October 11, 2022 @ 6:29 pm By JD Alois  |  

Novi was a digital wallet project launched by Meta (Facebook) that first intended to support Meta’s digital currency initiative Diem (originally called Libra). Diem eventually fell apart due to many different reasons, not to mention tons of global pushback from policymakers. Novi could have operated… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 3:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

Bored Ape, or Bored Ape Yacht Club, creator Yuga Labs is being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), according to a report. Bored App became emblematic of the rapid rise in non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Sales of the collectibles began in the Spring of… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 3:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

BNY Mellon (NYSE:BK), one of the oldest banks in the US, has announced it will provide custody services for digital assets. On the bank’s home page, BNY Mellon proudly announces: “Today, our Digital Asset Custody platform bridges digital and traditional assets. Tomorrow, as we continue… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 2:56 pm By JD Alois  |  

All financial services will eventually be Fintech services, but some traditional financial firms struggle to become digitally native. Traditional banks, typically smaller ones, fall into this category. Most of these smaller banks have purchased services from Fintechs, thus providing modern platforms – others have partnered… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 11:52 am By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has published a proposed framework for global regulation of crypto assets. The FSB stated in a release that “crypto-assets and markets must be subject to effective regulation and oversight commensurate with the risks they pose.” While acknowledging there is currently… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 11:23 am By JD Alois  |  

The US Department of Treasury has revealed two enforcement actions against the crypto exchange Bittrex. According to a statement issued by Treasury, Bittrex has settled for $24 million with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and for $29 million with Financial Crimes Enforcement Network… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 10:49 am By JD Alois  |  

Digital Asset has announced a new set of tokenization tools designed to accelerate the transition to tokenized assets.  Digital Asset states that Daml, its in-house smart contract platform, now powers Daml Finance, an open-source offering, that aims to speed up the development of “enterprise-grade tokenization… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 9:45 am By JD Alois  |  

Payments Fintech Wirex says it has launched USDC (USD Coin) on the Stellar blockchain within its App. USDC is a dollar-based stablecoin issued by Circle and one of the most popular stablecoins in the world. Circle’s USDC assets are held in US financial institutions and… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 9:23 am By JD Alois  |  

Neobank Step, self-described as an “all-in-one financial solution for the next generation,” has raised up to $300 million in debt financing. The funding was provided by Triplepoint Capital and Evolve Bank & Trust. Step reports that this brings its total funding to $500 million. Step… Read More

October 11, 2022 @ 6:00 am By JD Alois  |  

Upgrade, a Fintech that provides loans as well as cards – promoting “responsible credit,” has announced that its Upgrade Card has been recognized as the fastest-growing credit card in the United States. The Upgrade Card has been moving up on the list that is ranked… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 10:02 pm By JD Alois  |  

Airwallex has raised an additional USD $100 million at a valuation of USD $5.5 billion, the same as its previous round. The “Series E extension” raising money from existing investors, Square Peg, Salesforce Ventures, Sequoia Capital China, Lone Pine Capital, Hermitage Capital, 1835i Ventures and… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 4:46 pm By JD Alois  |  

StartEngine, a full-stack securities crowdfunding platform, has circulated an email reporting that it has raised more than any other platform under Reg CF and Reg A+ during the third quarter of 2022. Reg CF (Regulation Crowdfunding) is a securities exemption that allows companies to raise… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 3:46 pm By JD Alois  |  

Business intelligence (BI) platform Lightdash has raised $8.4 million in Seed funding in a round led by Accel. Simultaneously, Lighthouse announced that hosted product Lightdash Cloud, is also now available in public beta, after receiving a waitlist of more than 600 pre-qualified companies. Other investors… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 2:39 pm By JD Alois  |  

CrowdStreet, a leading real estate crowdfunding platform, has raised $43 million in both debt and equity capital. According to a company statement, the equity financing came from a group of strategic investors, including Fortune 100 financial services company TIAA, which is making an investment through… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 11:46 am By JD Alois  |  

LCX, a Liechtenstein-based blockchain firm, has relaunched its crypto exchange which is regulated by the Liechtenstein Financial Market Authority. LCX AG is audited by Grant Thornton as an external auditor and by NSF Services Trust as an internal auditor. Originally launched in 2018, the updated… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 11:17 am By JD Alois  |  

Huobi Global, the operator of one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges, has selected Justin (Yuchen) Sun to join the Huobi Global Advisory Board. Sun is the creator of TRON, a blockchain-based operating system that claims more than 110 million monthly active users. The Advisory… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 11:13 am By JD Alois  |  

Among other policy initiatives aiming to boost the UK’s flagging economy, SEIS or Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme – a pro-innovation tax exemption received an adjustment as outlined in the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s “mini-budget” revealed last month. According to the document: “From April 2023, companies… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 9:16 am By JD Alois  |  

BankiFi, a UK-based Fintech offering embedded banking services, has announced a partnership with Axiom Bank to pursue the US SME banking market. Axiom Bank, based in Florida, has its roots as a community-based savings and loan firm that has bigger plans. The two firms are… Read More

October 10, 2022 @ 8:54 am By JD Alois  |  

Recharge.com, a European payments company, has announced the launch of a global marketplace for people to purchase branded gift cards in a push to become the leading branded payments company in the world. Recharge.com was founded in 2010 and is based in Amsterdam. Recharge highlights… Read More

October 9, 2022 @ 11:45 pm By JD Alois  |  

Solidi, said to be the first crypto exchange in the UK to be registered with the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), has partnered with AlgoDynamix. AlgoDynamix, founded at Cambridge University, is an analytic firm that was originally launched to provide fund managers, investment banks and… Read More