Tagged: virtual bank

July 5, 2020 @ 8:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

Hong Kong as jurisdiction was slow out of the gate when it came to Fintech innovation. But this initial hesitancy was soon made up by a dedicated public-private partnership determined to establish Hong Kong as a top Fintech hub – a successful move. InvestHK, a… Read More

May 10, 2020 @ 9:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Switzerland-based UBS Group AG (SWX: UBSG), a global investment bank and financial services firm with around $1 trillion in assets, recently confirmed that it is planning to launch a digital banking platform that would reduce operational costs and stimulate growth. However, UBS said its plan… Read More

April 18, 2020 @ 8:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Digital banks or neobanks have now been around for several years. There are many challenger banks that aim to compete with and provide better financial services than traditional banks and institutions. Conducting transactions online has become more popular due to the deadly Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak…. Read More

April 10, 2020 @ 10:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Standard Chartered, a British multinational banking and financial services company with over $700 billion in total assets, has confirmed that its new Hong Kong-based digital bank Mox is opening its app and platform to a select group of external clients, following its brand name and… Read More

April 10, 2020 @ 10:27 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Companies and institutions that may have applied for a digital banking license in Singapore will now have to wait longer in order to find out if their application was approved. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the nation’s central bank and financial regulator, has confirmed… Read More

April 9, 2020 @ 10:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Neobank Amica Technologies, which is managed by Jitendra Gupta, the former PayU India’s chief executive, has acquired $2 million in capital through an investment round led by two major VC firms, including UK-based Hummingbird Ventures and US-headquartered Bedrock Capital. Gupta said his company is planning… Read More

April 9, 2020 @ 9:18 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

AMTD International (NYSE: HKIB; SGX: HKB), which is part of the AMTD Group, an established Asian financial services conglomerate, has confirmed its secondary listing on the Mainboard of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd (the “SGX-ST”) under the ticker “HKB.” AMTD International’s listing notably marks… Read More

April 7, 2020 @ 10:58 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Up is the latest digital banking service provider to slash its savings rates following the Reserve Bank of Australia’s recent cut to the nation’s official interest rates. The Melbourne-headquartered neobank has adjusted the maximum rate on its Saver Account. The new rate has been marked… Read More

April 6, 2020 @ 1:32 pm By Xu Gao  |  

Risk Alert against the Hype of Overseas Virtual Currency Exchanges Back in 2017, the People’s Bank of China (PBC), Cyberspace Administration of China and other 5 ministries published the “Notice on Guarding against Risks of ICOs”, stipulating that virtual currency trading and ICOs are illegal… Read More

April 5, 2020 @ 6:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Chime, one of the largest US-based digital banking startups, is testing out a new way for its customers to instantly receive their $1,200 in federal stimulus checks. The neobank’s clients would be able to receive their cheques weeks before the American government plans to begin… Read More

March 30, 2020 @ 10:32 pm By JD Alois  |  

Airstar Bank Limited, a licensed virtual bank in Hong Kong, has announced the launch of a pilot trial. The pilot is being conducted under the watchful eye of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s Fintech Supervisory Sandbox. Airstar is a joint venture between Xiaomi Corporation (1810.HK)… Read More

March 26, 2020 @ 6:31 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Singapore-based Fintech company MatchMove has partnered with local finance firm, Singapura Finance Ltd., and two others, in order to apply for a virtual banking license in the city-state. The MatchMove-led consortium is the most recent group to reveal that it has filed an application for… Read More

March 24, 2020 @ 7:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

Hong Kong initiated a process in 2019 to facilitate digital-only banks. The move was indicative of the realization that digital banking, or virtual banks, is the future of banking and not the brick and mortar types. ZA Bank, an offshoot of ZhongAn Technologies International Group,… Read More

March 17, 2020 @ 7:32 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Leading digital bank Revolut has been rolling out new features for its digital banking platform. The bank recently introduced new features that allow users to earn cashback or avail special discount offers when they spend. Revolut has also launched a new gold trading service for… Read More

March 8, 2020 @ 7:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In June 2020, Singapore’s regulatory authorities will be issuing operational licenses to three new wholesale neobanks in order to provide better services to underbanked small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).  The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) confirmed in mid-2019 that it would begin accepting applications for five new… Read More

January 12, 2020 @ 8:53 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Thailand is currently laying the groundwork for standalone or independently-functioning online banks as the Southeast Asian nation tries to catch up with other nearby markets that have been upgrading their banking infrastructure. Veerathai Santiprabhob, governor of the Bank of Thailand, noted during a recent interview:… Read More

January 12, 2020 @ 7:27 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Bank of Ceylon (BoC), a state-owned, major commercial bank in Sri Lanka, is reportedly expanding its branch network to include Andigama and Weerapokuna with the added convenience of offering 24-hour online banking services to the people living in these areas. BoC’s Weerapokuna location is… Read More

January 7, 2020 @ 8:09 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The ongoing race and competition between local Fintech firms for acquiring a digital banking license in Malaysia continues to intensify, particularly after Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the nation’s central bank, revealed additional details regarding the licensing process. BNM’s Exposure Draft on Licensing Framework for Digital… Read More

December 23, 2019 @ 5:32 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

ZA Bank Ltd. is reportedly testing internet-only banking solutions in Hong Kong, which notably makes it the first organization to provide such services in the city as the Asian financial hub continues to promote the development of Fintech-related projects. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority began… Read More

November 9, 2019 @ 2:46 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Chinese tech giant Tencent is reportedly preparing to launch a blockchain-enabled virtual bank, after the company obtained a license from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). Previously, Crowdfund Insider has reported that 8 virtual bank licenses have been issued with the most recent (4) being announced… Read More