Central banks free up US dollar liquidity amid coronavirus pandemic
The price on the US dollar liquidity swap arrangements will go down by 25 basis points.
Japan
Starling Bank amps up advertising efforts with Team GB win
The bank is offering every British athlete an account with £100 in credit.
Bank of Japan governor calls for digital currency caution
Masayoshi Amamiya warns central banks not to “jump immediately.”
SoftBank to invest $100m in UK-based AI start-up Behavox
Behavox’s investment would be the fifth Vision Fund capital injection for a UK firm.
Inaccuracies of facial recognition: security, prejudice, pollution and fashion
The issue of accuracy is one which is often cited but rarely explained.
Appy days for Jibun Bank
Jibun Bank won several awards for its uniqueness.
SBI Holdings invests $20m in core banking API firm OpenLegacy
SBI keen to push API integration to Japanese banks.
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation revamps FX with Kx Systems
Japanese bank taps Kx to power its e-FX operations.
UK challenger Monzo in talks with SoftBank for £100m fundraising
Monzo’s co-founder met up with the Japanese investor in Mayfair this month.
Japan floats idea of a digital yen
Party lawmakers are working on proposals.
Central banks in Europe, Japan and Canada assess potential digital currencies
Central banks in Canada, the UK, Japan, Switzerland, and Sweden are teaming up.
Japan’s MUFG switches CEO after first year, digital chief takes control
The unusual decision points to the bank’s newly-placed importance on fintech.
Tokyo: fintechs welcome!
Japan is keen to turn Tokyo into the number one financial hub in Asia.
Barclays launches 2.0 finger vein scanner with Hitachi for businesses
The new handset is smaller than its predecessor.
SoftBank confirms Yahoo Japan and Line Corp merger to create tech giant
The merger is in a bid to better position the companies against competitors.
Japan’s elderly fight back against cashless wave
Tokyo wants to double the ratio of cashless settlements to 40% by 2025.
Vietnam’s TPBank seals deal with blockchain paytech RippleNet
RippleNet claims its first bank client in Vietnam.
Japan’s instant credit start-up Paidy raises $143m
It includes $83m in a Series C extension and $60m in debt financing.
UK challenger bank Tide gets investment from Japan’s SBI
The Telegraph says the SBI splashed £44 million on the British fintech.
Revolut reveals new agreement with Visa, set to hire 3,500
Revolut is eyeing up several new markets in 2019 and 2020
Sibos 2019: Watch out for Asian big techs like Alipay, Accenture warns banks
Bigtechs have been quietly accumulating lots of data.
Sibos 2019: MUFG “ready to work with fintechs”
MUFG reveals it already has its eyes on some fintechs.
Indonesian FSA launches online register to monitor fintechs
The platform will grow business through OJK’s innovation hub.
SMBC chooses Exiger AI compliance solution
Exiger promises SMBC it will boost its operational efficiency by more than 80%.
Line and Nomura launch online brokerage in Japan
Nomura’s CEO steps away from its “uncool” offering to attract a younger, digital-savvy clientele.
JCB acceptance expands to UK and Ireland
The Japanese card issuer has partnered with EVO Payments.
Japan’s Line Pay integrates China’s WeChat Pay
The global alliance will boost Japan’s revenue from inbound Chinese tourists.
SoftBank supports start-ups under the radar
The Japanese technology giant invested $5 billion into Latin American “unicorns”.
WeChat Pay and Alipay partner QFPay raises $20m
The latest funding round brings QFPay’s total to $36.5 million.
TSE launches data sandbox for securities tech
Tokyo Stock Exchange calls for data and innovation partners.
Rakuten applies for US banking charter
The ABA expressed serious concerns Rakuten gaining a banking charter.
Mizuho understood to be rolling out Flexcube core banking tech
EXCLUSIVE: Oracle to modernise Mizuho’s corporate and commercial banking tech.
Tokyo calls for foreign fintechs to enter accelerator programme
Start-ups will be mentored by leading Japanese financial organisations.
Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank takes Acumen to reside with Flexcube
Acumen is a common treasury solution alongside Oracle FSS’s Flexcube.
Video: fintech news weekly round-up – 30 April 2019
SoftBank invests in Wirecard, Tencent in Argentinian Uala, and other Visa news.
Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank turns to Oracle FSS for tech modernisation
EXCLUSIVE: SMTB is modernising its core, lending and payments tech for corporate banking in Japan and abroad.
SoftBank invests €900m in Wirecard for APAC push
Wirecard is struggling amidst fraud investigations.
Fukui migrates to IBM Cloud to meet digital banking demands
The bank wants to respond quickly to changing customer preferences.
Top fintech stories this week – 22 March 2019
Catch up on FinTech Futures’ top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Instarem aims at Japan and Indonesia with $41m funding
This latest round takes InstaReM’s total funds secured to $59.5 million, with an expected IPO in 2021.
