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REPORT
?? NEWS HIGHLIGHT
The initiative is designed to further advance the open banking ecosystem beyond compliance with the EU’s PSD2 regulatory framework, and offer banks an opportunity to develop open banking APIs.
SPAA was established in 2021, and the objective of the program is to further adoption of open banking ecosystem.
?? ARTICLE
??INSIGHTS
Penalties for lax controls in 2023 exceed those on traditional finance groups for the first time.
Crypto and fintech groups were for the first time fined more for lax controls than the entire traditional financial system last year, as global authorities cracked down on illicit money flows in finance’s new frontiers.
Data analysed by the Financial Times showed crypto and digital payments companies paid $5.8bn in fines last year for shortcomings in customer checks and anti-money laundering controls, as well as for failing to uphold sanctions and other financial crime issues.
Progressive regulations and policies in the UK and Europe, such as open banking, PSD2, and FinTech licences (electronic money institutions, digital or startup banks, etc.), have led to the creation of an abundant playground for innovation.
?? PODCAST
NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF LAST WEEK'S?NEWS
?? FINTECH HIGHLIGHTS
?? 10x Banking announces fresh funding as core banking market soars.
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?? UK-based Trudenty raises funding from Fuel Ventures, Techstars, others.
?? CapitalRise secures ï¿¡250m bank funding line.
?? Navigating the Global Fast Payment Frontier.
FINTECH
Visa adds more digital wallets to CIBC and Simplii global money transfers. The new collaboration will enable the bank’s clients to send funds to family and friends across borders more conveniently.
Andaria partners with Mastercard. The partnership will optimise Andaria’s existing dedicated IBANs, business accounts, and a suite of tools, which were developed as parts of the overall Embedded Finance offering.
German neobroker Trade Republic reached profitability in 2023. It’s a sharp improvement from the €145m net loss Trade Republic turned in its last financial year.
Deriv partners with BVNK to support Solana payments. As part of this partnership, Deriv has incorporated Solana payments for its 2.5 million customers.
PAYMENTS
Tyro adopts the Pismo platform to enhance its operations in Australia. Both technical teams are working to integrate the systems, which are expected to be fully operational in the first quarter of 2024.
Visa cracks down on surcharge programs. The company is boosting efforts to enforce surcharge rules, with non-compliance potentially resulting in fines up to $1 million, according to one card processor.
OVO Network selects Mangopay to streamline holiday rental payments. Through the partnership, Mangopay automates guest payments directly to the property owners’ accounts.
Pay with Bank transfer, powered by American Express, has announced its first utilities sector partnership with energy company OVO, one of the UK’s largest energy suppliers with four million customers.
ACI Worldwide takes over Payment stack of UK retailer Co-op. As a strategic technology partner of ACI Worldwide, Co-op uses the full range of solutions offered by ACI Payments Orchestration Platform.
DIGITAL BANKING
Revolut rolls out HR platform to more than 300 firms. More than 300 firms have licensed Revolut's human resources platform.
CRYPTO
CoinTracking releases crypto tax tool for UK investors. Cryptocurrencies can be taxed at a capital gains or income level, with tax rates going from 0% to over 40%.
DONEDEAL
Citi joins ï¿¡25m Series A for UK fintech Zilo. The funding will be used will be used for product development, drive user acquisition, reach into new markets.
HSBC AM leads €12 million investment in Unbox. The platform embraces a wide range of use cases, from traditional currency or local community.
Ryft wins portion of Innovate UK ï¿¡5 million funding pot. This grant allows Ryft to take the next steps towards expansion into new markets.
Swiss payments fintech Rivero raises $7 million. Rivero's Saas product suite fills a gap in the market for fraud recovery, dispute management and payment scheme.
hyperexponential raises $73M in esries B funding. The company intends to use the funds to expand into the United States, as it targets opening its New York office this year.
Startup bank backed by Lord Mandelson raises ï¿¡25m from investors. The company, launched in 2021, raised fresh equity in November to meet regulatory capital requirements.
The Top 10 European FinTech Funding Deals of 2023. Out of the Top 10 deals, 8 are UK FinTechs which proves the relative strength of this ecosystem compared to its peers.
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Thunes expands its leadership to accelerate growth. Thunes has built a unique, in-house network for global, instant and cost-efficient money movement.
PayPal hires Barclays digital MD Simon Bladon as new UK CEO. The move, which is subject to regulatory approval, also includes Bladon becoming VP of PayPal’s global entity management.
Scotland reports 24% fintech employment growth. Fintech SMEs now employ more than 10,500 people across 226 enterprises, and more than 38% of fintech enterprises.
Hawk AI Welcomes Intelligence and Banking Veteran as Chief Solution Officer. Michael Shearer rings a wealth of experience to Hawk AI.