October 25, 2023 @ 11:37 am By JD Alois  |  

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has published its 6th report on the consumer credit card market, stating that consumers paid record-high fees and interest in 2022. Interest rates have been marching higher in the past months as the US Federal Reserve attempts to crush… Read More

October 25, 2023 @ 10:06 am By JD Alois  |  

Ledger, best known for its hardware digital wallets, is now offering tokenization services via its enterprise division or turning assets into digital assets. In a blog post, Legder said it was “unlocking institutional opportunities” as more firms look to leverage distributed ledger technology to issue… Read More

October 24, 2023 @ 2:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) has listed the “first digital native security” or “digital native note (DNN)” to be admitted to trade in the European Union. As was reported earlier today, R3 worked with the World Bank to issue the security on its Corda blockchain…. Read More

October 24, 2023 @ 10:01 am By JD Alois  |  

R3, an enterprise-focused permissed blockchain provider, is reporting that its Corda technology has enabled the first digital bond issuance on Euroclear’s International Central Securities Depository (ICSD). The SSA, or “supranational, sovereign and agency bond,” was issued by the World Bank, with Citi (an investor in… Read More

October 24, 2023 @ 9:46 am By JD Alois  |  

Orbital has received approval from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC) to operate as an Electronic Money Issuer (EMI) and a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) Provider. Orbital has offices in London, Gibraltar, and Tallinn. Gibraltar has long been known as an enabler for digital asset… Read More

October 24, 2023 @ 8:34 am By JD Alois  |  

It was more a question of when. Today, Seedrs has issued a statement today that it has been approved under ECSPR – European Crowdfunding Services Provider regulation – to facilitate online capital formation across the EU. Owned by US-based Fintech Republic, Seedrs is already one… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 9:27 pm By JD Alois  |  

Bitcoin has increased by over 18% today, now trading at over $33,000. Just yesterday, Bitcoin was trading under $30,000. Bitcoin has always been a volatile digital asset that gyrated quickly in price – sometimes without an apparent catalyst. The most popular crypto in the world… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 7:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

Silicon Valley Bank became emblematic of the problems with the banking industry. As the US Federal Reserve increased benchmark rates at an unprecedented speed, SVB did not adjust rapidly enough and found a huge hole in its balance sheet. Debt securities have an inverse relationship… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 4:47 pm By JD Alois  |  

FV Bank says it has launched custody money market accounts for qualified customers. FV Bank is a digital bank that is based in Puerto Rico and regulated by the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions (OCIF),  The bank is allowed to offer deposit-taking, custody,… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 2:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

Update: The Subcommittee hearing has been postponed until a later date. Tomorrow, the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, part of the House Financial Services Committee, will hold a hearing entitled “Examining the SEC’s Agenda: Unintended Consequences for U.S. Capital Markets and Investors.”  According to the Hearing… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 10:29 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK government launched various programs to support businesses during the difficult days of the COVID crisis. While there is plenty of rear-view commentary today, at that time, things looked pretty dire for the UK economy, and supporting businesses that were hammered during the lockdowns… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 9:45 am By JD Alois  |  

Marqeta (NASDAQ: MQ), a credit card management service, has updated is platform with new tools and a “one-stop shop” for launching credit programs. Marqeta said that the new offerings provide a complete solution for embedded finance, and it is able to support any type of… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 9:25 am By JD Alois  |  

Smart Lenders AM, a Paris-based investor in online loans, has announced a partnership with UK-based Ooodles, a financing firm for tech products. Erich Bonnet, Président of Smart Lenders, said that they are providing capital via their Lending Smart Fund 1, participating in the early financing… Read More

October 23, 2023 @ 8:14 am By JD Alois  |  

OurCrowd CEO Jon Medved spoke with the BBC to share his thoughts on the war in Israel and its impact on his business as well as his aspirations to expand upon the successful Abraham Accords. In 2020, a breakthrough was made in normalizing diplomatic and… Read More

October 22, 2023 @ 5:35 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received a judgment in its enforcement action against Thor Technologies. In 2022, the SEC filed an enforcement action against Thor alleging an unregistered security offering as Thor had issued a “crypto asset security” and did not qualify for… Read More

October 22, 2023 @ 3:11 pm By JD Alois  |  

Jonny Fry has been selected to lead ClearBank‘s digital asset strategy, according to the digital bank. ClearBank is a fully licensed bank that also offers its tech stack to other financial services firms. Fry was previously CEO of TeamBlockchain and publisher of Digital Bytes. The… Read More

October 20, 2023 @ 2:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

Mon Petit Placement, a France-based Fintech, has raised €6.5 Million in growth funding, according to a statement by the firm. The funding round was led by La France Mutualiste, a mutual group that supports more than 290,000 member customers which manages €8.8 billion in assets…. Read More

October 20, 2023 @ 1:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

FinCEN has issued a statement on funding of the terrorist Hamas group following the atrocities the group perpetrated in Israel. FinCEN urged financial services firms to be vigilant in any activity that may be used to fund Hamas. This is inclusive of virtual asset service… Read More

October 20, 2023 @ 1:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

It was reported yesterday that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had dropped its charges against Ripple executives Brad Garlinghouse (CEO) and Chris Larsen (Chairman). Charges remain for Ripple itself. Ripple has posted a release on the legal victory, calling it a “stunning capitulation by… Read More

October 20, 2023 @ 10:07 am By JD Alois  |  

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has proposed new rules that aim to boost Open Banking (Open Finance) in the United States, according to a statement by the agency. Open Banking is a concept where financial data and access to this data is easily shareable… Read More