Financial Innovation Roundup e55
Here are 16 news stories you don’t want to miss from the past week in financial services innovation (Apr 7 - 13, 2024)
#industryinsights
A total of $679.3m was raised across 31 FinTech funding rounds this week, with CyberTech and PayTech companies leading the charge.
Funding activity picked up pace this week, following last week where just 17 deals were completed.
The CyberTech and PayTech sectors recorded the most activity, closing eight and seven deals, respectively.
#industryinsights
A new Leger survey conducted for Wealthsimple reveals how Canadians are seeking retirement that is less traditional and reflects evolving factors such as the cost of living, people’s work lives, and the happy fact that we are living longer.
Those aged between 25 and 44 are not interested in how things used to be. Working until they are 65 and then taking it easy for the rest of their lives, does not appeal to this cohort, with 74% saying it’s an outdated concept.
Instead, Millennials and GenZs will mix leisure with continued professional passions, entrepreneurship, volunteering, and more. How they mix it will be an individual choice, adding to the importance of financial advisors and financial planners to have a holistic view of each client’s retirement goals.
#artificialintelligence #ai #dataanalytics
Klarna is seeing generative artificial intelligence improve its margins, as buy now, pay later (BNPL) firms turn to new digital capabilities to address their profitability challenges.?
ChatGPT parent company OpenAI shared Friday (April 5) that the payments network’s adoption of the technology is estimated to yield a $40 million improvement in the company’s profits this year. Additionally, the firm noted that the chatbot fields two-thirds of Klarna’s customer service chats, contributing to consumers resolving their issues in less than one-fifth the time it took previously, and that the technology takes on the labor of 700 full-time employees.
4.???? Canada Government Commits $2.4 billion to AI Compute, Startups, and Safety through Budget 2024
Canada’s government unveiled a $2.4-billion CAD package of measures designed to boost the country’s artificial intelligence (AI) sector.
In its announcement, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made at Scale AI’s offices in Montréal, the Government of Canada noted that while the nation has a “world-leading AI ecosystem,” other countries have been racing to catch up and made big investments in AI. “To maintain Canada’s competitive edge, and secure good paying jobs and job security for generations of young Canadians, we must raise the bar.”
Through its upcoming 2024 budget, the Government of Canada plans to pump $2 billion into increasing the computing power available to the nation’s AI researchers, startups, and scaleups.
?#blockchain #crypto #cbdc
Hong Kong's financial regulator is poised to give the green light to the first batch of bitcoin spot ETFs.
The move would make Hong Kong the first domicile in the Asia-Pacific region to approve a crypto-backed, exchange-based investment fund. It would also put the island in prime position in the race to become the digital assets hib for the region.
According to a Reuters report, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is set to grant approval later this month.
So far there have been four applications from entities based in mainland China, including Harvest Fund Management, China Asset Management and Bosera Asset Management.
The SFC has already granted approval to Harvest and CAM to provide virtual-asset related fund management services.
Landesbank Baden-Württemberg (LBBW), the largest federal bank in Germany, has formed an alliance with crypto custodian Bitpanda.
Under the terms of the deal, LBBW will take on Bitpanda's 'investment-as-a-service' infrastructure to store and procure cryptocurrencies.
The reason for the partnership is the growing adoption of crypto assets by German companies and a consequent need for crypto custody services.
LBBW will provide crypto custody services to its corproate clients via the Bitpanda platform with a pilot planned for the second half of 2024.
#digitalbanking ?#neobank #challengerbanks
7.???? N26 : launches Joint Accounts in 21 new markets?
N26, Europe’s leading digital bank, announced the launch of Joint Accounts in 21 new markets. Joint Accounts allow N26 customers to manage both their personal finances as well as finances shared with a partner – all in the N26 app, and at no extra cost. This reduces complexity and makes it easier than ever to budget, track expenses, and achieve financial goals together. The new feature will now be available to customers in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
N26 customers in these markets with accounts across all personal membership tiers, including the free N26 Standard, can create a Joint Account with just a few taps, directly within their N26 App*. The feature’s simple and user-friendly interface allows its users to filter expense information by participant and keep track of the joint monthly budget, thereby promoting healthy financial habits. Smart insights and full legal ownership for both participants offer added safety and transparency.
