Circle centres itself for digitally connected wallets
Payments services provider has introduced Centre, an open source project built on blockchain and designed to connect multiple digital wallets to process money transactions.
Start-up
Peer Mountain aims high with data trust solution launch
Luxembourg-headquartered start-up Peer Mountain has unveiled a peer-to-peer self-sovereign identity, compliance and commerce delivery solution as it seeks to exploit the Equifax data breach episode. The firm says it gives users control of their data across blockchain. Consumers can choose who can access the data without the need for third party involvement. Peer Mountain says […]
Around Fintech in 8 Hours – new online course launched by CFTE
Centre for Finance, Technology and Entrepreneurship (CFTE) has launched a fintech foundation course – Around Fintech in 8 Hours – “designed to give professionals working in the finance industry a solid understanding of how technology is redefining the provision of financial services”.
Innovate Finance contest calls for fintech start-ups
Innovate Finance, a UK-based fintech membership association, is seeking start-ups for its latest Pitch360 competition. The contest is open to any start-up in the following sectors: Distributed ledger technology (DLT) Financial inclusion Cybersecurity Cross-border payments Peer-to-peer and alternative funding Regtech Personal finance management and robo-advice Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning Sandboxes The winner will […]
Nymbus unveils digital banking platform, SmartDigital
Banking software start-up Nymbus has launched its digital banking platform – SmartDigital – offering open architecture and APIs to enable financial institutions to integrate with third-party applications.
Blockchain and Bitcoin round-up: 6 October 2017
Blockchain funding, Pubcoin blockchain rewards programme, network and technology sharing and platform test launching. Our latest blockchain and Bitcoin round-up features Anryze, Leanpub, MicroMoney, Karma and Zilliqa.
NAB gets down and under to overhaul SME business loans
National Australia Bank (NAB) has unveiled a complete overhaul of its existing business standard loan form contracts that will “benefit” over 130,000 Australian business owners.
Aviva acquires majority stake in Wealthify
UK based insurer Aviva confirms that it’s acquired a majority stake in robo advisor, Wealthify.
Top fintech stories this week – 6 October 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Fintech funding round-up: 5 October 2017
Four of the latest stories in one for a fast fintech funding round-up. Features SalaryFinance, Featurespace, Worldpay, Invoke Capital, ESF Capital and ThinCats.
SaaS-y Mambu powers New10’s Dutch SME lending
New10, ABN Amro’s newly launched fintech firm, has selected Mambu’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) engine to power a range of SME lending products in the Netherlands. Like many start-ups, speed is part of the sales pitch, and New10 says it aims to provide credit decisions for SMEs within 15 minutes and offers a fully digital application process. […]
Uber takes SoftBank investment and drives changes
Uber is to accept an investment of up to $1.25 billion from Japan’s SoftBank and usher in new governance rules aimed at reining in former CEO and co-founder Travis Kalanick.
Credit Kudos receives FCA authorisation to shake up credit bureau market
Credit Kudos, a challenger credit bureau, has received the green light from the UK’s regulator, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), to operate as a credit reference agency.
Truphone raises $339m to fuel global expansion
What would you do with $339 million? London-based mobile operator Truphone gets to answer that question today as it closes its $339 million (£255 million) private equity round.
Crowdfunding platform OurCrowd moves into Spain
Israeli equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd has furthered its global expansion by opening an office in Spain, reports Julie Muhn at Finovate (Banking Technology’s sister company). The company’s founder and CEO Jon Medved has identified Spain and the Iberian region as one of OurCrowd’s “priority markets” since Madrid is in the heart of Europe and a gateway […]
Curve integrates with Xero to automate expense reports
London-based startup Curve, a mobile app that enables users to spend from all their accounts with one card, is dangling a juicy carrot in front of small business owners and freelancers—it will handle their expense reports.
No excuses from Revolut after server issues
The last 24 hours for payments start-up Revolut haven’t been kind after its services went down due to a server failure. Not only was it painful for the engineers working to ensure the services are back up, but also painful to the customers who at the time couldn’t access their accounts. Revolut CEO, Nikolay Storonsky, […]
Banking Technology October 2017 issue out now
Oh brave new world! Where transparency reigns. The latest edition of our flagship magazine – Banking Technology – is out now, packed with news, analysis and insights, case studies, research and expert commentary.
UK insurtech start-up Nimbla seeks SME market shake-up
Nimbla, a London-based insurtech start-up, has launched a platform offering UK SMEs credit control and single invoice insurance using cloud accounting, as well as underwriting rules agreed upon by Munich Re’s new business unit Digital Partners. The firm says it is looking to tap into the UK’s SME market that has a reported £5.8 billion […]
UK regulator unleashes new hub for sweet asset management
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is setting up an asset management authorisation hub to support start-ups entering the lively market. In a speech at the “FT Investment Management Summit Europe 2017”, Megan Butler, executive director of supervision – investment, wholesale and specialist, FCA, says the hub will help start-ups as they move between pre-authorisation […]
Italy’s first fintech hub comes to Milan
The Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance and the City of Milan have opened the “Milan Fintech District”, the country’s first hub dedicated to businesses in the financial industry. The hub is for start-ups, entrepreneurs, financial institutions, investors and universities to foster development and growth. Pier Carlo Padoan, Minister of Economy and Finance, says the […]
Fintechs – friends or foes?
Visa employees have a saying that “cash is our biggest competitor.” Mightier threats, however, are looming.
