WhatsApp set to join the Indian mobile money revolution
Facebook-owned WhatsApp is reportedly looking to get into mobile payments and has picked India as the best place to start.
India
UK and India strengthen fintech ties
A team of British politicians and fintech business leaders are in India as they seek to strengthen trade and investment between the two nations. At the 9th UK-India Economic and Financial Dialogue, held today (4 April) in Delhi, the UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, and the Finance Minister of India, Arun Jaitley, discussed […]
Fintech funding round-up: 4 April 2017
The world is not short of money… for some. Our latest fintech funding round-up features Aeries Financial Technologies, CASHe, Perfios and Ayopop. There’s never a shortage of fintech news in India. Aeries Financial Technologies, which owns the app-only lending platform CASHe, has raised $3.8 million in Series A funding from an investor group led by […]
The Monday mindset: 3 April 2017
Fintech zeitgeist! 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, Soumik Roy looks at how India has quite a lot of fintech activity in its retail market. Did you notice? For the […]
Samsung Pay makes its India debut
Digital payments app, Samsung Pay, has been launched in India. Access is limited to those who signed up for the early access programme and available only on its mid-segment and flagship Samsung Galaxy devices.
Cognizant plans: layoffs, automation, investment in digital and M&A
Cognizant, a global provider of digital, technology, consulting and operations services, is to get rid of up to 4% of its workforce, it is understood. It is also keen on increasing automation, investment in digital and M&A.
Yes Fintech accelerator unveils 12 finalists
Yes Fintech, the accelerator programme of India’s Yes Bank, has unveiled its 12 finalists.
IDFC Bank launches “breakthrough” biometric payment app, IDFC Aadhaar Pay
India-based IDFC Bank has launched an e-payment app, IDFC Aadhaar Pay, developed in association with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
India’s fintech valley continues to boost profile
Vizag, the commercial capital of Andhra Pradesh, India, continues to build relationships and develop as a fintech centre.
HDFC Bank launches AI-powered virtual assistant Eva
India’s HDFC Bank has partnered with Senseforth to launch an electronic virtual assistant – Eva – to answer customer queries. Powered by an artificial intelligence (AI) based engine, the chatbot is said to be able to “assimilate knowledge from thousands of sources and provide answers in simple language in less than 0.4 seconds”.
New treasury software deal for Infosys Finacle in India
Federal Bank, a large private sector bank in India, is to overhaul its treasury operations with Infosys’ Finacle banking system, Banking Technology understands.
The Monday mindset: 6 March 2017
Fintech zeitgeist! 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 as he gives us the lowdown on electronic payments in India. India’s Prime Minister […]
Former Infosys top exec launches lending start-up
A former Infosys senior exec and venture capitalist has unveiled his new India-based lending start-up, Billionloans. V Balakrishnan, formerly in charge of BPO, Finacle and India business units at Infosys, has founded the firm with Rangan Varadan. The latter is also CEO of Indian peer-to peer microcredit firm MicroGraam – and Balakrishnan is an independent […]
Alibaba targets Amazon with $177m stake in Paytm e-commerce
India-based Paytm’s e-commerce unit has raised $200 million in a funding round led by Chinese titan Alibaba, with the latter potentially muscling in on Amazon’s arena of action. Alibaba’s Singapore unit will invest $177 million into Paytm E-Commerce, with $23 million coming from Indian venture and growth capital fund SAIF Partners. With the deal Alibaba […]
Bank of Baroda launches fellowship programme to support fintech start-ups
Bank of Baroda, a public sector bank in India, has launched a fellowship programme to support fintech, rural, agricultural and financial inclusion start-ups.
Visa and Thomson Reuters go deep into India’s Fintech Valley Vizag
Fintech Valley Vizag, a project championed by the Government of the State of Andhra Pradesh in India, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Visa and Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters will use the infrastructure provided by the government and local university resources to build fintech projects in the area. Visa is expected to support […]
Bharti Airtel acquires stake in online credit platform
Bharti Airtel, through its subsidiary Bharti Airtel Services, has acquired a stake in Seynse Technologies, an India-based fintech start-up. In a regulatory filing to the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the telecommunications company revealed that it was interested in the firm’s digital lending platform, Loan Singh. The solution provides loans to “credit-worthy yet underserved” […]
Mahindra Comviva brings its payments to rural India
Mahindra Comviva has launched Payplus Aadhaar Pay, a merchant payment acceptance solution, as it targets the rural areas of India. The Aadhaar infrastructure, created by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), onboards customers and provide them with online services. UIDAI collects the biometric and demographic data of residents, stores them in a centralised database, […]
Infosys bites back over Panaya purchase allegations
Infosys is fighting back over allegations made by an anonymous whistleblower that its $200 million acquisition of Israeli firm Panaya was a big old mess. The whistleblower says in an email that Infosys’ acquisition price in February 2015 was over the odds, as the company had been valued at $162 million by Israel Growth Partners. […]
Indian city launches five fintech start-up challenges
The Indian city of Visakhapatnam, the commercial capital of Andhra Pradesh, has launched five start-up challenges in its quest to become a national and global hub for fintech. The big plan is to build an ecosystem including start-up entrepreneurs, innovators, incubators, investors and academia. Several start-ups including Paytm, Blocktrust, Knolskape, Transaction Analyst, GMS, ValueLabs have […]
New Indian virtual currency co-operative a reality
Several Indian Bitcoin start-ups have formed the Blockchain and Virtual Currency Association of India as they look to quell investors’ virtual currency fears becoming a reality. Coinsecure, Searchtrade, Unocoin and Zebpay have banded together in response to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) recent circular warning people that it has not authorised dealings in or […]
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.