8.???? Santander : to introduce Openbank in US
Santander is announcing today the launch of a new national, digital offering in the United States under the Openbank brand in the second half of 2024. Openbank will also be launched in Mexico in the same timeframe.
Openbank operates with a technological platform designed in-house at Santander that provides secure, easy and simple best-in-class customer experience by combining functionality and design. It also offers an intuitive user experience with fintech pricing and the trust of a global bank. Today, Openbank serves more than two million customers across Europe (Spain, Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands), and has €18 billion in deposits, more than any other digital bank on the continent.
The rollout of Openbank in the US market marks the first time Santander combines all its core, award-winning proprietary technology to deliver an innovative and secure cloud-based banking platform. The Openbank launch will accelerate Santander US’ execution against its profitable growth strategy, generating deposits to fund its leading auto franchise.
领英推荐
Digital bank Inter&Co is advancing a strategy focused on international expansion and targeting a specific niche: Latin—mainly Brazilian—immigrants.
Established in 1994, Inter, as it is known in its original market, serves over 31 million customers. The NASDAQ-listed firm aims to double its client base and achieve 30% efficiency and a return on equity of 30% by 2027, and is making strides toward that goal. The firm's net profit reached BRL 352 million ($70 million) for 2023, with BRL 160 million ($31 million) earned in the fourth quarter alone, driven by a credit portfolio that grew four times the national average.
Led by Jo?o Vitor Menin, the company now seeks to replicate its positive performance beyond its home market. To this end, it established its Miami headquarters just over a year ago and launched a financial super app, offering remittance services, banking, investments, mortgages, and a rewards program. The goal is to attract Latin consumers abroad who seek an easier way to open accounts and access financial services in the US.
10.? Keytom | One bank for all digital assets : Neobank launches with lofty ambitions for global expansion
Neobank Keytom has officially launched with the goal of offering a new era of financial management by organising all digital assets in one convenient location. Keytom harnesses a diverse array of financial services. It says it will cater to the needs of individuals and businesses across both traditional fiat and cryptocurrencies.
At its core, the company champions financial empowerment. Specifically, it positions itself as the ‘one bank for all digital assets’. Keytom’s vision lies in dismantling financial barriers and uniting fiat and crypto domains within a cohesive framework accessible to everyone. The neobank’s clients can oversee their funds via a unified interface accessible through web browsers or a mobile application.
The company’s strategic roadmap involves an extensive trajectory of expansion. At present, Keytom offers investment strategies and transactions in crypto and USDT as its flagship products. It has plans to introduce swaps and fiat options shortly. Thereafter, Keytom’s future plans include a shift towards introducing collateral loans, staking, and cashback services. These are slated for implementation towards the end of 2024 and early 2025.
The bank is headquartered in Dubai, UAE, and boasts a global presence fortified by multiple licences. These include an MSB licence in Canada and a VASP licence in the Czech Republic. The bank says this highlights its commitment to operating within a secure and regulated environment.?
#digitalwealth ?#wealthtech #investing
Like many of its peers, Toronto-based will and estate planning software startup Willful is now targeting efficient growth.
The technology startup set out last year to raise a Series A round, according to co-founder and CEO Erin Bury, but after facing challenging market conditions, Willful adjusted its strategy and scaled back its fundraising target, ultimately closing $1 million CAD in the fall.
Willful’s latest round was led by existing backer, Montréal’s Tactico, with participation from new investor Baycrest Hospital via its Centre for Aging and Brain Health Innovation, and ex-Shopify angels, among others. The all-equity, all-primary round brings Willful’s total equity funding to more than $2.5 million.
Bury said that this round was “not really meant to be a Series A.” She declined to share Willful’s latest valuation but claimed it was higher than both its $800,000 equity seed round in 2020 and its $750,000 convertible note seed extension in 2021. Willful intends to use this capital to support continued product expansion, help influence digital will legislation, and invest in partnerships, like its latest deal with Scotiabank.
#ESG #sustainable #sociallyresponsible
12.? allpay Limited scores 萬事達卡 Sustainability Badge
allpay Limited is proud to announce its attainment of the Mastercard Sustainability Badge, positioning the company at the forefront of environmentally conscious practices.
