Global

November 19, 2019 @ 3:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) sponsored Singapore Fintech Festival attracted over 60,000 participants this year. The week-long event that recently ended saw registrations from 140 different countries along with 569 different speakers, 1000 exhibitors, and 41 international pavilions. This is according to MAS. Singapore… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 3:11 pm By JD Alois  |  

Mintos, a marketplace for investing in loans that has facilitated nearly €4 billion, has been recognized as the Alternative Finance Platform of The Year and People’s Choice during AltFi Awards 2019. The recognition took place on the 18 November during the annual AltFi Berlin Summit. Mintos… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 3:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank), the third-largest bank in Canada in terms of market capitalization and deposits, is introducing a new program that will give the institution’s senior workers an opportunity to understand the ethical principles and guidelines involved in using artificial intelligence (AI)-based… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 2:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

Brazilian Digital bank Neon has reportedly raised $95.27 million in a funding round led by Banco Votorantim and the General Atlantic fund. This is according to a write up in Estado. Neon claims a customer base of 2 million users. The additional funding will help… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 10:34 am By JD Alois  |  

Fintech funding for the 3rd quarter of 2019 surpassed $8.9 billion – a new quarterly record if you factor out Ant Financial’s whopping $14. billion investment in Q2 of 2018. Fintech, and its various subcategories remains a hot sector of venture financing as the year… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 9:39 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Elavon, a credit card payment processing service and subsidiary of US Bancorp (NYSE: USB), has reportedly committed to acquiring Sage Pay, an established payments processing business based in the UK and Ireland. Sage Pay operates as a division of The Sage Group plc (SGE), a… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 8:06 am By JD Alois  |  

Investment crowdfunding platform Crowd2Fund is raising capital in a self-crowdfunding round seeking up to £1.2 million in an EIS approved offering. Shares in the company are being offered at a pre-money valuation of £35.8 million. Crowd2Fund says this round is in advance of a future… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 7:22 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Zürich-based Swiss Infrastructure and Exchange (SIX) Group AG, the operator of Switzerland’s stock exchange, recently revealed that it has made an all-cash offer for Bolsas y Mercados Espanoles, a Spanish stock exchange operator. The deal would reportedly establish the third-largest financial market infrastructure group in… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 7:18 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Funding Xchange (FXE), a company that helps people and organizations find suitable business loans and funding options from its marketplace of more than 45 established lenders, has raised £8 million (appr. $10.4 million) through an investment round. FXE’s decisioning platform is used by UK-based Monzo, a… Read More

November 19, 2019 @ 1:24 am By Therese Torris  |  

Smart Lenders AM announces the upcoming launch of a new fund dedicated to financing loans to European SMEs issued through marketplace lending platforms (crowdlending). Smart Lenders AM is an asset management firm that specializes exclusively in financing loans issued by online marketplace lenders. Established in… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 11:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

NIUM, a digital payments platform based in Singapore formerly operating as InstaReM, has partnered with Frente Corretora de Câmbio, a leading foreign exchange broker in Brazil. NIUM will power Frente’s cross border payments, according to a release. The move as a significant step for NIUMs… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 7:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

Besides having a very witty name, plant-based fast-food chain, Lord of the Fries, is planning an expansion in New Zealand by raising growth capital on PledgeMe. The company is seeking up to NZ $2 million with a minimal hurdle of $1 million. If the company… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 5:59 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Peer-to-peer (P2P) bitcoin exchange LocalBitcoins has registered with the Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority, FIN-FSA, the financial regulatory authority of the Finnish government. Earlier this month, Crowdfund Insider reported that five different virtual asset service providers (VASPs) had been approved and LocalBitcoins was in the mix… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 9:34 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Switzerland-based Nestlé, a food and drink processing conglomerate, has teamed up with Carrefour, a French multinational retailer, in order to “apply blockchain technology to infant nutrition for the first time.” According to a recent press release: “After being the first to apply blockchain technology to… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 8:38 am By Omar Faridi  |  

According to a new report, US-based venture capital firms have been increasingly investing in London-headquartered companies this year. New data shows that UK-based Fintech firms continue to attract a large number of investors. US investors have reportedly contributed around in $4.4 billion (appr. £3.4 billion)… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 7:30 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The number of Bitcoin ATMs installed globally has now hit a new milestone by exceeding 6,000 machines. According to CoinATMRadar, which tracks the number of Bitcoin ATMs worldwide, there are currently 6,003 cryptocurrency ATM machines installed globally. The majority, or more than 65%, of these… Read More

November 18, 2019 @ 7:23 am By Omar Faridi  |  

HSBC has been focusing on improving its digital banking platform in order to attract more tech-savvy clients, as the giant financial institution continues to face competition from Fintech firms and new payment services companies. There are reportedly eight new virtual banks that are expected to… Read More

November 17, 2019 @ 11:33 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Cashless or digital payments have become increasingly popular, however, cash still remains a widely-used payment method in most nations, especially in rural communities and jurisdictions with a large unbanked population. Following many years of steady growth, the total number of cash withdrawals made via ATMs… Read More

November 17, 2019 @ 10:30 pm By JD Alois  |  

The annual Fintech100 report has recently been released quantifying the diverse universe of Fintechs that are leading in the various sectors of digital finance. The report has been published since 2014 in partnership with KPMG and H2 Ventures. Some names remain consistent year over year,… Read More

November 17, 2019 @ 9:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

We recently caught up with Dr. Lesley Czuma, director of sales development and media relations at Insolar, a Swiss enterprise blockchain development firm that counts Microsoft, Oracle and AT Kearney amongst its business partners and clients. Czuma, who earned her Ph.D. in political science and… Read More