What was worth reading this week? Feb 24

PAYMENTS & FINTECH

Nationwide, First Direct, Lloyds and Halifax Confirm Online Banking Disruption. Customers, hit on Payday for 2nd Month in a Row, are experiencing significant digital banking disruptions across multiple financial institutions. Users report being unable to log in or view their account information, leaving many without access to their finances. The technical glitches have affected online banking platforms nationwide, with banks actively investigating the causes whilst working to restore normal operations promptly.

Marqeta to Acquire TransactPay to Expand Card Programme Management in UK and Europe: Global payments platform purchases UK-based EMI to enhance regional capabilities. This strategic acquisition combines TransactPay's licences across 25 countries with Marqeta's technology, enabling seamless card issuance whilst eliminating multi-partner complexity for financial institutions.

GoCardless Partners Pipe to Offer SMEs Capital Financing: Revolutionary partnership delivers cash advances to small businesses without personal guarantees or credit checks. Following a ￡13.3 million pilot programme, businesses can now access capital within days directly through the GoCardless platform, especially beneficial for micro-enterprises struggling with late payments.

PayPal Partners Verifone for In-Person Payments Push: Global collaboration combines Verifone's hardware with PayPal's Braintree processing to create powerful omnichannel solution. Targeting retail, hospitality and entertainment sectors, this PayPal Open initiative launches first in America before arriving in UK and Germany later this year.

The AA to Leverage NatWest Boxed's Embedded Platform for Financial Products: Britain's largest roadside assistance provider partners with NatWest to offer savings accounts and personal loans. This strategic alliance will serve AA's 14 million members and broader market, marking NatWest Boxed's first major client.

Indian Government Signs MoU with Paytm to Promote Fintech: Despite recent financial struggles, payments giant Paytm partners with India's Department for Industry Promotion to bolster startups. The collaboration promises mentorship, infrastructure, market access and funding opportunities, aiming to transform India into a global innovation hub through targeted support programmes.

UK Court Approves ￡200m Mastercard Settlement: Nine-year legal battle ends with compensation for 46 million Britons over excessive card fees. Though far below the initial ￡10bn claim, the Competition Appeal Tribunal deemed the payout "just and reasonable" despite being "very disappointing" for affected consumers.

American Express Partners with Alipay in China. Exciting news for globetrotters! American Express cardholders worldwide can now link their cards to Alipay's digital wallet, enabling seamless payments at tens of millions of Chinese merchants. This game-changing partnership simplifies transactions for international travelers while creating new opportunities for local businesses to attract global customers

Exciting news for European shoppers! Nexi will connect German merchants to Wero, the pan-European digital wallet, from Q3 2025. Already enabling P2P payments in Germany, France, and Belgium, this intuitive account-to-account solution promises real-time transactions with plans to revolutionise retail payments by 2026.

Google Wallet works brilliantly offline, storing payment tokens for contactless transactions even without data. Your boarding passes, event tickets, and loyalty cards remain accessible too. Perfect for underground metros, remote villages, or when roaming charges are too steep!

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Stripe's payment volume surged 38% to $1.4 trillion in 2024, with co-founders attributing this remarkable growth to AI investments. The financial infrastructure platform is positioning itself as the "revenue engine of the AI era," with AI partnerships reaching revenue milestones at unprecedented rates.

Alibaba to Release Open-Source Version of Video Generating AI Model Wan 2.1: Chinese tech giant unveils four remarkable Wan 2.1 variants creating astonishingly realistic visuals. Available globally on ModelScope and HuggingFace, this bold move intensifies AI competition whilst challenging Western firms' proprietary models with open innovation.

The Important Difference Between Agentic AI And AI Agents: Don't confuse them, AI agents are specific applications working independently in banking and e-commerce, while agentic AI is the broader field developing these autonomous capabilities. Think of agents as medicines and agentic AI as pharmaceutical science!

OPEN BANKING

Unzer and Mastercard Launch New European Open Banking Solution. German fintech Unzer launches pay-by-bank service with Mastercard following Paydirekt's closure. Their biometric-authenticated solution works across SEPA countries with white-label options for merchants. Currently available in Germany with European expansion planned, it challenges Klarna's app-based approach with simpler authentication methods.

Open Banking API Calls Projected to Surge 427% by 2029. Juniper Research highlights generative AI's crucial role in creating personalised banking solutions. Whilst Europe leads in API quality requirements, Middle East and Africa emerge as promising growth markets for expanding digital banking.

Jordan Implements Open Banking Standards with Investbank Leading Adoption. Jordan's Investbank chooses UAE's Fintech Galaxy for open banking compliance, utilising their Finx Comply cloud solution. The partnership promises streamlined operations and enhanced digital transactions whilst meeting Central Bank standards, becoming the second Jordanian bank to implement this fintech platform.

US Open Banking Regulation in Limbo as CFPB Effectively Shuttered. America's consumer protection agency shuts down as Trump's appointee halts all operations. Open banking regulations hang in limbo despite taking effect last month. Banks, already challenging the rules in court, may now develop their own data-sharing partnerships instead of following government mandates.

Southeast Asia Poised for Open Finance Expansion in 2025. Southeast Asia sees varied open finance adoption, with Singapore leading whilst Vietnam lags. Drivers include regional payment connectivity, cloud computing and API innovation. Countries follow either market-driven approaches like Malaysia or regulatory frameworks like the Philippines, with e-wallet usage expanding dramatically across the region.

