Crowdfund Insider, Posted October 15, 2022

Blockchain.com, a leading crypto wallet provider, digital asset trading platform, and block explorer service provider, recently revealed that it has “secured an in-principle approval for the Major Payment Institution License offering Digital Payment Token services from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).”

With this preliminary approval, Blockchain.com Singapore continues “to service institutional and high net worth investors, project teams and operators in the crypto ecosystem.”

Blockchain.com “views Singapore as an attractive city-state to invest in the growth of its institutional customers and its team, as the most advanced economy in Southeast Asia.”

At Blockchain.com, they’re “advocates of thoughtful regulation and remain committed to obtaining registrations and licenses in all jurisdictions where we do business.”

#Fintech

Crowdfund Insider, Posted October 14, 2022

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and Bank Indonesia recently announced the winners of the G20 TechSprint 2022 challenge during a live award ceremony in Jakarta.

This year’s competition, under the Indonesian G20 Presidency, was launched in April to catalyze new technologies that “would better enable the development and future use of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).”

An independent panel of 11 experts, convened by Bank Indonesia, “assessed the developed prototypes from the 21 shortlisted teams” and selected the following winners for each category:

Team Dragonfly Fintech Pte Ltd from Singapore won the “Effective and robust means to issue, distribute and transfer CBDCs” category for their solution End-to-End CBDC Solution, which is a proprietary blockchain ledger with unique in-built features and includes a mobile wallet and digital identity platform.

Team Bitt-IDEMIA from the US won the “Enabling Financial Inclusion” category for their solution Secure Offline CBDC Payment Solution, which is a platform that allows monetary authorities to launch interoperable CBDCs while also leveraging on a layer-2 solution to enable offline payments.

Team Partior from Singapore won the “Improving interoperability” category for their solution Project Naucratis: Enabling Connectivity & Interoperability for mCBDC, which is a blockchain-based multi-CBDC network that supports both account-based and token based CBDC models.

#G20 TechSprint 2022

Crowdfund Insider, Posted October 20, 2022

Agribusiness Rural Bank, Inc., which is reportedly one of the top ten rural banking institutions based in the Philippines, also referred to as Agribank, has launched a new mobile banking App for Android and iOS, developed and delivered by Geniusto International.

This secure and configurable mobile banking platform allows Agribank to provide its clients a seamless banking experience.

The [GO] Omni-Channel Platform provides the option to publish new services and product offerings in real time, allowing Agribank to improve the user experience quickly and seamlessly.

Working with Geniusto Mobile Banking is Oradian’s cloud-powered core banking system. Oradian’s extensible system uses APIs to support third-party integrations, enabling Agribank to easily add new features or introduce new products.

On a mission to realize digital transformation and working with Geniusto and Oradian, Agribrank is now better able to serve rural communities across the Philippines.

#Fintech

SG-based BNPL players launch code of conduct to self-regulate

Europe

Finextra, Posted October 19, 2022

UK high street bank Lloyds has stepped up its efforts to engage with fintechs with the release of its Innovation Sandbox supported by NayaOne.

According to the bank, the sandbox will enable it to accelerate its collaboration with new fintechs and the development of any products and services that result from the partnerships.

The bank also states that a number of experiments have already been conducted in the sandbox.

The move is in line with research conducted by Lloyds in 2021, that said almost half (46%) of financial services firms plan to work more closely with fintechs. 

Karan Jain, CEO of NayaOne, told Finextra, “We are extremely proud to be working with Lloyds Banking Group on their Innovation Sandbox. It is clear this will enable the bank’s growth strategy through technology-led innovation, strengthen the UK financial ecosystem and deliver on the Fintech Delivery Pledge.”

#Fintech

Finextra, Posted October 19, 2022

UK open banking and request to pay fintech Ordo has raised £10 million in a Series A funding round led by Equinox Systems.

Founded in 2018 by the former management team of the Faster Payments scheme, Ordo enables businesses to request payments for single and recurring bills – via call centres, email, text or any other messaging platform a business uses – by orchestrating open banking over the Faster Payments rails.

The investment is fuelling expansion across a range of sectors including credit and lending, wealth management, government, utilities, property and FX.

