A Complete Beginners Guide To FinTech In 2017
You may have heard the relatively new term “FinTech” bandied about, but what actually is it? And why is it important for all entrepreneurs to know about and understand? FinTech stands for Financial Technologies, and in its broadest definition, that’s exactly what it is: technologies used and applied in the financial services sector, chiefly used by financial institutions themselves on the back end of their businesses. But more and more, FinTech is coming to represent technologies that are disrupting traditional financial services, including mobile payments, money transfers, loans, fundraising, and asset management. Don’t assume that FinTech is simply a fad or buzzword: Accenture recently released a report which found that […]
11 Fintech Companies in UK’s Trade Delegation to Australia & NZ
The Department for International Trade (DIT), the UK’s sole government department that negotiates to strike or extend trade agreements between the UK and non-EU states will send a Fintech delegation of 11 UK companies to Australasia. Aimed at promoting Fintech opportunities in the Fintech spaces in Australia and New Zealand, the trade mission will see a delegation of “eleven successful UK fintech companies” visit the countries in March. The 11 UK companies that form the delegation include credit rating specialist Aire; Fintech data analytics firm Clarus; asset allocation consultant ClearMacro; compliance solutions firm FundApps; investor relations firm Ingage; financial lenders Iwoca and Neyber; blockchain-based data platform ObjectTech; identity verification platform […]
London Blockchain Week showcases the good side of Blockchain
The cryptocurrency technology is known for its ease-of-access, transparency, and decentralization. These very features also bring in accountability, which is much needed in today’s social good sector. The use of Bitcoin in the non-profit industry sector has already shown promising results, enabling people to donate to the needy, in a timely manner irrespective of the location. The recently concluded London Blockchain Week 2017 showcased the cryptocurrency and distributed ledger technology in a different light. There is a popular misconception among many that Bitcoin and altcoins are for criminals who sell drugs and weapons on the dark net. But one look at few of the “blockchain for good” initiatives is enough […]
Citi backs foreign exchange blockchain startup Cobalt DL
Citi has made an undisclosed investment in Cobalt DL, a London startup aiming to use the technology behind bitcoin to simplify foreign exchange trading. Cobalt DL, founded by two veteran bankers, aims to apply distributed ledger technology, also known as blockchain, to the foreign exchange trading market. Currently, when banks trade currencies with each other there are multiple different records of the transaction held by the buyer, seller, broker, clearer, and other third parties, all of which have to be reconciled. This slows the process down and adds to costs. The company aims to create a single, shared view of each transaction by using blockchain technology, which uses complex cryptography […]
Barclay’s Antony Jenkins jumps aboard Blockchain bitcoin start-up
One of Europe’s top bankers is joining a bitcoin start-up. Antony Jenkins, the former chief executive of Barclays, has joined the board of Blockchain, a London-based start-up that provides services related to bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. The company, named after the basic technology that creates the shared network used to move and track bitcoin, raised $US30 million ($40m) in an initial fundraising in 2014. Blockchain software has been used by other bitcoin firms, such as Coinbase, as well as its own app and website service for consumers to buy and sell digital currency. It is also developing tools for using bitcoin’s underlying technology for things such as tracking identity information or […]
5 enterprise-related things you can do with blockchain technology today
Diamonds. Bitcoin. Pork. If you think you’ve spotted the odd one out, think again: All three are things you can track using blockchain technologies today. Blockchains are distributed, tamper-proof, public ledgers of transactions, brought to public attention by the cryptocurrency bitcoin, which is based on what is still the most widespread blockchain. But blockchains are being used for a whole lot more than making pseudonymous payments outside the traditional banking system. Because blockchains are distributed, an industry or a marketplace can use them without the risk of a single point of failure. And because they can’t be modified, there is no question of whether the record keeper can be trusted. […]
Central banks look to the future of money with blockchain technology trial
At last week’s fintech festival in Singapore, two announcements illustrate the speed at which the world of digital currencies is moving and how the future of money is set to be reshaped by the forces of technology. First, the Monetary Authority of Singapore – which organised the event attended by 11,000 delegates from 50 countries – said it would trial its own digital currency for interbank payments using blockchain technology. Second, consulting firm PwC unveiled a new platform, called Vulcan Digital Asset Services, to provide banks and governments with confidence to explore cryptocurrencies after they were sent scurrying from bitcoin when it became apparent it was funding part of the […]
London retailers will soon be taking payments using blockchain
Fintech company SETL has developed the card with global auditing firm Deloitte. Customers of the UK’s Metro Bank will soon be able to use a payments card that utilises blockchain technology. The card, which is being developed by Deloitte and fintech company SETL, is intended for the retail sector, the aim being to reduce the cost of processing merchant payments compared to credit and debit cards. The service could launch as soon as early 2017. SETL CEO Peter Randall said the card will update the balances of both the retailer and the customer in real-time. “What this allows people to do is to effectively make a payment from their account […]
