Opinion

January 3, 2021 @ 9:00 pm By Timothy Li  |  

Fintech enthusiasts welcome back to my 5th annual “Top Ten” Fintech prediction series. This year I’ve met a lot of powerful movers and shakers in the Fintech space. My take away from these meetings and interactions is how little do I know about this ever-expanding… Read More

January 3, 2021 @ 4:21 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

LocalBitcoins, one of the oldest and most widely-used Bitcoin (BTC) services, reveals that most of its customers are based in developing countries. These are places (such as Argentina and Venezuela) where Bitcoin is needed badly as a store of value because local fiat currencies have… Read More

January 2, 2021 @ 6:27 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Bruce Pon, Founder of Ocean Protocol (OCEAN), which allows software engineers to build marketplaces and other apps to privately and securely publish, exchange, and consume data, has noted that 2020 has been “a long, albeit, memorable year for the Ocean team.” Pon, who’s also the… Read More

January 2, 2021 @ 3:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Binance, the world’s largest digital asset exchange, says it remains committed to innovating in 2021 in an increasingly “decentralized” world. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao or CZ has shared his thoughts and reflections looking back at 2020 and the firm’s goals for the new year. Zhao… Read More

January 2, 2021 @ 5:18 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Last year, we saw many banking challengers offering services to customers who might not have been satisfied with their traditional bank. Many more people also began to use online banking services due to the COVID-19 pandemic which forced many physical business locations to shut down…. Read More

December 31, 2020 @ 5:35 pm By JD Alois  |  

2020 was a challenging year for the entire world. The ongoing health crisis surprised everyone as the world dove into a pandemic, pummeling the global economy and impacting everyone. In many respects, Fintech emerged as a beneficiary of COVID-19. Digital transformation of financial services were… Read More

December 31, 2020 @ 10:51 am By Omar Faridi  |  

As Bitcoin (BTC) continues to set new highs, it became clear to many people that the digital asset could serve as a hedge against the traditional financial system. This year, many well-known investors, including Stanley Druckenmiller (a hedge fund manager with a net worth of… Read More

December 29, 2020 @ 9:52 pm By JD Alois  |  

Online capital formation has emerged as an effective path for private companies to raise much-needed growth capital fueling innovation and creating jobs. Once the realm of VCs and angel investors only, investment crowdfunding now enables retail investors to access promising young firms at an early… Read More

December 29, 2020 @ 6:38 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Nic Neuman from Casa says that the biggest security problem that Bitcoin (BTC) has is its user experience (UX). This past October 2020 marked the 12th anniversary of Satoshi Nakamoto’s Bitcoin whitepaper. During this relatively short period of time, Bitcoin has fundamentally transformed “the way… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 11:55 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Coronavirus outbreak has accelerated the adoption of digital payments and other Fintech services in India. Technology has been the foundation for the growth and development of Fintech platforms in the country, according to Raj N Phani, the Founder at Indian Fintech firm Zaggle. Phani… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 10:32 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Sophie Guibaud, Chief Growth Officer at OpenPayd, a UK-headquartered API-based Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) provider, notes that Fintech and other industries have had an “extraordinary” 2020. She pointed out that major scandals (like Wirecard) have “rocked the industry,” however, we’ve also seen significant progress that should help… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 9:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

It’s been a very challenging year due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, however, Bitcoin (BTC) is on a record-breaking streak since March 2020, which was when it initially crashed (below $4,000) along with the broader financial markets. But after that, the leading cryptocurrency recovered and… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 9:01 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Collaboration is the “new competition” in the financial technology industry, according to Melody Brue, a Senior Fintech Analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy. Brue, a startup veteran and advisor, notes that almost every industry or sector had to “pivot” in many different ways in order… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 6:11 pm By JD Alois  |  

  Doug Ellenoff, the Managing Partner of Manhattan law firm Ellenoff, Grossman and Schole (EGS), has been involved with the Fintech sector since the early days of the JOBS Act – the legislation that eventually legalized investment crowdfunding. He is not only deeply engaged with… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 4:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Hong Fang, CEO at digital asset exchange OKCoin, has published an end of year memo in which she noted that it may seem “odd” to feel thankful for 2020. She pointed out that in January 2020, almost nobody could have foreseen or predicted how this… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 1:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Varo Money, Inc., the first consumer Fintech in the US to become a chartered national bank, recently explained how they’re building a better banking platform. Philippa Girling, Chief Risk Officer at Varo Money, noted that she’d been working in the banking industry for the past… Read More

December 23, 2020 @ 2:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple is the largest enforcement action attacking the sale of a cryptocurrency to date. The SEC alleges the sale of an unregistered security in the issuance of XRP, Ripple’s native token. Ripple has been quick to defend… Read More

December 22, 2020 @ 9:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) has filed a lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), as well as Acting Comptroller Brian Brooks, regarding the agency’s ability to issue federal bank charters to Fintechs. The complaint mentions Figure Technologies, a… Read More

December 21, 2020 @ 9:27 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Grant Halverson, CEO and MD at McLean Roche Pty Ltd, has noted that Fintech-related risk has increased dramatically this year and has been “aided by ‘free’ central bank money, exuberant VCs, private equity and run away share markets.” Halverson pointed out that Australian Buy Now,… Read More

December 20, 2020 @ 8:31 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Meltem Demirors, the Chief Strategy Officer at CoinShares, a digital asset management firm, has argued that “as evidenced by the recent corruption of all US systems, from the government to corporate, securing networks is very difficult to do persistently.” 1/ as evidenced by the recent… Read More