan.
Samsung Pay lands in four more nations
Samsung Pay is expanding to four more countries – with official launches in Sweden and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and it enters early access in Hong Kong and Switzerland. The launches in the UAE and Sweden are Samsung Pay’s first markets in the Middle East and the Nordics. Last month, Nordea launched the beta […]
All go for Mizuho and IBM blockchain-powered trade finance
Mizuho Financial Group, Mizuho Bank and IBM Japan have teamed up to build a blockchain-based trade financing platform – with commercialisation edging ever forward. With the platform, Mizuho is aiming to “make it easier” for parties involved in the supply chain, including exporters, importers, shippers, insurance companies, port operators and port authorities, to “share critical […]
The Monday mindset: 24 April 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, Banking Technology’s deputy editor Antony Peyton looks at whether Japan’s rules rule. If you’re a billionaire (which I assume isn’t all of […]
Malaysia’s central bank seeks fintech start-ups
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the nation’s central bank, is calling out to fintech start-ups for ideas to improve the financial services sector. The bank’s Financial Technology Enabler Group (FTEG) is now open to concepts through its “Fintech Hacks” initiative which aims to “identify pain points in the delivery and consumption of financial services, and solicit […]
Accenture calls for Asia-Pacific fintech start-ups
Applications will soon open for Accenture’s fourth annual Asia-Pacific Fintech Innovation Lab, a 12-week programme to help start-ups speed up product and business development. According to the firm, investments in Asia-Pacific fintech companies are on the rise. During the first quarter of 2017, investments totalled $1.1 billion, representing 21% of the $5.1 billion invested into […]
HelloPay merges with Ant Financial for AliPay boost
HelloPay Group, which runs the HelloPay payment platform and online shopping and selling site Lazada, has merged with China’s Ant Financial. Ant Financial, part of Jack Ma’s Alibaba Group, runs Alipay and so HelloPay has now been rebranded as Alipay Singapore, Alipay Malaysia, Alipay Indonesia and Alipay Philippines in its respective markets. Douglas Feagin, SVP […]
Singapore regulator and UN team up for ASEAN financial inclusion
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) have teamed up to improve access to digital financial services in the ASEAN region. The partnership is under the ongoing UNCDF’s Shift (Shaping Inclusive Finance Transformations) programme for development in this part of the world. Sopnendu Mohanty, chief fintech officer, MAS, […]
Standard Chartered supercharges two Asian start-ups
Standard Chartered has given a big boost to two Asian start-ups with two proof of concept (PoC) projects. Bambu, a Singapore-based robo-advisory for wealth management firm, and KYC Chain, a Hong Kong-based digital identity management firm using distributed ledger technology, were selected from SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator 2.0 – a 12-week accelerator programme in Hong Kong […]
Nasdaq revamps Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing tech
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) has chosen Nasdaq to upgrade the technological infrastructure of Hong Kong’s main derivatives market, including trading, clearing and real-time risk management technologies. The agreement also extends the existing relationship for an additional five years. HKEX and Nasdaq have been technology partners since 1994. Under the new agreement, Nasdaq will […]
Payments: how the West will be copying the East
Payments industry practitioners in the European Union are understandably obsessed with the implications of the revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2). This was evident at the recent European Payments Summit, held in the Netherlands, where PSD2 dominated many of the discussions.
WeChat Wants to Grow Payments in U.S. and Europe
WeChat is on the move again. The China-based social messaging and mobile wallet platform plans to expand its presence in Europe and the U.S., efforts that could bring it better relationships with advertisers, brands and payment providers.
Blockchain and Bitcoin round-up: 3 April 2017
Another day, another cryptocurrency. A concise round-up of blockchain and Bitcoin events. Features Japan, Lykke, ChronoBank and London’s Imperial College Business School. It’s the land of the rising sums, as Bitcoin is now a legal payment method in Japan. As a result, Bitcoin trades rose today – at 11am (UK time) it was up 2.8% […]
Bahrain looks to Singapore for fintech fortune
The kingdom of Bahrain is looking to Singapore’s success as it tries to boost its fintech fortunes with a new ecosystem and regulatory framework. The Bahrain Economic Development Board (BEDB), Singapore Fintech Consortium (SFC) and Dubai-based asset management firm Trucial Investment Partners have teamed up for the development plans. Khalid Al Rumaihi, BEDB’s chief executive, […]
