Where the world is your lobster …
Rapidly becoming an international transport hub, Dubai is a thriving multicultural city. David Bannister, editor of Banking Technology, samples some of the city’s culinary and cultural delights.
BankingTech
Bricks or clicks? The choice isn’t yours
The challenging ongoing economic climate and the resulting shrinking markets have created an environment of greatly increased competition. In order to deal with the pressures of recession, retail banks are increasingly being forced into a strategic transformation of business structure, culture and practice. How they interact with customers is a prime focus during these transformations, writes Mike Davies, Regional Vice President Sales EMEA North at GMC Software Technology.
Singapore Exchange partners with Clearstream for Asian collateral service
The Singapore Exchange and Luxembourg-based Clearstream are planning to launch a collateral management service that should help customers use assets as collateral at SGX’s securities depository CDP.
US local banks sign up to Temenos T24 core banking cloud
US banks Clare Bank and Farmers Exchange Bank have chosen to install cloud-hosted core banking services from vendor Temenos, in a deal that the banks say will help them reduce costs and roll out products to customers more easily.
BCS upgrades pre-trade risk checks to meet new algo trading regs
Russian broker BCS Prime Brokerage plans to install a new pre-trade risk system called TripleCheck, which it says will help it to meet tough new regulations on algorithmic and proprietary trading.
UK account switching rising – but still below par
Retail banking competition is likely to heat up over the next decade, with millions more people switching accounts every year, according to new research published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research. But current levels are still far behind those found in other industries such as electricity and gas utilities, the study found.
Western Union teams for mobile wallet venture in Nepal
Western Union has launched a new mobile money transfer service in Nepal, which aims to capitalise on the country’s massive inflow of cross-border remittance payments.
UK mobile payments held back by security and complexity
With only one in five UK consumers using their mobile to make payments, new research suggests that the technology is being held back by consumer fears over security, lengthy sign-up processes and problems making payments outside of individual schemes.
Life beyond legacy: exploring the options
The payment industry has never seen so much change or opportunity. It continues to be reshaped by shifts in the economic landscape, new technologies and customer needs and this is set to continue.
Italy’s ICBPI deploys Milan trading tools
Italian banking group Instituto Centrale Banche Popolare Italiane has introduced a new trading and recording system across its Milan operations, which it says will help it to better keep up with changing regulation and offer a better service for its traders.
Borsa Istanbul revitalises Turkish capital markets
Created in April 2013, Turkey’s new Borsa Istanbul exchange is at the heart of an ambitious project to turn Istanbul into a major global trading centre. With the country’s economy ascendant, Turkey has a lot to offer, according to Ali Çöplü, chief information officer of Borsa İstanbul.
Santander and iZettle launch in Brazil
Swedish payment company iZettle and Spain’s Banco Santander have launched a new ‘social payments’ system in Brazil, which is designed to help small businesses take card payments with Apple and Android smartphones and tablets.
Nasdaq OMX connectivity disaster highlights stumbling markets
A three-hour trading crash at Nasdaq OMX caused by a connectivity issue has once again put the spotlight on trading technology and the resilience of financial markets, which have been sorely tested in recent months and years.
Goldman Sachs trading error is “a warning to all”
Financial industry analysts have warned that investors should be careful about how they approach automated trading, following news that a trading error at Goldman Sachs lost the firm $100 million on Tuesday.
From collateral to liquidity management: the importance of a Golden Repository
A fragmented data architecture can threaten a financial institution’s ability to keep track of its assets. All too often, front office systems are separated into individual asset classes and lines of business, making the integration of the transaction flows from these systems very difficult.
YellowPepper spices up Latin American mobile payments
A new mobile payments network called YellowPepper has launched in Colombia, marking the beginning of a massive project to bank the unbanked and sweep away the dominance of cash across the Spanish-speaking Americas.
The globalisation of immediate payments – rolling out faster transactions
The way we pay is evolving, with changing consumer attitudes and new technologies combining to usher in a new era of payments and banking.
Evolution of Payments
One common thread unites developed and emerging economies across the globe – the ubiquity of mobile devices are changing the way people interact with businesses and each other. In many countries, the number of mobile phones in use surpasses the number of consumer bank accounts. This shift in consumer behaviour is changing the face of payments as we know it.
Demystifying m-commerce
Payments made via mobile devices are fast becoming de rigueur as tablet sales are expected to overtake personal computers by 2017. Shane Fitzpatrick addresses five common myths about m-commerce and how to capture online revenues. Smartphones are already more popular globally than desktop PCs and of the 1.875 billion phones to be sold in 2013, […]
European branches will be cut in half by 2020
Half of Europe’s bank branches could be obsolete within the next seven years, according to new research by real estate advisory firm Jones Lang LaSalle.
