Malaysia’s Kenanga partners Ant Group to develop financial services super-app

Fintech Futures, Posted August 25, 2022

The super-app, Malaysia’s first according to Kenanga, will be powered by Ant Group’s mobile platform-as-a-service (mPaaS) and will combine stock trading, digital investment management, an e-wallet, crypto trading and foreign currency exchange capabilities.

Kenanga Investment Bank group managing director Datuk Chay Wai Leong says the company plans to unify a broad spectrum of financial offerings under one roof while also making “wealth creation more accessible by democratising financial services for the millions of Malaysians around the country”.

Top 7 Fintech Startups in Vietnam in 2022

Fintech News, Posted August 25, 2022

Vietnam is one of Asia’s most dynamic startups scenes, a burgeoning ecosystem that’s risen on the back of the country’s booming digital economy, a young population willing to test and adopt new technology consumer services, and a surge in overseas funding.

In 2021, Vietnamese startups raised a total of US$1.5 billion, according to business consulting firm Nextrans Vietnam. Fintech led venture capital (VC) funding, making up 26.6% of all startup investments in 2021 and showcasing investors’ confidence in the prospects of financial innovations in the country.

Soaring fintech investments came on the back of rapid adoption of digital financial services amid COVID-19 restrictions. To get a sense of Vietnam’s up-and-coming fintech startups, we look today at seven fast-growing Vietnamese fintech companies that have made notable strives over the past year and which have attracted the interest of some of the world’s most prominent startup investors.

#Fintech

AliPay is the most popular digital wallet in the world in 2022

Fintech News, Posted August 25, 2022

In 2013, Alipay surpassed Paypal as the world’s most popular mobile payment platform, and still holds the top spot nearly ten years later with 1.3 billion users.

WeChat Pay and Apple Pay are in second and third, with 900 million and 507 million users respectively.

Google Pay has overtaken Paypal; it now has 421 million active users, which is over 40 million more than Paypal’s 377 million.

The increased popularity of digital wallets is likely contributing to reduced cash-use; the top 10 countries closest to a cashless society include Norway, Finland, New Zealand and the UK.

UK supermarket rolls out BNPL loans to tackle rising food costs

Finextra, Posted August 25, 2022

With many of its customers struggling in the face of a cost of living crisis, UK supermarket chain Iceland is rolling out an interest-free BNPL product for use at its shops.

The Iceland Food Club allows members to apply for microloans of £25-100 on a pre-loaded card, which can be used in any of the firm’s stores.

The loans are repaid at the rate of £10 a week, on a day of the member’s choice, and are available in six annual windows coinciding with school holidays, when family finances are usually most acutely stretched.

Critics have accused Iceland of encouraging customers to spend more than they can afford. Labour MP Stella Creasy, who has long campaigned on payday lenders, tweeted that the initiative is “deeply disingenuous”.

#Crypto

Fintech investor Chrysalis Investments hit by tech rout

Finextra, Posted August 23, 2022

Chrysalis Investments has reported a 22% drop in the net asset value of its fund, reflecting the revaluation of fintech firms in its portfolio.

The company, which has holdings in Klarna, Wise and Starling Bank, says that valuations were negatively impacted by historic levels of inflation and material interest rate rises.

Representing 19% of the portfolio, BNPL giant Klarna was written down by 78% during the period, in line with the recent downround completed in mid-June.

The Wise share price also saw a 40% decline down to 297.4p at the end of June, reflecting the difficult market conditions during the period.

#BNPL

Revolut rolls out consumer loans in Romania

Finextra, Posted August 19, 2022

Revolut has announced that Romanian customers are able to apply for consumer loans in their local currency.

Users will be able to access loans up to RON 125,000 within a few minutes. The app will also allow customers to edit their monthly repayment plans, make direct payments, and check their credit reports.

Romania is Revolut’s second largest market globally with over 2 million customers, comprising about 10% of their user base.

