Monetary Authority of Singapore teams up with World Bank’s IFC to encourage Asian fintech innovation
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World Bank Group member, has signed a memorandum of understanding this week with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in order to encourage fintech innovation in Asia via the establishment of an Asean Financial Innovation Network (Afin). The new Afin body, overseen by IFC and MAS, will set up a regional network this year to help financial institutions (FIs), financial technology (fintech) firms and regulators in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) trading bloc address issues of cross-border compatibility in the region. The Asean Bankers Association (ABA) was involved in the early discussions about the formation of Afin and it is hoped they […]
Xero selects Expensify for internal receipt and expense management
Expensify, the world’s fastest-growing expense management software, has been chosen by Xero, a leader in cloud accounting, to streamline the New Zealand-based company’s employee receipt tracking and expense management process across the globe. After announcing a strategic partnership in May of last year, Expensify and Xero have grown into a powerhouse pair of simplicity and automation delivering a delightful experience to mutual customers. Jason Mills, Director of Sales and Success at Expensify, embraces Xero’s internal rollout of Expensify as a natural opportunity to deepen the strategic partnership. “We’re thrilled to share our realtime expense vision with Xero employees everywhere and make it a reality,” says Mills. “From one product-driven […]
NDTV & Mastercard launch “Cashless Bano India” to encourage adoption of digital payments among the masses
Keeping in sync with Government of India’s vision of cashless India, NDTV and Mastercard joined hands to launch the Cashless Bano India movement. The campaign aims at accelerating the adoption of digital forms of payments through an on-ground and TV campaign that will educate the masses about digital payment solutions and encourage its usage for everyday spends. This campaign will work with partners in driving behavioural change and spread awareness on the importance of digital payments to millions across the country. The campaign was launched through a high decibel panel discussion focusing on the need for a robust digital payments ecosystem in the country. Cashless Bano India would also extend […]
EstateGuru says more than €1 Million in interest paid to Real Estate investors
Peer to peer property lender EstateGuru has shared that investors on its platform have now earned in excess of €1 million. The Estonia-based company said that nearly 6900 investors from 39 different countries have earned, on average, 12.63% since platform launch in 2014. EstateGuru also reports there has been no loss of capital on the platform. At the end of March, EstateGuru celebrated having facilitated €20 million worth of loans through the platform. The company’s CEO Marek Pärtel said his goal has always been to protect investor’s funds while offering great returns in real estate assets. “Real estate is an asset class that is not accessible to many due to […]
Canadian FinTech startup Mylo launches mobile app and raises $1.25M
Mylo Financial Technologies (Mylo), a Montreal-based FinTech startup that offers a mobile personal finance platform to help Canadians achieve their financial goals, has successfully raised $750K and completed its pre-seed financing round. This latest raise brings Mylo’s current financing to $1.25M, led by Ferst Capital Partners (FCP) with the participation of leading FinTech angel investors. “I founded my first company fresh out of university, so I experienced first-hand the challenges of managing my money on an entrepreneur’s budget,” says Philip Barrar, CEO and Founder of Mylo. “Many Canadians have difficulty achieving their financial goals because managing one’s personal finances is complicated, time consuming and for many, inaccessible. Mylo is working […]
Three fintech start-ups pitch for funds
Three of the financial technology start-ups in the Kiwibank Fintech Accelerator programme pitched their ideas to investors before the public demonstration day event in Wellington last week. Creative HQ’s Lightning Lab separated out the investment pitches from the main event which attracted more than 500 people at last Friday’s demo day, saying the single presentation of the past programmes had been confusing for both the audience and the start-ups. A Creative HQ spokeswoman said Flatfish, Sharesies and AccountingPod sought financial backers in a separate briefing, although she declined on their behalf to say how much money each was seeking. The fintech programme was the first of its kind, allowing participants […]
Cryptocurrency market cap reaches $77bn, surpasses Uber and Airbnb
The cryptocurrency sector has seen massive gains in the past few weeks. Almost every single altcoin has increased in value in one way or another this month. According to coinmarketcap, the overall market cap surpassed $77 billion. To put that in perspective, crypto is valued more than some of the world’s most successful startups such as Uber and Airbnb. It seems that cryptocurrency is becoming the next hot topic among investors and technology enthusiasts alike. With the price premium rising as high as 5-10% in Asian countries, it is evident the demand is there. While it was just Bitcoin that was exhibiting an amazing price rally, soon after the alts […]
CFTC launches NYC-based FinTech Lab
U.S. regulator, the CFTC has created a financial technology laboratory, LabCFTC, intended to promote innovation to improve “the quality, resiliency, and competitiveness of the markets the CFTC oversees,” officials say. LabCFTC, which will be located in New York, also exists to “accelerate CFTC engagement with FinTech and RegTech solutions that may enable the CFTC to carry out its mission responsibilities more effectively and efficiently,” say CFTC officials, who confirm that the initiative was approved unanimously by commission members. The effort reflects the CFTC’s wish to be more accessible to FinTech innovators and “serving as a platform to inform the CFTC’s understanding of new technologies,” officials say. LabCFTC will also be […]