UK Payments Council sets September date for account switching
The UK Payments Council has set a date for the introduction of the seven-day account switching service, which will make it easier for UK customers to switch their bank.
Stand by for light speed: high performance computing in financial services
Most debates about High Performance Computing in financial services quickly turn into conversations about high frequency trading, but there are many more reasons for getting the best of out of systems. Electronics and computer technology have always been pushing the boundaries of smaller, faster, cheaper (or at least, ‘more affordable’) and financial services firms have always been quick to take advantage of the latest advances.
Investment banks must provide “immediate” service improvement says TABB
As the world’s banks continue to struggle with severe regulatory change, economic turbulence and technological evolution, a new report by analyst firm Tabb Group says that financial institutions will have to provide immediate, friction-free access to content, community and execution, or face extinction.
Can balloons really enable HFT, or is it just hot air?
As the high-frequency trading arms race continues, some firms are exploring the idea of using lighter-than-air balloons as a faster way of transmitting data.
One American in three uses mobile banking
One in three US adults now uses mobile banking in their day to day lives– a rise of almost double since 2011, according to new research from the US Pew Research Centre.
New GMEX derivatives exchange plans global conquest
An international derivatives market called Global Markets Exchange Group International has been launched by co-founders Hirander Misra and Vj Angelo, in a bid to target new business opportunities created by changing financial regulation.
Kearny Federal Savings Bank installs Fiserv mobile banking tools
US-based Kearny Federal Savings Bank has chosen to install bank processing and mobile payments technology from specialist firm Fiserv, which it says will help the bank increase efficiency and attract new customers.
How to achieve customer-centricity
Why are banks and insurers struggling to operate as true customer-centric organisations when they know great customer service is a crucial differentiator? The answer lies in the enterprise operating model, which can create a structural barrier to achieving customer-centricity, writes Sean Tomlinson. head of consulting, private sector, Steria (right). The problem with the enterprise operating […]
Banks must adopt video banking, says Celent report
Banks need to embrace video banking if they are going to compete effectively and retain customers, according to a new report released by analyst firm Celent.
T+2: Moscow’s “biggest move in 20 years”
As the Moscow Exchange launches a new liquidity incentive promotion, Sergey Sinkevich, head of DMA at Russian broker Otkritie, argues that Russia’s move to adopt T+2 settlement is the most important development in the last 20 years for the country’s capital markets.
Bloomberg rolls out US swap execution facility
Bloomberg has received approval to launch a Swap Execution Facility, ahead of the compliance deadline for new US Dodd-Frank rules for clearing of OTC derivatives.
UK retail bank reform: a road to nowhere?
The introduction of seven-day account switching in the UK in September is a fundamental pillar of UK government plans to inject more competition into retail banking. But the plan has its critics – some of whom warn it may achieve the opposite of what it intends.
Strengthening financial visibility for improved risk management
New research shows that large businesses are continuing to identify risk management and corporate governance as pressing financial priorities. To achieve true visibility into these areas, corporate treasurers need detailed insight and accurate forecasting capabilities.
Ukraine’s Ukrsotsbank turns to Fiserv for cash management
Ukraine’s UniCredit ‘Ukrsotsbank’ has chosen US technology firm Fiserv to provide its Integrated Currency Manager tool, which the bank will use to improve its supply chain management and make better use of its available resources.
Fidessa offers free post-trade processing using FIX
A new service that claims to be able to dramatically cut post-trade costs for brokers and asset managers has been launched in the UK, using FIX messaging.
LSE to supply new Argentine B&MA exchange technology
Argentina’s Caja de Valores central securities depository has chosen the London Stock Exchange to be its technology provider, as the depository gears up to support the country’s new Bolsa & Mercados Argentinos exchange.
Put trust in the cloud says Islamic Bank of Britain COO
Banks should not be afraid to go further and faster in their adoption of cloud computing, says Mohamed Gamil, chief operating officer at Islamic Bank of Britain.
Here algo again: MiFID II will require your attention in 2014
For firms who remember MiFID I, and those that don’t, round two is almost upon us. This month, the Council of the EU agreed their general approach, meaning that the draft of MiFID II/MiFIR is free to advance to the European Parliament. If all goes according to the current plan, the new combined legislation will be with us in time for 2015 implementation.
SIA ramps up European expansion
Financial technology company SIA has acquired Italian telecoms firm Emmecom, as part of a plan to create a new technology infrastructure across Europe for merchants and banks.
DTCC promises Omgeo acquisition will “open up new opportunities”
US post-trade utility the DTCC has agreed to acquire post-trade specialist firm Omgeo, in a deal that it says will help improve collaboration between investment managers, broker-dealers and custodian banks and reduce risk for market participants.
