The Paypers, Posted November 2, 2023

Fintech EedenBull has teamed up with Mastercard to launch an AI-backed a card and spend management platform for SMEs.

As an extension of the two companies’ existing partnership, Mastercard will refer EedenBull’s Q Business platform to its extensive network of customers issuing cards to SMEs. The service will be available to issuers immediately, initially in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, the Philippines, and Malaysia before expanding region-wide.

The partnership represents one of the first times a payments network in Asia Pacific is collaborating with a fintech to support a white-labelled Expense Management System (EMS) and Card Management System (CMS) solution for SMEs.

#Fintech

Reuters, Posted October 31, 2023

India-based credit card issuer SBI Card has partnered with retail company Reliance to launch a co-branded credit card on India’s RuPay payment network.

The partnership marks Reliance’s foray into the credit card space and comes months after the company’s officials separately listed their financial services business as it seeks to diversify their operations.

SBI Card could lure customers with access to rewards across Reliance Retail’s 18,650 stores in India, at a time when credit card spending has boomed. The ongoing festive season, when customers make some of the most big-ticket purchases, is also expected to boost spending.

Data from the Reserve Bank of India showed credit cards in the network had surged nearly 20% year-on-year as of September 2023.

#SBI Card

Crowdfund insider, Posted October 31, 2023

Fave, a consumer fintech platform in Southeast Asia and India, has announced its participation in the SGQR+ POC led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

The SGQR+ POC will be limited “to Districts 16 and 17 of Singapore and showcased during the Singapore FinTech Festival at the Singapore EXPO.”

The Singapore Quick Response Code (SGQR)1 was “launched in 2018 as the first-ever unified QR code for digital payments in Singapore.”

The introduction of SGQR+ now aims “to enhance interoperability in QR payments by letting merchants register with a single preferred merchant acquirer and accept a wide array of digital payments from customers who use any payment app that has enabled SGQR transactions.”

Seamless cross-border interoperability “delivered through SGQR+ will also ensure that merchants will be able to accept digital payments from overseas visitors.”

#Fintech

Finextra, Posted November 9, 2023

Following its reccent integration with Stripe, TrueLayer’s new A2A payments app has nowgone live in the Shopify App Store, allowing UK and EU merchants to add open banking payments to their checkout.

The move brings the open banking network to the prominent ecommerce platform, enabling merchants to add instant bank payments to their website in a matter of hours. The chekout experience adds a faster, more secure payment option at a fraction of the cost of cards or PayPal.

Customers’ details auto-populate directly from their bank account, reducing the likelihood of payment failure and removing friction. Payments leverage biometric authentication to verify customers’ identity, providing bank-level security with every payment.

Powered by instant payment rails, open banking payments allow for real-time settlement of funds and enables businesses to process refunds faster.

#TrueLayer

The Paypers, Posted November 1, 2023

Financial super app Revolut has introduced Trading Pro to improve the trading experience of customers across the EEA.

Trading Pro is a of tools and insights that was specifically designed for advanced traders to improve their trading experience. The new subscription, available in the European Economic Area (EEA), is provided by Revolut Securities Europe UAB and can be added to existing Revolut plans, with the exception of the Ultra plan, which already includes Trading Pro free of charge. 

Trading Pro offers active investors reduced commission fees, which are now set at 0.12% for trades that exceed the current free trade allowance in Revolut plans, down from the previous rate of 0.25%. There is no minimum country-based fee, although other fees may still apply. 

Trading Pro also provides advanced traders with access to higher order limits for US and EEA stocks and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). This includes order limits ranging from USD 10,000 to USD 1,500,000 for US stocks and EUR 1,500,000 for EEA stocks and ETFs, with a maximum of 50,000 shares per trade. 

#Revolut

Finextra, Posted November 2, 2023

The European Payments Initiative (EPI), a bank-backed venture that was initially set up to build a rival to Mastercard and Visa in Europe, has completed the acquisition of Dutch payment scheme iDeal and Luxembourg’s Payconiq.

EPI says it has secured regulatory clearance to close the deals, which were first announced in April, marking a significant milestone for its ambition to build a unified instant payment scheme and platform for Europe.