UK Travel Spending via Open Banking Jumps 230% in 2025 So Far: Holidaymakers embraced account-to-account payments for January bookings. Trustly reports massive growth across 250+ European travel businesses, with Germany following at 22% increase (7% across Europe). Major airlines adopt this technology for reduced fees and faster settlements.

Is Open Banking Destroying the Customer Experience? Behind innovation lurks frustration, multiple authentications, fragmented processes and constant app-switching where simplicity once existed. Despite enhanced security, financial journeys lack seamless integration between services. Tokenisation and biometrics may deliver the frictionless future promised.

CRYPTO & ALL THAT JAZZ

Bybit Declares War on Lazarus Crew to Regain Stolen $1.5B: Cryptocurrency exchange offers whopping $140 million bounty after North Korean hackers allegedly infiltrated SafeWallet's system through a compromised developer machine. Despite the historic February heist, Bybit assures customer assets remain fully protected.

As Paypal Announces Plans to Ramp Up Adoption of its Stablecoin PYUSD, Ripple president Reacts. As PayPal prepares to integrate PYUSD stablecoin across more products, enabling millions of merchants to use it for bill payments, Ripple's Monica Long quipped it "sounds familiar". Ripple launched its own RLUSD stablecoin in December, currently valued at $125 million.

Avalanche Launches Visa Crypto Card: This payment solution enables spending crypto assets anywhere Visa is accepted. The blockchain-based card supports Avax tokens and stablecoins, targeting regions with limited banking infrastructure. Offering seamless cross-border transactions without conversion hassles, aiming to transform cryptocurrency into an everyday financial tool.

SEC Drops Another Crypto Case: US financial regulator abandons investigation into decentralised exchange Uniswap Labs, following similar dismissals for Coinbase and Robinhood. This signals a dramatic shift in cryptocurrency regulation since Trump's presidency began, with new SEC leadership taking a more cooperative stance towards DeFi.

FRAUD & SECURITY

AI-Powered Fraud Prevention: 2025 Predictions. As fraud losses exceeded $10 billion in 2023, sophisticated AI tools are creating new challenges but also powerful solutions. GenAI now generates convincing ID document deepfakes with authentic-looking shadows, prompting financial authorities to issue alerts for enhanced verification protocols to combat this evolving threat.

Fraud Prevention Platform Sardine Secures ￡70M for AI Agents. AI-powered fraud prevention platform Sardine has raised ￡70 million in Series C funding to launch intelligent agents that automate compliance operations for financial institutions. These AI agents will streamline critical investigation processes, allowing risk teams to focus on complex cases while ensuring regulatory compliance.

The Necessity of API Security for B2B Fintechs: As financial technology evolves, protecting API gateways becomes crucial for preventing costly breaches. Robust authentication, encryption, and monitoring mechanisms are essential safeguards. European fintech organisations must adopt comprehensive security strategies to maintain regulatory compliance whilst safeguarding sensitive financial data.

The UK Fraud Reimbursement Platform sees slow adoption with just 558 financial institutions onboard, far below the 1,500 target. Despite rules requiring banks to reimburse APP fraud victims up to ￡85,000, most claims still use the old system. Beware: protection exists, but implementation lags!

ENISA publishes the first Threat Landscape Report on Finance Sector?? The report analyses 488 cyber incidents in European finance, with banks most affected (46%). Main threats were data breaches, phishing, and geopolitically-linked DDoS attacks. Cybercriminals exploited vulnerabilities for financial gain, while hacktivists disrupted financial institutions and government websites.

UK Government Publishes National Fraud Initiative Strategy 2024-2028: This strategy aims to enhance the NFI through innovation, increased data access and insight, whilst maintaining the highest standards of service quality and data security. By improving training and support for participants and fostering greater engagement, it will maximise fraud detection outcomes and build new counter fraud partnerships across sectors.

DIGITAL IDENTITY

US: Digital IDs Gain Momentum as State Laws Take Effect; Legislation is Advanced: America witnesses widespread adoption of mobile licences with three-quarters of states implementing electronic ID systems. New laws in Illinois, Montana and Arkansas enable smartphone identification whilst Utah explores state-endorsed digital identity amidst privacy debates.

Europe: EU-Backed Digital ID Platform Launches to Cut €5.7B Verification Costs: New consortium introduces transformative identity solution to reduce expensive KYC procedures across Europe. The platform leverages blockchain technology for secure, reusable verification, promising to slash onboarding times whilst maintaining robust anti-fraud protections for businesses and consumers alike.

Malaysia to Launch National Digital ID Super-App: Blockchain-based ecosystem combines digital wallet with integrated services via Malaysia's existing ID system. Inspired by WeChat, it eliminates multiple authentications whilst enhancing privacy. Commercial providers can integrate directly or offer mini-apps on this government-backed platform launching Q1 2025.

What is EUDI Wallet: European Digital Identity? Tackling fragmented identification systems, this ambitious EU initiative creates a unified digital wallet for authentication, signatures and secure data storage across all member states. Promising streamlined processes for businesses and citizens alike, it could slash onboarding costs by 90%.

Digital Verification Services (DVS) Legislation Marches on Through Commons: UK's Data Bill progressing smoothly after clearing House of Lords. Parliament shows strong support for digital identity framework, with key amendments on data accuracy. Currently in meticulous Committee stage until 18 March before facing final hurdles towards Royal Assent.