June 13, 2024 @ 8:17 am By Omar Faridi  |  

ClearBank explains that cost-effective access to Faster Payments System (FPS) is offering all the advantages of the UK’s faster payments infrastructure to UK resident customers, without incurring the “costs of being a direct scheme member.” According to ClearBank, there has been significant growth in UK… Read More

June 13, 2024 @ 6:00 am By JD Alois  |  

Blockchain firm IOTA has been selected to participate in the European Blockchain Sandbox. According to a blog post, IOTA will be participating in the Sandbox with its Web3 identification product. IOTA says the solution tokenizes all kinds of identification processes, enabling identity verification in Web3 environments… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 11:55 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Santander recently announced that Zinia, its digital consumer finance platform, will become the new consumer finance provider for Apple in Germany. Zinia will aim to offer customers purchasing Apple products “both in Apple stores and online at apple.de the option to defer payments by splitting… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:51 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Airwallex, a global payments and financial platform for modern businesses, saw robust customer growth in Hong Kong, with its transacting customer base increasing by 79% YoY in the first quarter of 2024. Reflecting the strong customer growth, Airwallex Hong Kong also “recorded a 108% YoY… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:50 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Crypto.com, which claims to be “trusted” by more than 100 million customers worldwide and the firm focused on regulatory compliance, security and privacy, announced that it has received approval as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) from the Central Bank of Ireland. This approval follows… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:48 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

BridgeFund, a challenger SME lender based in Amsterdam, chooses Mambu to fulfil its mission of bridging the financial needs of entrepreneurs. By utilising Mambu’s cloud banking platform, BridgeFund can “build its deposit, and soon, lending offerings with reliability and ease, while scaling in the Dutch… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:47 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Stripe, a financial infrastructure platform for businesses, has announced that it will become the primary payments partner globally for Accor—one of the world’s largest hospitality companies comprising more than 40 hotel brands in 5,600 locations across more than 110 countries. Accor has a sharp focus… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:46 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM and the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) have recently announced the signing of a joint Digital Assets Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The MoU creates a framework “enabling the collaboration between the BMA and the FSRA to support the… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:43 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Xero, the global small business platform, has released research highlighting how Australian small businesses think and feel about the end of financial year (EOFY). The survey of more than 1000 small business owners and decision makers “revealed 71% consider this time of year stressful, and… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:42 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Currencycloud, which focuses on simplifying business in a multi-currency world, and Pyvio, the fintech building ‘Glocal’ financial services infrastructure, have announced a partnership offering efficient and cost-effective cross-border payment solutions for Chinese e-commerce businesses operating in emerging markets. The partnership will allow Pyvio to leverage… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 9:52 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Stake, the digital platform for real estate investment, announced that they have raised $14 million in a Series A round reportedly led by MEVP (Middle East Venture Partners), along with Aramco’s Wa’ed Ventures, which is said to be one of Saudi Arabia’s largest VC’s, Mubadala… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 8:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Kin Insurance, Inc. announced that the Kin Interinsurance Network and Kin Interinsurance Nexus Exchange, the reciprocal exchanges it manages, have completed their reinsurance programs for “the period of June 1, 2024 through May 31, 2025, at favorable economic terms.” Kin’s reinsurance program maintains Kin’s history… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 7:22 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Ozone API, the global open banking firm, recently announced a strategic partnership with Tuum, a core banking provider, to enable Tuum’s customers to comply with open banking regulations and commercialize open finance across the globe. The partnership represents a significant milestone “for both companies, combining… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 7:21 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In 2023—as economies fully reopened and travel resumed—Grab (NASDAQ: GRAB) says that its mobility business rebounded and their deliveries business showed remarkable resilience amidst rising inflation. Grab claims that they grew their user base. As of December 2023, 35.5 million people leverage their platform “to… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 6:04 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Nubank (NYSE: NU), which claims to be one of the world’s largest digital banking platforms outside of Asia, and Chubb, a global enabler of insurance, announced that they have reached a significant milestone of 2 million active insurance policies in Brazil. Contributing to the success… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 6:03 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

XTransfer, the B2B cross-border trade payment platform, and Banking Circle, the tech-driven payments bank, have entered into a partnership. This collaboration aims to reduce “the cost and processing time of cross-border payments for XTransfer’s clients, particularly benefiting Chinese suppliers with significant markets in Europe and… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 12:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

While it should be obvious to everyone, high individual taxes hinder investment and innovation and diminish wealth creation – which can create benefits for all. The flipside to high taxes is a central authority that provides more social services, or entitlements, to the population while… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 12:08 pm By JD Alois  |  

This past week, WSJ.com published an article that criticized investment crowdfunding, specifically Regulation A (Reg A+). Reg A+ is a securities exemption that enables early-stage or smaller firms to raise up to $75 million. The security exemption requires an issuer to submit documents to the… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 11:17 am By JD Alois  |  

Irys, an on-chain data provider, says it has raised $8.9 million in funding in a round led by Lemniscap. Other investors in the round include Framework, Primitive Ventures, Hypersphere, Permanent Ventures, and EV3. Individual investors include Smokey the Bera, Ryan Watkins, and Daniel Cheung. Previously… Read More

June 12, 2024 @ 10:50 am By JD Alois  |  

Pagaya Technologies (NASDAQ: PGY) says it is joining the Mastercard Engage program. The program seeks to connect qualified Fintechs to banks, merchants, and more to help them accelerate product innovation through access to the company’s global network. As part of the program, Pagaya’s AI network… Read More