Initially backed by 31 major Eurozone banks and acquirers Worldline and Nets, the EPI set itself the goal of building a unified pan-European payment system, offering a card for consumers and merchants across Europe, a digital wallet and P2P payments.

Backed by the European Central Bank, the scheme was set to enter its operational phase last year, but financing had become a concern for members, prompting a move to seek outside funding. The failure to agree terms led to the pull out of 20 banks, including all Spanish members as well as Germany’s Commerzbank and DZ Bank. Plans to launch a payment card were also ditched as the company reined in its ambitions.

#Payments

Crowdfund insider, Posted November 2, 2023

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) has reportedly been registered to provide crypto-asset services in the UK. This, according to the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) update posted on its website. The news comes as the international payments firm builds a post-Brexit base in the country.

Although the cryptocurrency market in the UK currently expects its initial set of regulatory guidelines, firms that intend to provide digital assets and crypto-focused services need to show the FCA that they do have adequate safeguards against them being misused for laundering funds or financing terrorist activities.

The UK regulatory authority has also introduced stricter measures when it comes to marketing or promoting crypto-related services, which have affected industry participants such as Binance.

#Payments

HM Treasury sets out phased regulatory approach for stablecoins

UK Finance, Posted November 2, 2023

The UK government has set out its final plans to bring crypto assets under the authority of financial regulation as national payment chains prepare to facilitate the use of fiat-backed stablecoins.

Updates released this week state that the next stage of implementation will see HM Treasury introduce legislation bringing “activities relating to fiat-backed stablecoins into the regulatory perimeter” by early next year.

The perimeter will be expanded again in phase 2 of the implementation, which the document clarifies as the regulation of the “wider types of cryptoassets”, namely commodity-backed tokens and stablecoins used to transaction cryptoassets on exchanges.

Elsewhere, the updates also recognise that it is currently too early to issue regulatory guidance on decentralised finance (DeFi), citing it as “a nascent, complex area carrying unique challenges”.

#Stablecoins

Regulators of UK, Singapore, Switzerland and Japan launch collaborative effort to explore digital asset use cases

Fintech Futures, Posted October 31, 2023

Policymakers of four countries – Singapore, the UK, Japan and Switzerland – have come together in a joint initiative to explore new use cases for digital assets.

Project Guardian is helmed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) with participation from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Financial Services Agency of Japan (FSA) and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA).

As part of Project Guardian, MAS has partnered up with 15 financial institutions to conduct digital asset pilots in areas of fixed income, foreign exchange and asset management.

“These pilots have demonstrated the potential to reap significant market and transaction efficiencies from the use of tokenisation,” MAS says in a statement.

“As the pilots grow in scale and sophistication, there is a need for closer cross-border collaboration among policymakers and regulators.”

#Fintech

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The Paypers Global Fintech Investments Analysis: Q3 2023

The Paypers, Posted November 9, 2023

The Paypers looked into the most relevant investments that were announced during Q3 2023 and discovered an overall preference for digital banking, fintech solutions, lending, and fraud prevention strategies.

According to the `Geo Quarterly Report: FinTech US – Q3 2023` of Tracxn, September has been the least funded month of 2023, after February. Following the global economic slowdown, the increasing interest rates, as well as the banking crisis that swept throughout the year, and the effects that followed, multiple investors found it more difficult to make investment decisions. Still, while US-based fintechs saw a 5% drop in funding QoQ, they continued to drive a large portion of global fintech funding, as the US accounted for almost half (47%) of all quarterly fintech funding in Q3’23.

On a global scale, the State of Fintech Q3’23 Report by CBInsights reveals that, in the third quarter of 2023, global fintech funding demonstrated relative stability, registering a modest decline of 3% when compared to the previous quarter. During this period, global fintech funding amounted to USD 7.4 billion.

In this context, companies still needed to demonstrate a certain degree of profitability and development prospects in a clear and detailed manner to catch the attention of investors and make them believe in their cause. Therefore, multiple firms focused their strategy on expanding their operations and optimising customer experiences either by streamlining their operations, tapping into AI technologies, or adding new features.

#Fintech

Visa launches AI advisory practice

The Paypers, Posted November 9, 2023

Visa has launched an advisory practice to help clients unlock the potential of artificial intelligence.

The payments giant says it will offer firms access to AI expertise it has built up over 30 years and billions of dollars of investment.

