👀 NEWS HIGHLIGHT
Lloyds invests €3 million in Enigio to accelerate document digitisation.
The investment will enable Enigio to continue to grow and provide businesses with a faster, more affordable and secure way to digitise physical original documents like promissory notes, bills of exchange and bills of lading.
😎 SPONSORED CONTENT
Upgrading to a next-gen core banking system can be smooth and painless. Navigate the challenges and opportunities with Thought Machine and Vacuumlabs in this in-depth study.
📰 ARTICLE
In the realm of SME banking, few names have become as significant in recent years as OakNorth. This institution, by leveraging digital advances and a unique ethos, has redefined what it means to be a contemporary bank in this age of digitization.
A large percentage of a neobank’s revenue is generated from interchange fees paid by businesses whenever customers purchase with a neobank’s debit card.
For example, U.S. neobank Chime made $600 million from interchange fees in 2020 alone🤯
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America’s largest banks are preparing to fire the latest salvo in their efforts to defend their turf from Big Tech groups.
Traditional lenders react to mobile wallet gains made by Apple and Google as tech groups push harder into financial services.
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The UK continues to be one of the most attractive destinations for students looking to study abroad, and the proportion of those using fintechs to ease the costs is soaring, according to Revolut.
Currently, the top five universities for international students are all in London, and for the academic year 2020-2021, international students made up more than a fifth (22 per cent) of the total UK student population.
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NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF LAST WEEK'S NEWS
🔦 DIGITAL BANKING HIGHLIGHTS
⭐️ New digital bank JB to launch in Saudi Arabia.
⭐️ JPMorgan Chase to offer online payroll services as it steps up fight with Square, PayPal.
⭐️ Judo Bank partners with Backbase to enhance digital customer experience.
⭐️ Swift and Wise join forces to expand cross-border payment options globally.
⭐️ Lupiya secures $8.25 million Series A funding round.
🌎 REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
UK 🇬🇧
Monzo launched a feature that lets users make investments —marking its first foray into the massive financial investment market.
The number of UK banks investing in technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality is falling as the Metaverse hype fades away.
HSBC has become the first UK bank to offer newcomers to the country the option to include international credit history when applying for a credit card.
EUROPE 🇪🇺
N26 has become a collaborator with Spain's Social Security, according to the Official State Gazette (BOE) this summer.
Revolut has reached two million customers in Spain, doubling its user base within a year.
Bank of Ireland customers have conducted 2.35 million banking transactions, with over €1 billion in cash transactions, in post offices nationwide since the launch of the Banks’s partnership with An Post two years ago.
Rauva is to acquire the bank Banco Empresas Montepio for around €30m, advancing its business solutions.
ABN Amro has become the first Dutch bank to register a digital green bond on a public blockchain.
Trade Republic has doubled its interest rate offer to four percent. This move follows the European Central Bank's decision to raise its rates.
Deutsche Bank teams up with Taurus to prepare for crypto custody service.
USA 🇺🇸
Temenos announced that Varo Bank has extended its relationship with Temenos. Temenos Banking Cloud enables Varo to scale based on customer demands, deploy new products quickly, and drive down operational costs substantially.
Citi announced the acquisition of its SMB lending platform to Foro Holdings, a Charlotte-based commercial lending services provider.
Bankjoy announced its partnership with Panacea Financial, a digital financial services company designed specifically for the banking needs of doctors.
Visa has leveraged its acquisition of Currencycloud to launch a new global cross-border money movement service for banks, fintechs, FX brokers, corporates, and other payment institutions.
Alza emerges from stealth to offer affordable and inclusive financial tools to immigrants.
Clearbank reported a pretax profit of £5.9m for the first half of the year as it said it was eyeing an expansion into the US.
Apiture has joined forces with family FinTech company Greenlight Financial Technology to make family banking available to financial institutions through the Greenlight for Banks program.
Revolut yet to file formal US banking licence application, over two years after saying it was submitting a draft application.
Former Wells Fargo senior executive Carrie Tolstedt was sentenced to three years of probation for covering up a widespread fake account scandal at the bank.
Goldman Sachs, in partnership with Apple Savings, has updated its mechanisms to address the withdrawal delays faced by Apple Card users.
Bank of America is giving its virtual service adviser CashPro Chat an AI-centered upgrade.
CANADA
Bank of America introduced its business-to-consumer payments solution in Canada as it continues to look for consistent digital solutions that clients can use across all its markets.
LATAM
Nubank is launching one more type of secured loan for its customers in Brazil: the FGTS-backed loan. The new product aligns with the company’s plan to expand its secure credit offering in 2023.
Genius X is happy to announce the onboarding of UNIA, the pioneer in blockchain-based neo-banking, to its Accelerator Program.
With an increase of US$3.8 billion in his net worth, David Velez is now the second Colombian in the Bloomberg Billionaire Index with US$7.84 billion.
ASIA
IndusInd Bank has launched Virtual Commercial Card, a credit card that aims to redefine cross-border transactions.
AUSTRALIA 🇦🇺
Revolut rewards its Australian customers with up to $50 for upskilling in crypto.
MIDDLE EAST
Wio Bank has introduced its second digital banking offering, Wio Personal an intelligent everyday banking platform redefining the way individuals see, manage, and grow their money.
AFRICA
Flutterwave has launched Swap, an attempt to digitise the Nigerian foreign exchange (FX) market, in partnership with Wema Bank, the 10th biggest Nigerian bank by assets, and Kadavra BDC.
TymeBank hits 7.4 million customers in South Africa, with profitability right around the corner.
Mastercard announced that the company is partnering with Amal Bank of Somalia to launch Classic and Platinum debit cards.
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
N26 announces the appointment of Claudio Bedino as the General Manager for Italy and Southeast Europe.
If you are a fintech startup and have over 100 questions send me an email, maybe I can answer a few.