Retail Tech & Fintech 1 - 22 August 2023

Welcome to my?biweekly retailtech and fintech focused newsletter. I'll try to wrap up the most important insights and strategies from the past two weeks. Any comments would be appreciated and hope you enjoy it.

2023 Week 31 & 32 & 33 Retail Tech & Fintech Highlights :

*Payments & Cloud Tech & Cybersecurity & AI in Payments

• Unified global spend platform Brex has launched an AI-enabled Accounts Payable (AP) solution combining enhanced bill pay capabilities and purchase cards.
• Stripe has launched a tax feature for businesses to connect to, enabling them to streamline their taxes in a connected all-in-one solution.?
• UK fintech Bud has developed a generative AI core and chatbot for personalised customer insights using Google's PaLM2 large language model.
• Thales launches Thales payShield Cloud HSM
• India Central Bank to use AI for instant payments
• Deloitte has expanded its partnership with NVIDIA aiming to utilise the latter’s AI technology to build generative AI solutions for enterprise software platforms.
• The UAE government partnership with MasterCard to accelerate adoption of artificial intelligence

*Physical payments & softPOS & AndroidPOS

• Mswipe Technologies expands to UAE and launches uTap with etisalat
• Zettle by PayPal adds Tap-to-Pay on iPhone for UK users
• Ukraine-based payment platform Fondy has launched a cashless payment service in partnership with Visa, namely the Fondy Terminal, based on Visa Tap to Phone tech.
• Bharatpe launches Bharatpe Swipe Android Machine for merchants
• Tap-to-Pay on iPhone available in the UK and Netherlands with SumUp
• J.P. Morgan Payments adds Tap-to-Pay on iPhone for US merchants
• US-based Five Star Bank and payment and accounting platform Autobooks have partnered to launch a Tap-to-Pay on iPhone feature for small businesses.

*AI in Retail & Self-Checkout & Retail Value Added Services

• Amazon deploys generative AI to summarize reviews
• Square launches Square Go consumer booking app
• Amazon brings sponsored product ads to third-party apps, sites

*Delivery Services & Ride-Hailing & Fulfillment Services

• Uber, Safaricom partner for M-PESA payments and disbursements

*Digital Payments & Card Payments & Cross-Border Payments & B2B Payments

• Nigeria-based fintech Flutterwave has launched its new "Send App" in the United States and Canada, in order to enable clients to send funds into Africa faster and safer.
• Shopify announced that it is offering Shopify Credit, a business credit card designed exclusively for its merchants.
• Mastercard?announced that its cardholders can link their cards to?WeChat Pay,?or as it’s locally called, Weixin Pay, a mobile payment service within the Weixin app, as a new payments option that further improves the digital payment experience of international travellers when visiting the country.
• Visa Expands Conferma Pay Partnership to Boost B2B Payments
• Fintech Fime has announced that it’s been selected by Bangladesh Bank to help launch the nation’s domestic card scheme.
• Ant Group expands cross-border digital payment services in Asian Games Support Initiative & International card networks, including Visa, Mastercard, JCB, and Discover? Global Network, are launching a major campaign with Alipay to further enhance international visitors’ mobile payment and travel experience in the country on the 30-day countdown to the Asian Games.
• Thailand-based retail platform Central Retail, Ant Group partner to launch Alipay+ for tourists in Thailand
• Central Banks of Indonesia and Singapore begin trial on cross-border payments
• The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) and Bank of the LAO PDR (BOL) have launched the first phase of cross-border QR code payments in Laos.?

*E-commerce & Digital Checkout & Tokenization

• Mastercard enables CVC-less payments for tokenised cards in India
• Saudi Arabia-based PayTabs has partnered with Middle East Payment Services(MEPS) to enable digital payments in Palestine.
• Multichannel enabler CedCommerce has announced the launch of TikTok Shop Connector, an integration solution that connects ecommerce platforms with TikTok Shop.
• US-based grocery tech company Instacart launches SNAP online (Electronic Benefits Transfer for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) in all 50 US states

*Mobile Payments & Digital Wallets & Interoperable QR Code Payments

• Apple Pay goes live in Morocco
• FIS??has announced that its merchant solutions business,?Worldpay from FIS, will integrate Alipay+ into its global portfolio for e-commerce and POS offerings
• Visa brings Apple Pay to Vietnam
• UnionPay International has partnered with Malaysia-based Payments Network Malaysia (PayNet) to enable cross-border QR code linkage.
• e& money, the fintech arm and financial super-app of e& life, announced that customers can now use their e& money cards in Samsung Wallet
• Network International introduces ‘WeChat Pay’ acceptance on its N-Genius POS terminals
• Alipay launches an updated international version of its app
• Indonesia and Singapore set to introduce QR code payments
• In partnership with Mastercard and Checkout.com, Careem Pay has integrated Mastercard Send to enable customers in the UAE to access near real-time payments into their Careem Pay wallets
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is to add support for NFC payments to the country’s UPI Lite digital wallet, enabling users to conduct transactions on their smartphone even when there is no internet or mobile connection.