Alongside its open banking single payments solutions, Ordo is now launching its comprehensive Variable Recurring Payments-enabled services for lenders and beyond.

#Payments

Fintech Futures, Posted October 17, 2022

Crypto-powered payments and banking platform BVNK has secured registration from the Bank of Spain as a virtual asset services provider as it looks to expand across the European Union and beyond.

BVNK says unlike the “outmoded technology” used by conventional payment services, running international payments on digitally-native crypto rails delivers a number of “commercial advantages”, such as lower fees, reduced settlement times and simplified fund management across multiple jurisdictions.

BVNK CEO Jesse Hemson-Struthers says cross-border payments made via BVNK’s platform are up to “five times faster” than using Swift, with fees cut by up to 80%.

“We are aggressively building out licensing and infrastructure to make it easier and faster for more customers to enjoy these wins. “Gaining the Spanish registration, and growing our footprint in the EU, are important milestones in our drive to become the ‘go to’ crypto-enabled payments platform for global business.” Hemson-Struthers adds.

#Fintech

Fintech Futures, Posted October 14, 2022

This week’s handy Friday funding round-up includes four European fintech start-ups – Payable, Axyon AI, Cube and HeidiPay.

London-based paytech start-up Payable has raised $6.1 million in a seed funding round led by CRV and Earlybird, with participation from Conversion Capital, Clocktower Ventures and angel investors.

With the fresh capital, the start-up intends to develop its platform and fuel its expansion plans.

Founded this year, Payable aims to build a payment operations API platform and dashboard for fintechs and marketplaces, allowing them to build “complex” payment flows and reconcile and automate bank transfers.

Italian fintech company Axyon AI has raised €1.6 million in a funding round led by CDP Venture Capital, with support from ING, UniCredit, Geminea and Metes.

#Fintech

Finextra, Posted October 17, 2022

Crypto exchange Coinbase has raided German digital assets firm Solaris to appoint its chief operating officer Daniel Seifert as regional managing director for Europe.

The new appointee will be expected to lead Coinbase’s expansion in the European crypto market. 

In a statement reported by Bloomberg, Coinbase said it would fill a number of core positions within its European team.

The crypto exchange has already secured licences to operate in Italy and the Netherlands.  The European plans come in the midst of difficult conditions for crypto service providers. Cryptocurrency values have fallen during 2022 while regulatory requirements have risen.

#Fintech

Italy’s Mediobanca snaps up BNPL fintechs

Finextra, Posted October 19, 2022

JP Morgan has made a strategic investment in Tilia, the payments platform initially built to power the economy of online virtual world Second Life.

Tilia is built for game, virtual world and mobile app developers, handling payment processing, in-game transactions, as well as payouts to creators by converting in-world tokens to fiat currency including USD.

The unit was built from the ground up by Linden Labs to power Second Life and its creator-based economy but is now being spun out as it looks to take cash in on the expected metaverse goldrush.

The firm, which has money transmitter licenses in the US, already works with several virtual worlds and metaverses, online games, and NFT marketplaces, including Second Life, Upland and Avatus.

In addition to the investment, Tilia is working with JP Morgan Payments to enhance its current capabilities throughout its processing platform including providing increased payment and payout methods, and expanding pay-out currencies and support services.

#Payments

Finextra, Posted October 17, 2022

Mastercard has teamed up with blockchain infrastructure platform Paxos on a programme designed to help banks and fintechs offer their customers crypto trading services.

A Mastercard survey found that 29% of respondents globally hold cryptocurrency as an investment, with another 65% indicating a preference for crypto-related services to be provided by their current financial institution.

The new Mastercard Crypto Source programme aims to make it easy for banks and fintechs to help their customers buy, hold and sell select crypto assets, augmented with identity, cyber, security and advisory services.

Paxos will provide crypto-asset trading and custody services on behalf of the banks, while Mastercard’s technology will integrate those capabilities into banks’ interfaces.

