Europe


Swift unveils new instant payments solution for Europe

Swift has launched an instant payments messaging solution for the European market, offering a single gateway to multiple systems, and available by November 2018. According to Swift, this latest development builds on its earlier deal in Australia. In 2015, it was awarded the contract to deliver the messaging infrastructure to underpin Australia’s new payments platform, […]

Revolut launches multi-currency service across Europe

UK-based payments start-up Revolut has unveiled its new business service across Europe for multi-currency accounts, transferring money and corporate cards. Called Revolut for Business, it will enable companies to hold, exchange and transfer in 25 currencies with the interbank exchange rate, issue employees with corporate cards for “global fee-free spending” and manage their transactional activity […]

The Monday mindset: 12 June 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, Antony Peyton, Banking Technology’s deputy editor, with the help of many “expert comments” (bless you for those), briefly mulls over the aftermath […]

Yes, (financial inclusion) minister?

In today’s seemingly financially connected world, where we can send money to one another via our smartphones, and manage our spending habits via apps, it’s pretty hard to believe that financial exclusion is still a reality in the UK. Yet, a shocking 1.7 million adults in the UK still don’t have access to financial services.

Case study: Amsterdam Trade Bank – Amster-can

A bank-wide replacement of its main business applications is ambitious enough but it is just the starting point for Amsterdam Trade Bank (ATB), as it seeks to harness new technologies, adopt a new culture and digitise its business.

Europe has another go at getting more access to private data

An inevitable consequence of the recent spate of terrorist incidents has been calls for greater access to private data and now the European Commission has joined in, reports Telecoms.com (Banking Technology‘s sister publication). According to a Reuters report the European Union (EU) wants to make it easier for authorities to get hold of private data […]

Moneythor at heart of Crédit Mutuel Arkéa’s fintech start-up

French bank Crédit Mutuel Arkéa has chosen Moneythor’s analytical engine to be at the heart of “Max”, a personal finance assistant app for its new start-up Nouvelle Vague. Max is a mobile-only initiative of Nouvelle Vague, which operates in several cities in France (Paris, Bordeaux, Brest, Rennes etc). It will be available on 1 September […]

Concardis brings Alipay to Austria and Switzerland

German payment service provider Concardis is bringing Chinese mobile payment solution Alipay to Austria and Switzerland. Clothing brand Gössl will be the first merchant in Austria to let Chinese citizens pay via smartphone and the Alipay app. The roll-out in the Swiss market is planned for October this year. In Germany, Concardis says it has […]

Is the UK going to be ready for EU GDPR?

With just under 12 months to go until the European Union (EU) imposes new data protection regulations, there seems to be a growing sense of unpreparedness throughout the industry, reports Telecoms.com (Banking Technology‘s sister publication). Perhaps it’s because of the timeframes which were involved for the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), or a misunderstanding of […]

RBS joins forces with RocketSpace UK for new tech campus

San-Francisco based RocketSpace, with the support of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and NatWest, has opened its campus in London for fintech and tech start-ups. Housed in NatWest’s (a subsidiary of RBS) Regents House in London, the campus is the “first of its kind” in the capital and RocketSpace’s only international location. The campus occupies […]

UK challenger Bank of Lambeth preps for launch

London-based Bank of Lambeth is getting ready to enter the UK’s highly competitive challenger bank arena. The community bank is the brainchild of Duncan Law at Transition Town Brixton. The latter is an initiative that looks to new ways of dealing with climate change, and energy and financial issues. In a report in the Brixton […]

FinLeap in its Element with digital insurance partnership

German fintech incubator FinLeap’s digital insurance platform Element is partnering with financial services group Signal Iduna for new products and services. Element is currently in the process of applying for a life insurance licence under Germany’s Insurance Supervision Act, and plans to offer services in property, accident and liability, and cybersecurity. It will provide “Insurance-as-a-Platform” […]