The AI Advisory Practice taps into Visa Consulting & Analytics’ global network of over 1000 consultants, data scientists and product experts in 75 offices on six continents to help clients understand the AI landscape, including the potential role of generative AI.

VCA offers a range of services that guide clients through their AI journey, from initial discovery and planning to implementation, grounded in foundational strategy, capability assessment, and model design.

The firm says that this collaborative approach will help clients define their own responsible AI strategy and use the technology more effectively to meet their business goals, such as market expansion, product design, customer acquisition, engagement improvement, and authorisation and fraud optimisation.

#Visa

Goldman Sachs bids to offload GM credit card

The Paypers, Posted November 9, 2023

Goldman Sachs is preparing to sell off its General Motors credit card programme as part of its wider retreat from the retail market, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The Wall Street giant beat out competition from Barclays in 2020 to buy GM’s credit card business in a multi-year deal worth around $2.5 billion.

However, the bank has now told staffers at its Platform Solutions division that GM is set to look for a new issuer, says the Journal, citing sources.

Goldman is understood to be trying to exit its other major credit card deal with Apple. The WSJ has previously reported that the bank wants to pass on the business to American Express, which could also be in the frame for the GM business.

In January Goldman reported that the Platform Solutions unit made a pre-tax loss of $1.2 billion in the first nine months of 2022.

#Goldman Sachs

Adyen partners with Plaid to launch a bank payments solution

The Paypers, Posted November 3, 2023

Financial technology platform for businesses Adyen has partnered with US-based data network provider Plaid to provide Pay-by-Bank services in North America.

Specifically, Adyen has revealed its plans to introduce its Pay-by-Bank services in North America in early 2024 via this partnership. Adyen, which has a history of investment in the region, including a US Branch Licence and local tech hubs, aims to enhance its embedded financial services through this collaboration. 

When talking about this collaboration, representatives from Adyen highlighted the compatibility between the two companies, stating that Plaid’s financial technology aligns well with their objectives. This collaboration is set to provide businesses and consumers with a comprehensive Pay-by-Bank experience, offering an alternative payment method that caters to customer demands while also reducing costs across the payment chain.  Pay-by-Bank is set to join Adyen’s list of over 150 payment methods. This addition addresses the growing need for seamless customer solutions and cost-efficiency in backend operations. Juniper Research data cited by Adyen predicts that Pay-by-Bank payments will surpass USD 330 billion globally by 2027, representing a 479% increase from the USD 57 billion recorded in 2023. Additionally, the research anticipates a surge in Open Banking Application Programming Interface (API) calls from 102 billion in 2023 to 580 billion by 2027

#Payments

Glia launches generative AI tools for FIs

Crowdfund insider, Posted November 2, 2023

US-based customer interaction company Glia has announced the launch of new generative AI tools to help financial institutions (FIs) drive efficiency and better the customer experience. Glia unifies Digital Customer Service (DCS), phone, and automation on a single platform, and the introduction of the generative AI tools seeks to help gain customers’ trust while providing an open, flexible framework for FIs. This comes as FIs are looking to leverage generative AI, yet they are hesitant due to potential risks surrounding data leakage, data integrity, privacy, and the impact on the customer. Per a company official, this launch seeks to be beneficial for all, bringing time savings for the service team, increased customer satisfaction, and improved efficiency for the FI

#BNPL

Amazon announces an expanded partnership with Affirm

Crowdfund insider, Posted October 26, 2023

Amazon has announced an expanded partnership with US-based payments network Affirm to leverage the latter’s pay-over-time option.

Through this partnership, Amazon will add Affirm as the initial pay-over-time option for purchases made on Amazon Business, which is a platform designed to facilitate the digitalisation and automation of procurement processes for businesses. This integration aims to enhance flexibility for Amazon Business customers, enabling them to split the total cost of eligible purchases and make payments over a specified period through Affirm without incurring late or hidden fees. 

Through this partnership, Amazon Business will gradually implement Affirm as a payment option for eligible sole proprietor businesses. The company aims to make this payment alternative available for all eligible Amazon Business sole proprietor customers by Black Friday 2023. Officials from Amazon Business Worldwide emphasised the commitment to making Amazon Business a favourable destination for small businesses to meet their procurement requirements. 

