UK fintechs seek ‘cure for Brexit’ in Lithuania
Thanks in part to Brexit, Lithuania is becoming a fintech hub as a growing number of UK-linked digital financial companies are getting licences there so they can continue to operate in the European Union. The Baltic eurozone state with a population about a third the size of London is now leading the EU in fintech with over 230 companies, according to the Invest Lithuania government agency. About two dozen have links to Britain. One of the first to come after the 2016 Brexit referendum was London-based Revolut bank. “Lithuania is currently a hub for our European operations after Brexit,” Virgilijus Mirkes, CEO of Revolut Bank in Lithuania, told AFP. “We […]
North Korea is a suspect in the $530 million Coincheck cryptocurrency heist
North Korea is no stranger to cryptocurrencies: The rogue regime has been accused of launching a global ransom attack to raise bitcoin, hacking South Korean exchanges, and mining crypto both within its borders and secretly on your computers. Now, it has become a suspect in the world’s largest crypto heist, Reuters has reported. South Korea’s national spy agency told a parliamentary committee on Monday that North Korean hackers may have been behind the theft last month of about $530 million worth of digital tokens from Japanese exchange Coincheck, according to the Reuters report, which cited anonymous sources. On Jan. 26, Tokyo-based Coincheck said someone hacked into its digital wallet and […]
China’s rapid uptake of mobile payments forcing businesses to adapt
Looking to get rich quickly, two young men travelled across China last month with a plan to rob three convenience stores in the wealthy coastal city of Hangzhou. They bought knives, masks and an electric bike and in the early hours of March 27, set off on their heist, targeting busy downtown areas. But, unfortunately for the robbers, the cash registers were bare. Across the three stores they managed to pilfer less than 1900 yuan ($362), not even enough to pay for their train tickets home. As the frustrated pair now contemplate jail time their tale of woe has become a signpost for the rise of China’s cashless economy and […]
South Korea’s Viva Republica taps PayPal to fund Fintech
South Korea-based financial technology services company Viva Republica announced last week that it had closed a KRW 55 billion ($47 million) Series C round of funding. Among the investors in this latest round were venture capital firm Goodwater Capital and US-based payment service PayPal. Viva Republica has found success in its home market with its peer-to-peer (P2P) mobile payment app Toss, which claims to have 6 million users in South Korea. The Nikkei Asian Review reported that Toss users transfer money via the app an average of 6.7 times per month—almost triple the average for similar services. According to data from Wiseapp, Toss was the second most used mobile payment […]
How Luxembourg could cash in on Brexit
Plenty of people have reason to bemoan Britain’s retreat from the European Union. But for others, Brexit could spell opportunity. And perhaps nowhere is that truer than in Luxembourg, with its booming financial center focused on investment funds management services and financial technology, or FinTech, as it’s sometimes called. The Brexit effect may, in fact, have already begun for the tiny Grand Duchy. In January, Japan’s Rakuten Europe Bank launched its trading activities in Luxembourg. Two Chinese banks — China Everbright Bank and the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank — also have plans to set up shop in this nerve center of asset management in the EU. And in October, Britain’s […]
Adviser Ratings Expands Business with String of New Appointments
Financial services technology company, Adviser Ratings has recently expanded its business with the appointment of two new senior staff members and a full service PR agency to manage its B2B and B2C communications activity. Following a successful launch to market in 2015, the expansion comes as a result of increased demand in the business’ personal finance offering, as its advisory and consumer member base continues to thrive. Joining Adviser Ratings as Chief Operating Officer, Jaime Brands brings with her 10 years of industry experience, six of those spent at Google Australia & New Zealand as the Head of External Telesales Operations for the entire region. With expertise in team leadership, […]
Australia among first to introduce bitcoin regulations
Australia will be one of the first countries to impose regulations for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies under anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism laws. Australia’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC, is co-hosting a counter-terrorism financing summit with in Bali and, ahead of this, has highlighted that ecurrency such as bitcoin enables terrorists to transfer money anonymously. Justice Minister Michael Keenan said: “The report recommends strengthening an already robust legal framework to respond to new and emerging threats.” “The government is committed to facilitating growth and innovation in this sector and appropriate anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regulation will aid that development.” The AUSTRAC report, Terrorism Financing in Australia 2014, said: “Terrorist groups engaged […]
Fintech is going to be much bigger than you think
If payments can be made anywhere, anytime, across any device, why do you need a currency? Or even a bank? The “fintech” revolution is upon us – but what we’ve seen may only be the start of it. Fintech – a term coined with the listing of peer-to-peer lending platform LendingClub on the New York Stock Exchange in late 2014 – is not only a portmanteau of ‘financial technology,” it describes a whole new industry composed of companies that use technology to make financial services more efficient. It’s big, it’s growing and it’s disruptive. “Fintech is set to change finance as profoundly as the issuance of the first permanent banknotes […]