India Developing Insurance Framework for M-Wallets
Amid India’s recent boom in m-wallet transaction volume following a government discontinuation of two popular currency notes, the government now is considering developing an insurance framework for mobile wallet and electronic transactions. Government officials from the IT Ministry already have begun discussions with m-wallet providers and insurance companies on how to insure money in the wallet apps, according to The Financial Express.
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 […]
DCB Bank plans iris scans for banking
DCB Bank, a private sector bank in India, plans to allow customer transactions and account opening through iris scans for Aadhaar authentication. The Aadhaar infrastructure, created by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), onboards customers and provide them with online services. UIDAI collects the biometric and demographic data of residents, stores them in a […]
RBI investigates blockchain for financial applications in India
The Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT), set up by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has recently issued a whitepaper, “Applications of Blockchain Technology to Banking and Financial Sector in India”. We summarise the report and highlight the key findings.
The Monday mindset: 16 January 2017
Fintech zeitgeist! Welcome to the first 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. Anything goes, so here goes. Rome versus Carthage. Britain versus France. History shows […]
Yes Bank opens fintech accelerator programme for start-ups
India’s Yes Bank is inviting fintech start-ups to take part in its Yes Fintech Accelerator Programme. The application process is open until 2nd February 2017.
Airtel Payments Bank launches in India
Airtel Payments Bank, India’s “first” payments bank, has started national operations with services now live across the country. As Banking Technology reported in July 2016, telecoms giant Airtel was planning its own bank. It says it is a “fully digital and paperless” bank, and from today (12 January), over 250,000 neighbourhood Airtel retail stores across […]
“Humanoid” Ira to assist customers in HDFC Bank branches
India-based HDFC Bank is about to introduce its first “humanoid” branch assistant – Ira. The human-sized robot was built together with artificial intelligence (AI) company Asimov Robotics.
Axis first bank in India to use Ripple’s blockchain network
Axis Bank has become the first bank in India to use Ripple’s blockchain network for cross-border payments. The bank, the third largest in the private sector, will use the network for real-time settlement as it targets future growth. Amit Sethi, president and CIO at Axis Bank, says: “We will come out with solutions for our […]
Digital officers of India, unite!
A group of senior executives in India’s digital sector are looking to create a group of chief digital officers (CDOs) or equivalent in the country.
State Bank of India to launch digital bank, SBI Digi Bank
State Bank of India (SBI) is working on its own digital bank – SBI Digi Bank – which it plans to launch in the next three to six months.
ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank embrace social media
ICICI Bank goes for Twitter, while HDFC Bank banks on Facebook Messenger.
Top ten payments projects in 2016
Look back at some of the major payments projects in 2016, with Banking Technology’s top ten.
NCDEX live with new trading and surveillance software, NextGen
India-based National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) has launched NextGen – a new trading and surveillance system developed by MillenniumIT (a trading tech subsidiary of London Stock Exchange).
How can RBI’s latest guidelines help Indian banks combat cybercrime?
Rising cybercrime in India is no secret. According to a report by Symantec, India now ranks third in the world, after the US and China, as a source of malicious activity. In fact, the National Crime Records Bureau data reveals that in the three years up to 2013, registered cases of cyber crime were up 350%, from 966 to 4356. Dubious distinctions both, and give banks and the financial sector in India cause for worry.
Bank of Baroda calls on fintech start-ups to help solve payment challenge
India’s second largest bank, Bank of Baroda, is calling on fintech start-ups to solve the challenge of paying blue-collar workers.
XBRL in India’s regulatory reporting: today and tomorrow
Where is India with the adoption of the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) so far, and what is the outlook for the future?
Lakshmi, India’s first banking robot, unveiled by City Union Bank
City Union Bank (CUB) has become the first bank in India to introduce a robot to deal with customer queries. Called Lakshmi, the robot is based on the IBM Watson artificial intelligence (AI) engine.