They noted that the integration of Affirm as a payment option aligns with this objective, offering enhanced convenience and adaptability to customers. The seamless integration of Affirm into Amazon Business is facilitated by the technology’s ease, its capacity to support a wide array of transactions, and its existing user base among Amazon customers.

#Amazon

Verizon Business offers Apple Business Essentials

The Paypers, Posted November 2, 2023

US-based Verizon Business has announced that it offers Apple Business Essentials for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) using Apple products. 

Considering that SMEs increasingly rely on a distributed workforce and often without dedicated IT, Apple Business Essentials, a complete subscription that connects device management, 24/7 support, and cloud storage, offers Verizon Business customers the ability to manage and support their fleet of iPhone, iPad, and Mac computers. This intends to maximise operations and minimise employee downtime.
Apple Business Essentials is available for Verizon Business customers as a business plan via Verizon’s Business Solution Store (BuSS), with customers being able to choose from several plans with prices ranging from USD 2.99 to USD 24.99 per user per month. According to officials, the integration aims to provide customers with a simplified device management process and support for distributed workforce.

#Apple

Apple Pay Later launches in the US

The Paypers, Posted October 24, 2023

Apple has launched Apple Pay Later for eligible US residents and it is currently available in the Wallet app on the iPhone.

Until now, the feature was available on an invite-only early access basis, with Apple announcing it at the end of March 2023. At that time, randomly selected users were granted access to a pre release version of Apple Pay Later via Wallet and through their Apple ID email. 

Apple Pay Later is a Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) feature that allows users to divide purchases into four payments over six weeks, with no interest or fees. Customers can track, manage, and repay their loans in the Apple Wallet, with the capability being available for qualified purchases between USD 75 and USD 1000. Initially, the minimum purchase amount was USD 50, however, Apple raised it to the current USD 75. Purchases can be made either on iPhone or iPad on the majority of websites and apps that accept Apple Pay.

#Apple

PayPal receives SEC subpoena over stablecoin

The Paypers, Posted October 24, 2023

PayPal has received a subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requesting documentation about its recently launched stablecoin.

In its quarterly earnings report, PayPal says: “On November 1, 2023, we received a subpoena from the U.S. SEC Division of Enforcement relating to PayPal USD stablecoin.

“The subpoena requests the production of documents. We are cooperating with the SEC in connection with this request.”

The filing does not provide any details on the SEC’s request.

PayPal USD (PYUSD) launched in August, succeeding where Facebook’s protracted Libra project failed in the ace of huge regulatory pushback.

The stablecoin is issued by Paxos and fully backed by US dollar deposits, short-term US treasuries and similar cash equivalents.

#PayPal

Visa launches VAU in Asia Pacific

The Paypers, Posted November 8, 2023

Global payments provider Visa has announced the expansion of Real Time Visa Account Updater (VAU) to selected markets in Asia Pacific.

Through this launch, Visa intends to simplify the payment experience for merchants and customers by offering cardholders a single credential for life. By introducing the service to Asia Pacific, consumers and merchants can access Real Time VAU across subscription services, including ride-hailing, food delivery, and monthly utility payments, among others. 

Integrated with Visa’s technology, Real Time VAU supports merchants in eliminating the issue of declined payments from customers with expired or replaced debit and credit cards by enabling businesses to update customers’ stored card details in real-time. When a merchant submits a payment, the service instantly checks for the latest card details and transacts the payment request with the updated information, decreasing the rates of authorisation declines, lost sales, and severed cardholder relationships.

#Payments

The Paypers, Posted October 31, 2023

The Brazilian Senate has reviewed a Complementary Bill (PLP) that aims to regulate the sharing of customer data among financial sector entities.

This bill, designated as PLP 207/2023 introduces comprehensive legislation for Open Systems, collectively referred to as Open Finance in the PLP. Open Finance encompasses Open Banking (under the purview of the Central Bank), Open Insurance (regulated by the Private Insurance Superintendency, Susep), and Open Capital Market (overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission, CVM). 

Presently, these initiatives are governed by sub-legal regulations, meaning there is no specific law in Brazil that governs the operations of these open data systems. The Central Bank has pioneered Open Banking in Brazil, which has evolved into Open Finance with more than 40 million active consents. Susep is developing Open Insurance based on the Central Bank’s experience, and the CVM is planning a similar model for the capital market.

