Crypto.com buys Australian brokerage service and trading company Fintek Securities
Crypto.com also recently acquired Watchdog Capital to offer equities and equity options for traders in the US.
Australasia
The latest fintech news, resources and expert analysis in Australasia by the leading intelligence provider for the fintech community.
BNZ acquires open banking fintech BlinkPay
BlinkPay’s co-founder and CPO Adrian Smith is set to become the firm’s new CEO.
Aussie crowdfunding platform Equitise enters administration
New Zealand’s FMA cancelled Equitise’s crowdfunding services licence in April 2024.
Airwallex reportedly in talks over fresh $200m investment at new $6bn valuation
Airwallex last raised $100 million through a Series E extension two years ago at a valuation of $5.5 billion.
New digital wallet and POS app Payap gears up for 2025 launch in New Zealand
The app is powered by Auckland-based fintech Centrapay and backed by the Bank of New Zealand (BNZ).
ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Abhi, Emerge, Diesta, and Axyon AI
A handy round-up of the recent funding endeavours of fintech companies across the globe.
Citi and Mastercard collaborate to enable cross-border payments via debit cards
The partnership will enable cross-border payments to Mastercard debit cards in 14 receiving markets.
New Zealand Bankers Association selects UK fintech obconnect to power the country’s CoP ecosystem
Retail banks in New Zealand will begin rolling out the new CoP service “by the end of November this year”.
Banked buys open banking paytech Waave to drive Pay by Bank solution in Australia
Banked has secured a partnership with Aussie pharmacy giant Chemist Warehouse through the acquisition.
Hastings Direct Loans boosts fraud prevention capabilities with IDVerse partnership
Hastings Direct expanded into personal loans around three years ago.
Aussie debt collection fintech InDebted bags $41m Series C
The funding round values InDebted at approximately $240 million.
Westpac promotes Anthony Miller to CEO amid Peter King’s departure
Current CEO Peter King is preparing to end his 30-year tenure at the bank.
Judo Bank migrates lending business to Thought Machine’s Vault Core
The migration to the cloud-based core banking platform has been underway since last year.
Australia’s MyState Bank taps Backbase for Engagement Banking platform
MyState’s new platform supports banking features including payments, PFM, and integrated fraud protection.
Shift bags $23m Series D funding led by Peak XV Partners
The funding round follows the completion of a $230 million Asset Backed Securitisation in May.
Klarna to resurrect BNPL fintech Laybuy in New Zealand following acquisition of assets
Laybuy entered into a receivership back in June.
ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Layer2, Qardy, United Fintech, Minos, and more
Our weekly fintech round-up for you to get the latest funding news from around the world.
Bain Capital completes deals to acquire Finova and Iress’ UK mortgages business
Under BCTO’s ownership, the two entities will merge to become a single combined business.
Westpac joins forces with Optus to launch new in-app SafeCall feature
Westpac says the new feature will be rolled out to customers in the coming months.
Airwallex branches out into retail investment products with new Australian licence
The fintech is to leverage the AFSL licence, granted by ASIC, to expand Airwallex Yield.
Dosh seeks licence to become a bank in New Zealand
Dosh is aiming to become New Zealand’s “first locally-owned, digital-only bank”.
ABA head says Australia’s CDR regime “isn’t delivering for customers or enhancing competition”
ABA CEO Anna Bligh says the CDR initiative has “not realised its potential”.
DASH Technology Group bags $20m investment from Bailador Technology Investments
DASH is looking to use some of the funds to increase its headcount by 20.
ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Ramify, Hawk, Cadana, Prosper and more
A handy round-up of the recent funding endeavours of fintech companies across the globe.
Reserve Bank of Australia set to conduct “holistic review” of retail payments regulation
The review will begin after the Australian government evaluates the Payment Systems Regulation Act 1998.
Flexcube replaces Ultradata’s Ultracs core banking system at TISA
Teachers Savings and Loan Society (TISA) has gone live with a host of solutions from Oracle FS.
BNPL firm Laybuy’s search for new buyer results in Deloitte receivership
Gary Rohloff, managing director of Laybuy, describes the appointment of receivers as “gut wrenching”.
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank partners MongoDB for core banking update with AI
The Aussie bank has deployed MongoDB’s Atlas solution.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia to pilot NameCheck solution on JP Morgan’s Liink network
The collaboration aims to “help validate bank account details used in international payments to Australia”.
Rich Data Co inks first US deal for AI decisioning platform with M&T Bank
North America’s sixth-largest commercial bank has tapped the platform to “detect more early warning signs” in lending.
ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Kudos, Teal, WeMoney and more
A handy round-up of the recent funding endeavours of fintech companies across the globe.
Australian ID verification fintech Data Zoo lands $22.7m Series A funding
The round represents Data Zoo’s first ever outside investment.
NAB partners UK fintech Banked to boost merchant adoption of A2A payment solutions
NAB says the first group of business clients to adopt A2A payments will go live “in the first half of 2024”.
UK online SME lender Capify bags £100m credit facility
The new facility from Pollen Street Capital will support the lender’s future growth plans.
EPAA forms working group with IBM, HSBC, AP+, and PayPal to explore quantum-safe cryptography
The WG-QSC intends to publish its initial findings ahead of Sibos in October 2024.
Bird taps Airwallex to power international payments operations
Airwallex’s tech will power Bird’s in-house foreign exchange engine and issuing solution.
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand calls for views on potential CBDC
The consultation period is due to commence on 17 April and will run until 26 July 2024.
BNPL firm Laybuy reportedly on the lookout for new buyer to potentially go private
The New Zealand-based firm is currently listed on the Catalist stock exchange with a value of around $5.4 million.
Aussie automotive fintech AutoSettle names Jason Van as new CEO
The new CEO has been tasked with leading the start-up’s “next phase of growth and innovation”.
Australian banking software vendor Constantinople bags $33m in Series A round
The new cash injection adds to the $20 million Constantinople previously raised via its May 2022 seed round.
