Banking


Payments start-up Fire fires up

Fire Financial Services – now trading as Fire – has launched and is targeting the UK and Irish markets with a digital account. Colm Lyon, founder and CEO at Fire, says: “It has taken some time for us to reach this day – several years of trying and getting it wrong.” Now the business has […]

ImaginBank launches chatbot for millennials

CaixaBank’s mobile-only bank, imaginBank, has unveiled a chatbot to help millennials find offers and promotions most relevant to them, based on their preferences or location. Powered by artificial intelligence (AI), the chatbot will be available to users via Facebook Messenger on imaginBank’s Facebook page. Launched in January 2016, imaginBank is a 100% digital and mobile […]

Wells Fargo teams with Intuit for data exchange

Wells Fargo has signed an agreement with financial software firm Intuit to help customers import their bank account data to financial management tools such as QuickBooks Online, Mint and TurboTax Online, via their application programming interface (API). Data imported via these APIs is intended to help customers save time and avoid potential data-entry errors. Brett […]

Modern payments and banking APIs

Modern banking is not limited to banks anymore. It’s not only about online or mobile banking, it’s about all the things you would do in your banking system, but now you can do in apps or other solutions provided by third parties, not banks. Payments are one of such functionalities.

The Monday mindset: 6 February 2017

Fintech zeitgeist! Welcome to the third in a new series of brief reports. Every Monday, we might look back at last week; look ahead to this week; share a few thoughts (our own or others); or discuss anything that catches our eye. This week we welcome the views of guest writer Soumik Roy on India’s latest budget and its implications for e-payments and digital economy.

Banks and UN launch sustainable investment framework

United Nations, together with 19 banks and investors worldwide, have launched “a global framework aimed at channelling the money they manage towards clean, low carbon and inclusive projects”. The framework – The Principles for Positive Impact Finance – is a first of its kind set of criteria for investments to be considered sustainable, says the UN.

Klarna acquires BillPay

Sweden-based payments provider Klarna has acquired a fellow payments company in Germany, BillPay. The deal is understood to be worth £60 million.

The “entrefunereal” spirit takes hold at Rainmaking Summit

Game-changing innovations, paradigm shift and synergy… Buzzwords no more! The Rainmaking Summit tapped a frustration with the kind of language that obfuscates more than it clarifies, initiatives that pay lip service to innovation while skirting around the edges, and the cultural, organisational, and technological blockers to change that define many large corporates.

Glance and trade: Swissquote introduces VR trading

Swiss online bank Swissquote has developed a virtual reality (VR) trading application that enables users make trades with a glance. The VR headset creates a 360° trading wall for users to monitor the markets.

New Zealand announces new fintech working group

The New Zealand Tech Industry Association (NZTech) is launching a new working group, FinTechNZ, which will focus on financial innovation and technology. This working group will be inaugurated in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland next week.

The European Banking Authority favours arbitrary box-ticking over data innovation

The European Banking Authority (EBA) recently proposed new rules that would require payment card operators to enforce additional security measures, such as passwords or security tokens, for all online transactions over €10, aimed at fraud prevention. This is a clumsy solution to a problem that is already being addressed by far more sophisticated means, argues Nick Wallace, senior policy analyst at Centre for Data Innovation, and policymakers should reject the EBA’s proposal.

UK watchdog driving open banking revolution

The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says its banking “final order” is giving people greater control over their money and reckons the open banking revolution is getting closer. As Banking Technology reported in August, the CMA unveiled its plans to make banks “work harder for customers” and ensure the “benefits of new technology are […]

Become a banking “curator” says ANZ

The future of commercial banking may well lie in being “curators”, according to Australia and New Zealand-based banking group, ANZ. In an interview with the Australian Financial Review, Mark Hand, managing director, corporate and commercial banking at ANZ says commercial bankers will “morph into ‘curators’ for their business clients by linking customers with reputable, external […]

India Post Payments Bank launches pilot services

India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) has launched and is rolling out pilot services in Raipur and Ranchi. IPPB is the third payments bank to be authorised in India, and follows on the heels of Paytm (launched last year) and Airtel (opened for business this year). IPPB’s chief executive officer, A P Singh, says: “The idea […]

2017: the year fintech shifts its focus to Africa

Africa is becoming a very interesting fintech innovation hub (in particular South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt). As much as 80% of the continent is unbanked, opening the door to a breadth of opportunities for fintech companies to seize market share.

Wall Street Blockchain Alliance launches Blockchain Assets Working Group

The Wall Street Blockchain Alliance (WSBA), a US-based non-profit trade organisation, has set up a new working group – the Blockchain Assets Working Group (BAWG). It will focus on “native assets riding upon public blockchains, such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Zcash, and more”, WSBA explains.

Dubai ponders regulatory framework for loan-based crowdfunding platforms

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has issued a consultation paper, “Crowdfunding: SME Financing Through Lending”. The paper proposes a regulatory framework for anyone looking to operate a loan-based crowdfunding platform in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

Varo Money joins forces with Envestnet | Yodlee to drive fintech innovation

California based technology companies Varo Money and Envestnet | Yodlee have teamed up to drive fintech innovation. Varo Money, a mobile-only banking start-up hopes to leverage Envestnet | Yodlee’s data analytics and aggregation platform to provide customers with a more customised mobile banking experience, and better insights into their financial well-being.

Mastercard victorious in UK interchange lawsuit

Mastercard can put a notch in the win column after a High Court judge ruled in the payment card network’s favor regarding a lawsuit brought on by retailers disputing cross-border interchange fees on debit and credit cards.

Trend Watch 2017: Payments Year in Review

Paybefore’s first-ever payments year-in-review report, sponsored by The Bancorp, is available now. Offering an in-depth look at key trends and the Top 10 payments stories from 2016 that will continue to shape the industry in 2017 and beyond, this must-have resource examines everything influencing the industry from the CFPB and Uber to Brexit and Trump and much more.