With over 3 billion plastic payment cards being shipped worldwide annually, cards are quickly replacing cash on a global scale as a more convenient, secure, and sustainable way of paying.
Industry and regulatory bodies are setting objectives and plans which aim to reduce the use of plastic, increase its re-use, or improve its recyclability at the end of life. Considering this, the payment cards’ industry has had to take decisive steps to introduce a new generation of more environmentally friendly solutions for card bodies.
Mastercard's Sustainability Badge reflects a commitment to the use of sustainable materials in card manufacturing. achieving this provides a significant milestone for allpay and is a testament to the company's dedication to eco-friendly practices.
#openbanking
13.? 费埃哲公司 Partners with Atto : to Build Predictive Models with Real-Time Transactional Data
Atto, a leading provider of credit risk solutions using transactional data, is thrilled to announce a strategic partnership with FICO, a global analytics software leader, for the UK market.
This partnership will enable UK lenders to easily integrate Open Banking data into the credit scoring process.
Atto and FICO are combining their expertise to deliver transaction-based scores that rank-order consumers’ risk by analysing up-to-date consumer-permissioned current account and tradeline transaction data. The combination of Atto’s Open Banking technology and FICO’s rich heritage in transaction data analytics can provide lenders with predictive models built on Open Banking data for more targeted risk decisioning. Both companies have extensive experience with Open Banking data; FICO has built scoring models using Open Banking data for other markets since 2018.
14.? FinGoal Partners with Quiltt : to Enhance Financial Services Through Transaction Enrichment
FinGoal, a leading provider of advanced transaction enrichment solutions, is excited to announce a strategic partnership with Quiltt, the innovative unified API platform for open banking. This collaboration marks a significant step forward in simplifying financial data management and enhancing user experiences across financial applications.
By integrating FinGoal’s cutting-edge transaction enrichment capabilities with Quiltt’s comprehensive API, innovators and builders will now be able to offer their users a more insightful and personalized financial experience, across any of the open banking data access providers Quiltt supports.
#payments #spending #borrowing
15.? Airwallex : rolls out Borderless Visa Cards in Canada, giving Canadian businesses a streamlined approach to global expense management
Airwallex, a leading global payments and financial platform for modern businesses, today introduced the Airwallex Borderless Visa? Card in Canada. The virtual card is issued by Peoples Trust Company, part of Peoples Group, and enables Canadian businesses to easily make payments around the world, everywhere Visa is accepted.
A streamlined approach to company spending
Many of the business card solutions available in Canada today require businesses to fund transactions in Canadian dollars, which incurs high FX costs when used to spend with US or international vendors. The Borderless Visa card leverages Visa’s virtual card capabilities, which will enable Airwallex customers in Canada to instantly generate and issue virtual cards and pay global expenses directly from their Airwallex multi-currency wallet, eliminating unnecessary FX conversion fees.?
Austrian FinTech start-up, Monkee, has recently secured a significant seven-figure investment, marking a new milestone in its journey to revolutionise personal finance management, according to a report from tech.eu.
Monkee is at the forefront of offering a “Save Now, Buy Later” model, aiming to provide a responsible alternative to the widely used “Buy Now, Pay Later” systems.
This recent funding round was supported by both new and existing investors. With a user base already exceeding 150,000 account holders, thanks to a partnership with Vereinigte Volksbank Raiffeisenbank eG (VVRB), Monkee is set on a rapid expansion path.
Thanks for sharing, Matthew! ??
Innovation fuels tomorrow's success! ?? As Elon Musk shows, challenging the status quo leads to progress. Financial innovation is key to unlocking future potential. #innovation #futurefinance
Done-For-You Organic Growth Engine for Medical Practices | Sustainable Visibility, Reputation and Patient Growth | Co-Founder & Partner at Margin Ninja
10 个月Wow, these innovations are shaping the financial landscape. Exciting stuff Matthew Wilcox
Digital Entrepreneur | Bootstrapping & Growth Hacking
10 个月Exciting developments in the financial services innovation space. Can't wait to see how these advancements shape the future.
Realtor Associate @ Next Trend Realty LLC | HAR REALTOR, IRS Tax Preparer
11 个月Thanks for sharing.