Saving and investing service Moola launches

After 18 months of development, UK-based online saving and investing service Moola has launched. The firm says there are 5.4 million “mass affluent people in the UK who have no access to financial advice, but disposable income and a desire to save and invest”. It wants to tap into that market by doing the “hard […]

Nationwide bowled over by cloud software from Cutover

The UK’s Nationwide Building Society has opted for release management software from cloud technology start-up Cutover. The deal means London-based Cutover will be the “first completely cloud-based tool with no footprint within Nationwide’s infrastructure”. Cutover’s software lets teams plan, rehearse and execute events. It also offers real-time status visualisation and communications across SMS, voice and […]

Abcul perseveres with Model Credit Union project

The Association of British Credit Unions (Abcul) says it is making progress with its Model Credit Union initiative, to modernise the tech and operations of its members. Three credit unions are now live with new core and mobile banking software.

Nasdaq fuels new trading system in Poland

Towarowa Gielda Energii (TGE – Polish Power Exchange) has launched a new trading system provided by Nasdaq. Nasdaq has partnered with TGE since 2008 and the new technology allows TGE to expand future activities, including adding commodity and derivative instruments to its business offering. The trading platform features multi-market model support, a range of order […]

Blockchain and Bitcoin round-up: 2 June 2017

From Russian banks to Greek lawyers. Our latest blockchain and Bitcoin report rounds up the news into a quick and easy read. Russian news agency TASS reports that Bank of Russia, the nation’s central bank, will develop a national cryptocurrency. At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2017, the regulator’s deputy chairperson Olga Skorobogatova says: […]

UK payments firm Helixion is liquidated

It’s not only the end of the working week but the end of the line for Edinburgh-based payments firm Helixion. The company has gone into liquidation and intellectual property (IP) firm Metis Partners has been appointed to support the marketing and sale of its assets. On Metis’ website, it says the deadline for offers has […]

Fintech funding round-up: 2 June 2017

The money’s rolling in for fintech – as this round-up follows hot on the heels from 30 May. This latest report features Zopa, RateSetter and Niyogin Fintech. The plans of peer-to-peer (P2P) lender Zopa to launch a new digital-only bank in the UK are going well as it has completed a £32 million funding round […]

Sweden’s SEB selects CGI for trade transaction action

Swedish financial services group SEB has selected Canada-based CGI’s Trade360 solution for trade finance and emerging digital technologies, such as blockchain. CGI Trade360 is a cloud-based transaction platform and includes a portal for end-to-end transaction management, including regulatory compliance. SEB is the first bank headquartered in Europe that will implement the solution. Robert Pehrson, head […]

Flywire acquires UK-based PACE Invoice

US payments firm Flywire has acquired PACE Invoice, a multi-currency invoicing platform provider based in London. International business law firm Addleshaw Goddard advised PACE on this transaction. With the acquisition, Flywire adds international invoicing to its cross-border payments and receivables services, enabling its business, education and healthcare clients to “more easily link invoices to cross-border […]

Implications of triggering Article 50 on London’s banking sector

Article 50, triggered just nine months after Brexit was officially announced, will give the UK exactly two years to strike a deal with the EU concerning its departure from the economic and trading bloc. What will be the impact of the referendum on the square mile? Will it cease to be the major financial hub this side of the Atlantic?

ING’s Yolt money app beta launches in UK

With an intended jolt and volt of energy, Yolt, a new money platform backed by ING, has launched its open beta for iOS and Android in the UK. The app has been tested in closed beta since October last year, and is now ready to invite more people to the platform. Yolt enables users to […]

Banking Technology June 2017 issue out now

The latest edition of our flagship magazine – Banking Technology – is out now, packed with news, analysis and insights, case studies, research and expert commentary.