Gabriela Simion, general manager of Revolut Romania, commented: “The consumer loan – Revolut style – is easy to obtain; directly from the application in a few simple steps, and very transparent in terms of costs – the only cost charged is the interest. There are no issuance and early repayment fees and no other hidden costs. The loan is currently available to Revolut customers with a credit history whose income can be verified online, but it is a phased process and soon we will be able to add other supported categories.

#Fintech

GCV Leads £695K Investment in Finexos, a Fintech Focused on Making Credit More Accessible

Crowdfund Insider, Posted August 24, 2022

Growth Capital Ventures has led a £695,000 investment round into Finexos, a fintech platform set “to improve access to credit for millions of people around the world.”

Oversubscribed by almost 40% from the initial target, the funds will be used “to drive forwards Finexos’s market entry strategy as the company rolls out its solution to several key pilot partners looking for a more accurate way of evaluating credit worthiness.”

This is the latest EIS-eligible investment opportunity “led by Growth Capital Ventures, an FCA authorized investment firm specializing in impact driven co-investment opportunities across alternative asset classes.”

#Fintech

Paysend Announces Partnership with Currencycloud in Improvement for Cross Border Transactions for Businesses

Crowdfund Insider, Posted August 24, 2022

Paysend, a payments Fintech based in the UK, has announced a new partnership with Currencycloud – a global transaction platform and part of Visa.

Paysend said the partnership will enable it to expand the capabilities of Paysend Business, a new digital end-to-end payments solution created to help small to medium enterprises (SMEs). Paysend Business is described as removing the complexities SMEs face when making international payments, giving them access to a suite of international payment options including SWIFT, local payment rails and payments to cards in a centralized platform.

Paysend Business will now offer SMEs a more efficient and transparent way of making cross-border transactions, providing access to more than 180 countries without the need of setting up local bank accounts.

#Fintech

Token, Deutsche Payment Announce Partnership on Open Banking

Crowdfund Insider, Posted August 23, 2022

Deutsche Payment has announced a partnership with Token – an Open Banking provider.

According to a company statement, an upcoming launch of “PayThisWay“, an account-to-account payments service, will be powered by Token’s Open Banking platform. Token’s white-label-ready platform is designed to enable payment providers like Deutsche Payments to efficiently launch and manage Open Banking-enabled payments.

Deutsche Payment envisions a cashless society that is secure and efficient in regards to transfers and payments. PayThisWay is said to embody this vision.

#Open Banking

SMFG to launch digital consumer bank in the US

Finextra, Posted August 25, 2022

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) is to launch a new standalone digital bank in the US.

Jenius Bank will operate as a division of Manufacturers Bank, a California state-chartered bank that is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SMFG partner SMBC, offering personal loans from the outset, before expanding into savings and checking account products within its first year.

Kazuhisa Miyagawa, chairman and CEO of Manufacturers Bank, says: “With the launch of Jenius Bank, we have the rare opportunity to build exceptional products from scratch that uniquely meet the needs of today’s digitally-native consumers who need and expect more.”

John Rosenfeld, the founder and President of Citizens Access, an online direct bank of Citizens Bank, has been hired to lead the operation.

#Digital Bank

Paytech start-up CabbagePay launches in the US

Fintech Futures, Posted August 23, 2022

New York-based start-up CabbagePay has officially launched in the US offering money movement services for businesses.

Firms can integrate CabbagePay’s prebuilt CabbageLink technology into mobile apps and online stores to enable “cost-effective” payments.

The company claims that its solution enables businesses to save “significantly” on payment transaction fees by charging “under 1%”.

“Moving money is plagued with an excess of fees, fraud, delay,” says Pratt Khot, co-founder of CabbagePay. “Checkout times everywhere have been more frustrating than ever due to the pandemic and merchants are paying tens of thousands of dollars in credit card fees.”

#Visa

Alternative investment fintech iCapital to acquire UBS Fund Advisor

Fintech Futures, Posted August 25, 2022

Alternative investment fintech iCapital is set to acquire UBS Fund Advisor for an undisclosed sum.

