Digital Banking: | 2023 #41
Weekly news up to Monday, 9th of October 2023
👀 NEWS HIGHLIGHT
With Modern Treasury and J.P. Morgan, innovative companies can unlock revenue streams, modernize payment operations, and mitigate risk.
📰 ARTICLE
In a pioneering move that echoes the operational philosophy of China's WeChat, Telegram, a widely-used messaging app boasting 800 million active users, is on the brink of metamorphosing into a decentralized super app.
💡INSIGHTS
South African digital banking platforms experienced a surge in fraudulent activities in 2022, with banking applications and online banking being the primary targets, according to the South African Banking Risk Information (Sabric) Annual Crime Stats.
NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF LAST WEEK'S NEWS
🔦 DIGITAL BANKING HIGHLIGHTS
⭐️ Itaú stirs fintech competition in Chile with neobank offering.
⭐️ BOQ buries ME's award-winning credit card.
⭐️ Metro Bank secures future with £325m in new funding, as well as refinancing £600m of debt.
⭐️ FullCircl & nCino partner to streamline financial services for SMEs.
🌎 REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
UK 🇬🇧
Thought Machine is reportedly seeking advice from bankers regarding a potential multibillion-pound initial public offering (IPO).
Revolut strikes share deal with SoftBank, removing one obstacle to win a long-delayed banking license in its home market.
Saga has teamed up with Flagstone on a savings platform. The Saga Savings Platform will use Flagstone’s technology and relationships with more than 50 cash savings providers to offer over 50s access to a curated choice of fixed rate accounts.
Business Bank launches £150m investment fund for Scotland small businesses.
Metro Bank shares closed down 26% following reports it was exploring options to raise as much as 600 million pounds ($728 million) in debt and equity to bolster its finances, the latest in a string of setbacks to befall the UK lender.
Wise Business has launched ‘Groups’, giving businesses enhanced control and flexibility over how their money is spent.
Acorns launched its first product tied to the springtime acquisition of U.K. neobank and financial education app GoHenry this week.
EUROPE 🇪🇺
Watchdog installs monitor at Deutsche Bank after surge in Postbank complaints.
N26 is navigating through a cost-saving journey, making pragmatic alterations to its operational dynamics.
N26 has launched its new full-funnel, multi-channel global brand campaign, ‘This is how I bank’.
GenTwo was able to win Swissquote, the leading online bank in Switzerland, for its partner network.
Lydia teams up with Qover to elevate insurance experience for users in Europe.
Saldo is gearing up to launch banking services in the country, beginning with a savings account.
USA 🇺🇸
Experian has unveiled the Experian Smart Money Digital Checking Account and Debit Card, integrated with the FICO score-enhancing feature, Experian Boost.
HSBC, Nationwide, Tesco Bank, Newday and Ovo have joined with Experian to launch a one-stop portal for disabled consumers to tell multiple service providers how they need to be contacted and what support they need to access their services.
Fiserv has expanded its longstanding relationship with Swift by joining the Swift Partner Programme as a Platform Partner.
BHG Financial teams with Cable to deploy advanced automated financial crime assurance and testing capabilities.
ieDigital has acquired US counterpart Connect FSS for an undisclosed fee.
LATAM
Druo has unveiled a real-time payment functionality, dramatically streamlining financial transactions between 18 national banks by rendering them instantaneous.
André Madeira, CTO of the fintech Neon, harnesses the goldmine hidden within user transactions.
Roberto Campos Neto, the President of the Central Bank of Brazil, reported that Pix, the instant payment system, has set a new record with 168 million transactions in a single day.
ASIA
Slice is merging with North East Small Finance Bank, they said after receiving the approval from the central bank, in an extremely rare feat that has eluded many tech giants, top financial startups and tycoons for decades.
TYME Bank announced it is focusing its expansion in Southeast Asia in the coming years as it looks on putting up banking operations in Vietnam and Indonesia.
AUSTRALIA 🇦🇺
National Australia Bank is using technology from portfolio company Trovata to launch a new AI-enabled cash management, analytics and forecasting platform, NAB Liquidity+.
MIDDLE EAST
Emirates NBD has rolled out a digital wealth offering for users to trade securities and ETFs on over 11,000 global equities across 21 capital markets.
AFRICA
Bank Zero has launched a completely app-based commercial banking offering that aims to provide low-cost transactional capabilities to its growing client base.
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Monzo has hired a new US CEO, Conor Walsh, as it presses on with a second attempt at stateside expansion.
Allica Bank has announced that it has appointed Emma Lindsay as Business Development Manager for asset finance in Scotland and the surrounding regions.
Francesca Carlesi, co-founder and CEO of Molo, is stepping down from her role.
If you are a fintech startup and have over 100 questions send me an email, maybe I can answer a few.