TCS makes Intel-ligent move for new AI centre
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) will set up an artificial intelligence (AI) “Centre of Excellence” (CoE) with Intel as they join the horde hoping to prosper in this highly competitive market. The new AI CoE will be equipped with the usual technologies and experts to assist “Intel Nervana AI Academy” members – including developers, data scientists, […]
CFTE Supercharger-s fintech learning in Asia
The Centre for Finance, Technology and Entrepreneurship (CFTE) has teamed up with SuperCharger, a fintech accelerator in Asia with offices in Hong Kong and Malaysia, to help its students learning with CFTE. UK-based CFTE cites SuperCharger’s accelerator programmes – which offer a B2B sales focus, closing 14 commercial proofs of concept (PoCs) in 12 weeks […]
Swych seals Series A funding
Digital gifting platform Swych has closed its Series A round with a “major strategic capital investment” from UAE Exchange Group. The amount of the investment was undisclosed, reports David Penn at Finovate (Banking Technology‘s sister company). “Swych’s global gifting technology and vision fits well with our strategy to foster purpose-based money transfers,” UAE Exchange Group […]
Europe’s top venture capital investors by country – CB Insights
CB Insights has mapped the top venture capital (VC) investors in Europe by country, based on number of portfolio companies the investor had backed. The research company analysed the most active investors in the last five years (2012-2017), including VCs, corporate VCs, growth equity firms and super angels.
P2P lender Prosper’s valuation stands at $550m with new funding
US peer-to-peer (P2P) lending firm Prosper has landed $50 million in a Series G funding round. The capital comes from Hong Kong-based FinEx Asia and LPG Capital and raises the San Francisco-based company’s total equity funding to $410 million.
AutoGravity teams up with Hyundai Capital America
Thanks to a new partnership between AutoGravity and Hyundai Capital America, California car buyers using AutoGravity have new financing options when looking to buy a Hyundai, Kia or Genesis vehicle.
Starling Bank seeks £40m funding for overseas expansion
UK-based challenger bank Starling is asking its investors for another £40 million in funding as it looks to grow its business overseas, according to Sky News. Sky News says it understands that Starling, which got its banking licence last year, has appointed Quayle Munro, an advisory firm, to oversee the fundraising. As reported by Banking […]
Fintech funding round-up: 22 September 2017
There was a round-up yesterday because fintech funding won’t go away. More action featuring Tuition.io, Apiax and Etch. Tuition.io, a US-based employer-funded student loan repayment assistance platform, has announced a $7 million Series B funding round led by Wildcat Venture Partners with participation from existing investors Mohr Davidow Ventures and MassMutual Ventures, the corporate venture […]
FinovateFall 2017: a look back at the four-day flow
Adding a pair of discussion days to Finovate’s traditional demo days format, has made it that much easier for FinovateFall attendees to answer the question perennial post-conference question: “So. What did you think?”
Top fintech stories this week – 22 September 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Fintech funding round-up: 21 September 2017
Following swiftly on from the fintech funding round-up on 19 September, here’s more concise, cash-coated action. Features CivilisedBank, HighRadius, Swirlds and Luno. UK challenger CivilisedBank, which got its banking licence in May, has agreed terms for a further round of funding from current investor Warwick Capital Partners. No more details on that but the bank […]
South Africa Bettr get ready for new mobile banking service
South African start-up Bettr Finance is preparing to launch its mobile banking service – with the offer of no monthly account fees and no bricks and mortar branches. It’s early days at the moment, so timelines and specific details are not available. But on its website its alpha phase is limited to 10,000 users. The […]
Report: Fintech outside London
Reading the UK news you might think fintech innovation only comes from limelight-hogging London, but that isn’t the case. There are obviously other rival global centres of innovation like Berlin or Stockholm, but many other regional UK fintech hubs exist too. The Fintech outside London report looks at UK fintech firms working outside of the so-called […]
Ex-Barclays CEO’s start-up gets backing from China’s Ping An
10X Future Technologies, the start-up founded by ex-Barclays CEO Antony Jenkins last year, will announce this week that it has raised more than £30 million in funding from Ping An Insurance and management consulting firm Oliver Wyman, according to Sky News. The deal will speed up 10X’s expansion, and is good news for Jenkins’ ambitions. […]
Sun Life looks for life with fintech start-ups
With the unveiling of its new corporate headquarters at One York Street in Toronto, Sun Life Financial has made it loud and clear it’s on the prowl for fintech start-ups. The super-shiny, 35-storey, 800,000 square foot office tower, is a mighty site/sight and will offer connection to Toronto’s Union (railway) Station and PATH network (i.e. […]
Interview: Aleksey Chubar, VTB – leading a fintech revolution in Russia
If you’ve got preconceptions about what fintech looks like and where it’s happening, then Aleksey Chubar, head of digital transformation at VTB, has news for you. Russia is becoming a hotbed of fintech innovation – not just domestically, but internationally too. More than that, the rapid pace of technological change in the country means you’ll soon wonder how you got left behind.
Atom Bank teams with Reevoo for content customer crusade
UK challenger bank Atom has partnered with user-generated content platform Reevoo to improve customer engagement and offer better purchase decisions. Using Reevoo’s platform, Atom says it collects reviews for its fixed saver account and mortgage products. These reviews are then displayed on Atom’s website, and have been included in various customer communications including newsletters and […]
Avoid a regtech downfall with The Bunker’s new sandbox service
The Bunker, a UK-based data storage and managed services provider, has launched a new sandbox service for start-ups seeking to develop applications for the financial services market and cope with regulations. It’s got some backing for its plans as innovation network Barclays Rise “will also play a supportive role in helping to identify early stage […]