#Mastercard

Visa, Thunes Expand Visa Direct’s Reach to 1.5B Digital Wallet

Crowdfund Insider, Posted October 20, 2022

Visa is partnering with Thunes to help individuals and small businesses move money internationally to 78 digital wallet providers, “reaching 1.5 billion digital wallets across 44 countries and territories.”

This partnership will now “expand Visa Direct’s reach to nearly 7 billion endpoints, including more than 3 billion cards, over 2 billion accounts and 1.5 billion digital wallets.”

For the unbanked individuals in emerging markets, digital wallets “are gaining traction as an empowering first entry point to the financial system.”

Consumers are “not required to have a card or account to load or receive funds directly to their digital wallet, opening the potential for greater financial inclusion and enabling underserved populations opportunities to access financial products that meaningfully impact how they live and work.”

#Visa

First Fintech to Gain Money Transmitter License in All 50 States: Embedded Finance Firm Alviere

Crowdfund Insider, Posted October 19, 2022

Alviere, an embedded finance platform, is now the first fully licensed money transmitter in all 50 states as well as Puerto Rico, according to a note from the company.

Many Fintechs pursue state-based licenses to offer services. This is a process that can take quite some time. Alviere states that it was a multi-year initiative to gain approval across the US, thus allowing its clients to provide its services anywhere in the US.

Alviere is a white-label Fintech that provides customers with financial solutions like payments, crypto, cards, and more. Alviere states that it assures direct fiduciary responsibility while opening up opportunities for new revenue streams and enhanced services, such as in-store cash transactions, not offered by other providers.

#Fintech

Apple Predicted to Get Into Health Insurance: Report

Crowdfund Insider, Posted October 19, 2022

Following the news that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) will soon start offering interest-bearing savings accounts, a report predicts that Apple will also offer health insurance in the coming years. A claim that makes some sense.

Insurtech, or insurance technology, is a booming sector of financial services, and Apple is a data king when it comes to personal information. Apple has long predicted that health services will be one of its most important offerings, largely due to its growing wearables. Its Apple Watch is the most popular smartwatch in the market, and it continues to offer users more health-related services like EKGs (ECGs), blood oxygen, activity monitoring, and, more recently, temperature sensors. Apple’s Airpods, the popular wireless earbuds, have been predicted to incorporate data soon too. It is not to hard to envision a health insurance product that integrates with some or all of these services to provide bespoke health insurance. Hit a daily activity goal? Boom, an insurance discount. While packaging all of this together may take some time, Apple Watches are already subsidized by certain health insurance providers. Not much of a leap for Apple to pull another Goldman and partner with a large underwriter to provide an Apple-branded health insurance product.

#Apple

B4B Payments at Money20/20 USA: globalising US fintechs for European issuing and payment expansion

Fintech Futures Posted October 17, 2022

B4B Payments has been deploying instant and secure payment solutions to businesses and fintechs for more than 15 years in the UK and Europe. Since 2021, we’ve been bringing our award-winning solutions to the US, enabling organisations to reduce costs, increase efficiency in managing corporate expenditures, and provide fintechs with the tools to fulfill their payments vision.

Payments is complex, but our solution is so flexible that we can facilitate any proposition easily in the corporate world where payments need to be made. The primary use cases for our products include expenses and expense management, payroll, payouts, incentives, and rewards. All of this can be done through the issuance of a physical or virtual card and supported by robust API integrations and rapid payments.

We will showcase our instant card issuing and payments innovation platform at Money20/20 USA (23-26 October 2022). Company representatives will be on hand to answer questions about the platform and discuss use cases, including how to leverage it to make cost-efficient payments in over 25 different currencies with low rates of FX.

#B4B Payments

Finextra, Posted October 20, 2022

Brazilian digital banking behemoth Nubank is developing its own cryptocurrency, called Nucoin, for its millions of customers. The Nucoin token will be the basis for a rewards programme when it launches next year, distributed for free to the bank’s 70 million customers for discounts and other perks.

However, Nubank says that in the future it also wants to see Nucoins traded in the crypto market.

The bank is inviting 2000 customers to participate in a forum group to help develop the token, which is being built on the Polygon network.

“With Nucoin, we want to further democratize new technologies such as blockchain and web3,” says a blog.

#Digital banking