#Fintech

Ebury’s acquisition of Bexs Group approved by Central Bank of Brazil

The Paypers, Posted October 31, 2023

Ebury has announced that the Central Bank of Brazil has approved its acquisition of Bexs Group, including both Bexs Banco and Bexs Pay.  After this approval, both companies will work to advance the integration procedures and efforts to accelerate the launch of new products in the Brazilian market.

The acquisition is set to broaden Ebury’s offering of international money transfer solutions for SMEs and amplify its digital offerings to online businesses in Brazil, particularly marketplaces, investment applications, and software companies. Ebury will enable large-scale payments from abroad to Brazil by leveraging Bexs Group’s technology. The company aims to onboard 3,000 clients in the country by 2025.

#Fintech

Brazilian BaaS platform QI Tech raises $200 million

Finextra, Posted November 2, 2023

Brazilian Banking-as-a-Service platform QI Tech has raised $200 million in a Series B round led by General Atlantic.

GA was joined by existing investor Across Capital, which is doubling its initial $12 million investment in the company. The new raise brings the São Paulo-based startup’s total venture capital investments to $262 million, including a $50 million Series A round of funding led by the Sovereign Investment Fund of Singapore back in November 2021.

Founded in 2018 by Pedro Mac Dowell, Marcelo Bentivoglio, and Marcelo Buosi, QI Tech offers a set of APIs that allows any business to offer financial products to its customers, providing digital registration tools, data validation, credit scoring, digital account opening, wire transfers, Pix, bank slips, and credit underwriting. To round out the offering, QI Tech also holds a brokerage license (DTVM), used to structure, administer, and safeguard investment funds in credit rights.

#Fintech

Digital Banking: Brazil’s Nubank Reaches 90M+ Customers in LatAm Markets

Crowdfund insider, Posted October 31, 2023

Nubank (NYSE:NU) has surpassed 90 million customers in Latin America in its operations in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, consolidating its position as one of the fastest-growing financial services companies in the world.

David Vélez, Nubank’s founder and CEO, at an event for the press and influencers in Mexico City, said:

“This new milestone is a source of great pride for us and a commitment we take very seriously. There are 90 million people who trust Nubank to manage their financial lives and for whom we work to offer solutions that make their daily lives easier. And this is just the beginning.”

In the second quarter of 2023, Nubank was “considered the primary banking relationship for almost 60% of its users, and nearly 1 in 2 Brazilians was already a Nu customer.”

#Fintech

Jeeves partners with Bexs

The Paypers, Posted November 10, 2023

Global expense management and cross-border payments platform Jeeves has partnered with digital payments and FX bank Bexs. 

Through this collaboration, Jeeves and Bex developed a digital cross-border Business-to-Business (B2B) payments platform for Brazilian businesses. The launch intends to eliminate the manual processes traditionally associated with sending funds from Brazil to global regions, including the US and Europe, and to provide businesses with a simplified, fast, and transparent transaction experience. Brazilian businesses previously managed the analogue bureaucracy of FX contracts and the complex process of invoice payments that was not time-efficient, usually requiring constant communication with FX providers. With Jeeves’ platform, transactions are executed digitally within 24 hours, while also ensuring compliance with the Central Bank of Brazil’s security standards and allowing finance teams to focus on other responsibilities. The platform is integrated through API to Bexs’ FX-as-a-Service solution, enabling international transactions to be conducted digitally. Considering the current environment where the world is increasingly interconnected, businesses require immediate international transactions, including for technology, legal advice, marketing, or good import.

#Payments

N26 quits Brazil

Finextra, Posted November 8, 2023

Having already left the US and UK, German digital bank N26 is quitting the Brazilian market as it narrows its focus on continental Europe.

N26 first announced plans to enter Brazil in 2019, boasting of its ambitions to become a “truly global bank”. It finally began testing with a group of users on a waiting list in late 2021 but never launched to the general public.

Now, the firm says it will wind down operations over the next two month and “focus on its core European markets”. Around 70 Brazil-based employees can apply for open positions in the bank’s European offices.

N26 quit the US two years ago despite amassing 500,000 customers and left the UK in 2019, citing Brexit-related constraints.

#Payments