ABN Amro and ING lead charge for Dutch ATM survival

ABN Amro, ING, Rabobank and Geldservice Nederland (GSN) have teamed up to explore a potential initiative to ensure the availability of ATMs in the Netherlands. These discussions are being conducted in consultation with the nation’s central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), and draw upon “successful initiatives” in Sweden and Finland. With the rise of digital […]

Spain seeks fintech stardom with Red Lyra blockchain network

A consortium of Spanish companies has created Red Lyra, the “first multisector technology platform in the world based on blockchain”. Lyra comprises fintech and non-fintech companies, professionals, and experts in blockchain. Its founding members include Banco Sabadell, Banco Santander, Bankia, BBVA, Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) and consulting firm Grant Thornton. In fact, just last […]

Sweden’s central bank goes live on Intellect Quantum system

Sweden’s central bank, Sveriges Riksbank, has finally gone live on Intellect Design Arena’s Quantum Collateral Management Solution (QCMS). The bank signed for the system back in 2013. QCMS provides automation of market operations and intraday liquidity provision, and Intellect says Riksbank will benefit from real-time control, multiple collateral pools and “better cover” over the exposure […]

Cecabank and Grant Thornton create Spain’s first blockchain banking consortium

Spanish wholesale bank Cecabank and consulting firm Grant Thornton have created the first blockchain consortium in Spain. Called Blockchain Banking Consortium, the project intends to progressively develop the potential of blockchain in the financial sector, and according to the pair it presently comprises 33% of the Spanish banking sector. Luis Pastor, Grant Thornton technology and […]

Estonia’s digital banking is for everyone everywhere

Estonia has launched an e-residency programme to let anyone apply to join its new digital nation and register a global EU company that can be managed online from anywhere in the world. This means e-residents don’t have to travel to Estonia in order to access business banking. An EU company with a fully digital EU […]

Payments UK predicts debit cards to overtake cash in 2018

Rapid growth in the use of contactless cards means cash will be overtaken as Britain’s most frequently used payment method by the end of 2018, according to trade association Payments UK (soon to become UK Finance). Despite this surge, its latest forecast still does not herald the demise of cash – even in ten years’ […]

Amsterdam Trade Bank revamps tech with Misys and Sentia

Amsterdam Trade Bank (ATB) is undergoing a major technology overhaul with Misys as a key partner. The bank is implementing Misys’ solutions from the Fusionbanking and Fusioncapital portfolios to modernise its corporate banking, treasury and capital management (TCM) and trade finance operations.

Gemalto bus-ts a move with GDPR double decker delight

Should you hear a vehicle trundling down your litter-strewn UK street don’t all rush out assuming it’s an ice cream van. Calm yourself and your desires for a gigantic calorie-drenched concoction, and instead prepare for Gemalto’s GDPR Clinic. Before you ask WTF? (i.e. what the fintech) – this is payments firm Gemalto and its double […]

Form3 teams with Apply Financial for payments validation

Form3, a cloud-based fintech firm launched last year, has partnered with payments validation company Apply Financial. The deal enhances Form3’s Payments-as-a-Service platform with “automation services to validate, enrich, and fix single and bulk payments”, Form3 says.

BBVA launches open banking business

BBVA has unveiled its open banking programme and is making eight of its APIs commercially available for the first time. The launch of BBVA API Market comes after the Spanish bank says it spent more than a year working with developers and businesses to prepare the way the open API service would be delivered. With […]

Android Pay launches in Russia

Android Pay has now landed in Russia and can be used with an eligible Visa or Mastercard credit or debit card from a supported bank. The supporting banks are AK BARS, Alfa-Bank, B&N Bank, MTS Bank, Otkritie, Promsvyazbank, Raiffeisen Bank, Rocketbank, Russian Standard Bank, Russian Agricultural Bank, Sberbank, Tinkoff Bank, Tochka, VTB24 and Yandex.Money. There […]

UK challenger CivilisedBank gets banking licence

UK digital bank CivilisedBank has received its banking licence from the Bank of England, paving the way for it to build its infrastructure and launch to customers in early 2018. As Banking Technology reported in June last year, the bank submitted its banking licence application and had planned to open for business in early 2017. […]