The deal includes UBS’s legacy proprietary alternative investment manager and the feeder fund platform it manages. The platform, known as AlphaKeys Funds, includes private equity, hedge fund and real estate feeder funds and represents more than $7 billion in client assets.

Following the acquisition, set to finalise in H2 2022, iCapital will assume the management and operation of the platform while UBS financial advisors will continue to serve its high and ultra-high-net-worth clients that hold feeder funds.

#Fintech

Binance and Mastercard launch crypto-to-fiat payment card

Finextra, Posted August 25, 2022

Binance is to launch a cryptocurrency payment card that enables users to convert their holdings into fiat for transactions at Mastercard terminals worldwide.

Issued by Credencial Payments, the card will allow all new and existing Binance users in Argentina with a valid national ID to make purchases and pay bills with cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and BNB, at over 90 million Mastercard merchants worldwide, both in-store and online.

Cryptocurrencies are converted to fiat currency in real-time at the point of purchase.

Cardholders can also earn up to 8% in crypto cashback on eligible purchases and enjoy zero fees on ATM withdrawals.

#Payment card

Citi invests in Latin American open finance firm Belvo

Finextra, Posted August 23, 2022

Citi Ventures is the latest big name to invest in Mexico City-based open finance API platform Belvo.

Citi Ventures joins Visa as an investor in Belvo, which closed a $43 million Series A funding round last June. The investment also sees Belvo work with Citi’s Mexican business, Citibanamex to push open banking in the country.

Belvo has built an API platform that it says can be used to access and interpret end-user financial data to build better, more efficient and more inclusive financial products in Latin America.

Founded in 2019, the startup already has connections with over 60 financial institutions and works with over 125 clients including leading fintech and financial companies in Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia like Jeeves, Rappi, Mobills, Ferratum, and Higo.

#Fintech

Ripple launches crypto-enabled enterprise payments in Brazil with Travelex Bank

Finextra, Posted August 19, 2022

Ripple has brought its On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) offering to Latin America through a partnership with Brazil’s Travelex Bank.

ODL taps Ripple’s XRP digital asset to enable customers to send money across borders instantly with very low-cost settlement and without the need to hold pre-funded capital in the destination market.

Digital lender Travelex is the first bank registered and approved by the Central Bank of Brazil to operate exclusively in foreign exchange, working to simplify customers’ access to international money through remittance and international payments, ATMs, and multicurrency prepaid cards.

Travelex turned to Ripple to help its customers, who have limited capital to cover the costs of pre-funding. Through the use of ODL, it is promising to deliver near instant settlement and access to liquidity 24/7/365.

#Fintech

Prometeo Open Banking Introduces Pan-Regional Account to Account Solution in Latin America

Crowdfund Insider, Posted August 22, 2022

Prometeo Open Banking, which claims to be the leading Latin American Open Banking platform, announced the launch of the first Account to Account (A2A) payments solution in Latin American markets.

As noted in an update shared with Crowdfund Insider, Prometeo‘s new payment service “provides a frictionless user experience, no intermediaries, and convenient costs for merchants and users.” The company claims that the service is “completely unique in the region and allows merchants to scale without the need for complex integrations and developments.”

The solution “allows Prometeo’s customers to embed bank account payments into their digital channels through Prometeo’s ready-to-use widget.”

#Fintech

Two new mortgage start-ups launching in Latin America – Toperty and Saturn5

Fintech Futures, Posted August 24, 2022

Latin America has two new mortgage fintech start-ups, with Toperty launching in Colombia and Saturn5 gearing up for launch in Mexico.

Based in Bogota, Toperty is a Colombian mortgage fintech start-up that is aiming to make homeownership “accessible and simple” for Latin Americans.

“We eliminate financing barriers such as initial debt and down payment and reduce all friction throughout the homeownership process to make it accessible and simple,” the firm says.

Toperty offers to buy the new home for a customer upfront and offer a monthly payment plan through which the customer can acquire the property while renting it off the company.

#Fintech