*Buy Now Pay Later & Instalments & POS Financing

• Amazon and lender Banco Bradesco to launch credit card in Brazil
• Installments-as-a-service platform provider?Splitit?has secured an investment of $50 million from private equity firm?Motive Partners.
• Amazon is leveraging its Visa credit cards to offer buy now, pay later financing at retailers using the Amazon Pay checkout button & Amazon expands BNPL offering to other retailers’ sites
• After Mobile Payments, Paytm Wants To Disrupt Small Credit Segment In India

*Transit Payments

• LA Metro adds support for fare capping to TAP contactless ticketing system
• Genoa rolls out multimodal MaaS app that supports fare-capped hands-free Bluetooth ticketing
• Moscow Metro to trial digital ruble for fare payments

*Open Banking & Account to Account Payments & Real-Time Payments

• The Clearing House’s RTP Network has announced the expanded availability of its Request for Payment (RfP) capability. The Request for Payment (RfP) functionality on the RTP network is now enabling broker dealers, billers, and suppliers to securely request payments from their customers through bank channels.
• The UK Government has revealed its intention to implement Open Banking into the GOV.UK Pay system as part of its ongoing development plans
• Alternative Airlines, Link Money offer Open Banking payments
• UK-based point-of-sale (POS) solution Lopay has partnered with UK-based Open Banking payments network TrueLayer to offer instant payouts.
• EchoPay, an A2A payments provider, has partnered with Token.io, an Open Banking payment infrastructure, aiming to bring A2A payments to wholesale merchants across the UK.

*Embedded Finance & PaaS & BaaS & Neo Banking

• Marqeta has unveiled the Docs AI tool to streamline the process of launching Embedded Finance solutions.
• Colendi gets Turkish digital banking operating licence
• HSBC and B2B fintech Tradeshift have announced an agreement to launch a jointly-owned business focused on embedded finance solutions and financial services apps.

*Investments & Strategic Partnerships

• Foxconn commits $194Mn to set up electronic components plant in India’s Tamil Nadu
• Europe-based paytech Nexi Group has announced the acquisition of a 30% stake in Germany-based payment service provider Computop
• Israeli fintech unicorn Rapyd is acquiring PayU Global Payment Organisation (GPO) from Netherlands-based investment company Prosus for $610 million.
• Luxury travel retailer DFS Group and Ant Group have entered a strategic partnership to improve payments and marketing digitalisation across the DFS retail and online stores network.
• Asset World Corporation (AWC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ant Group to launch multiple cross-border payments and digital financial solutions.
• Semiconductor supplier Renesas acquires 5G provider Sequans for $249 Million
• Ant Group swaps stake in India's Paytm
• Airtel Africa, Mastercard Unveil New Money Transfer Service
• Mastercard to purchase a minority stake in MTN’s $5.2B fintech business
• Mastercard has announced the launch of Mastercard Strive India, aiming to enable small businesses in the country to succeed within the digital economy by 2025.
• Paymentology partners with Mastercard to improve financial inclusion across Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.
• Param acquires Twisto and furthers its European expansion
• UK launches ￡1 billion fintech fund to compete with Silicon Valley & UK launches ￡1bn fintech fund backed by Mastercard and Barclays
• Velo Payments to acquire YapStone
• Amazon reportedly exploring anchor investor role in Arm’s upcoming IPO & SoftBank-backed chip designer Arm reveals filing for blockbuster U.S. IPO
• Finance automation and corporate credit card startup Ramp has raised $300 million in finding at a $5.8 billion valuation, down from $8.1 billion at its last raise in 2022.
• Turkish payments platform Craftgate scoops ￡1 million investment

*Global Expansion of Fintechs & Payment Players

• Block is shutting down the Cash App's Verse brand in the EU and its BNPL platform Clearpay in Spain, France and Italy
• JPMorgan is to export its online bank Chase to Germany in the first phase of a plan to extend the brand across the EU
• SumUp launches in Australia
• UK-based payment service provider and UK and European direct bank card acquirer Ecommpay has announced that it offers local acquiring in the US.?

*Regulation & Compliance

• Binance receives operational license in Dubai
• TikTok takes steps to obtain an Indonesian payments licence
• Qatar Central Bank grants licenses to BNPL service providers
• EMVCo?has released security requirements to support the development of multi-factor authentication (MFA) solutions
• Singapore rolls out new regulatory framework for stablecoins

*Crypto Payments & Digital Currencies

• Digital Dollar Project has announced the completion of a new CBDC pilot study for cross-border remittances
• The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is enabling consumers and merchants to use their smartphone to make and receive contactless in-store and P2P payments with the country’s eNaira central bank digital currency (CBDC) using NFC, even if they are offline
• Revolut halts US crypto trading
• PayPal Launches U.S. Dollar Stablecoin
• Garanti BBVA's subsidiary launches a digital asset company
• Blockchain.com expands global reach with Singapore license
• BitPay launches Bill Pay, enabling bill payments with cryptocurrency
• UK-based payments solutions provider Checkout.com has announced its decision to distance itself from cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
• Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has launched in Canada, backed by the integration of Interac payment rails, with banking and payment partners, enabling fund transfers and introducing Coinbase One.
• PayPal to launch Cryptocurrencies Hub for select users
• Hardware wallet technology company, Ledger, has partnered with PayPal to allow users to explore crypto in a simple and secure manner through the Ledger Live companion app
• Mastercard chooses Fluency as its CBDC partner
• Nubank to test Brazilian CBDC, Drex
• Coinbase acquires stake in Circle
• Binance Pay Launches in Brazil: Simplifying Crypto Payments for Merchants

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