A fintech veteran spent 3 years and ‘a huge amount of money’ secretly building a new bank
ClearBank the UK’s first new, purpose-built clearing bank in 250 years after 3 years secretly working on the multi-million-pound project.
4 Reasons to use a Digital Wallet
Are you using a digital wallet? If not, you are not alone. Only about 13 percent of smartphone users have adopted digital wallets, the relatively new technology that allows our mobile devices to execute a myriad of financial transactions. But digital wallets are coming of age at a lightning pace. Companies like Due offer digital wallets that have streamlined the way we pay for things and get paid, and are changing the world of commerce itself. So if you have been slow to adapt to the word of digital wallets, here are four reasons to change your mind, and get a digital wallet today. Security Losing your wallet, or worse, […]
Australian FinTech launches International FinTech platform
The team behind the highly successful AustralianFinTech.com.au, this week launch their International platform, ukfintech.internationalfintech.com, aimed at connecting the FinTech industry on a global scale. Founder and CEO, Cameron Dart, says International FinTech has been born on the back of the highly successful Australian FinTech platform and growing demand from the global community to have a dedicated online presence for their sector. “International FinTech mirrors the Australian FinTech platform, including a dedicated industry newsfeed and a comprehensive directory of FinTech companies globally. “The site also aims to educate users of new financial technologies such as peer to peer lending and cryptocurrency, all presented in simple terms with no financial jargon” says […]
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 […]
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 […]
Silicon Valley giant grows stake in UK fintech star TransferWise
One of the early backers of Facebook is increasing its stake in TransferWise, a British financial technology pioneer, in a move that will be hailed as a vote of confidence in UK start-ups. Sky News has learnt that Andreessen Horowitz, a prominent name in Silicon Valley, has agreed to buy a chunk of shares held by TransferWise’s initial ‘angel’ investors. Andreessen is said to have agreed to the purchases in recent weeks at a valuation broadly consistent with TransferWise’s last major fundraising in May 2016, according to people close to the situation. Founded by two former Skype employees, TransferWise has grown rapidly since its launch, and now acts as a […]
WorldRemit partners with Xpress Money to deliver wider service offering to diaspora communities
Digital money transfer service WorldRemit has partnered with international money transfer brand Xpress Money to open up new remittance routes to 11 countries – including Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Jordan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Algeria and Lebanon. The partnership has extended WorldRemit’s footprint into new territories, and is expected to further support the growing demand for instant remittances in these countries. According to the World Bank, remittances play an important role in these economies, contributing significantly to GDP. For example, Pakistan received almost $20 billion in remittances in 2015, while Indonesia received almost $10 billion, and Bangladesh received $15 billion, or almost 10% of its GDP. WorldRemit […]
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 […]