Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s EasyMoney
EasyJet is getting into the fintech business with the launch a new financial savings and lending platform.
Peer-to-Peer/P2P
Bitbond and 1741 Fund Management launch alternative investment fund
Institutional investors will have access to SME loans originated through Bitbond’s lending platform.
Open banking: what you need to know
The landscape for financial services is changing, and the jury is still out on how the endgame is going to play out.
Three of Australia’s largest banks partner to create payment platform Beem
Three of Australia’s largest banks, The Commonwealth Bank (CBA), National Australia Bank (NAB) and Westpac have partnered to create Beem – a new mobile peer-to-peer (P2P) payments platform.
Case study: the technology behind P2P
The UK peer-to-peer (P2P) lending market has flourished in the last decade. Lending volumes among the major platforms are increasing rapidly, pushing the cumulative total above £7 billion for the first time, as the understanding of the investment model continues to grow.
IBM and Zelle team up to advance P2P payments
IBM says it has launched an “industry first” solution to support the full lifecycle of peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions, from the back office of financial institutions to the mobile device.
What does the new iPhone X mean for mobile banking?
Mobile banking is nothing without mobiles, and as Apple leads the way in innovation it provides opportunities for banks to do things differently too. So, with the launch of the iPhone X, what is next for mobile banking in a world that can’t get enough of phone upgrades?
P2P lender Prosper’s valuation stands at $550m with new funding
US peer-to-peer (P2P) lending firm Prosper has landed $50 million in a Series G funding round. The capital comes from Hong Kong-based FinEx Asia and LPG Capital and raises the San Francisco-based company’s total equity funding to $410 million.
Has the face of payments changed forever?
Marieke Flament, European MD at Circle, discusses how technology is transforming the global payments landscape.
Nets Takes Real-Time P2P to Mobile Wallet Vipps
Nordic payments processor Nets has entered into a 3-year partnership with Vipps, a mobile payment application provider in Norway, to deliver instant P2P payments to customers of all Norwegian banks partnered with Vipps.
Is Prosper prospering?
Peer-to-peer (P2P) lender Prosper released its second quarter earnings recently, just days after the company shuttered its consumer-facing bill management system.
Is this the end of fintech as we know it?
In the age of the internet, fintech dominates finance. In the UK, the sector is currently worth £7 billion, employing around 60,000 people with figures set to increase. The industry is definitely awe-inspiring, but as the lines between traditional banking services and fintech blur, fintech could disappear entirely.
StreetShares raises $10.3m for “Shark Tank meets eBay” approach to P2P lending
Alternative lending platform StreetShares raised $10.3 million in a venture round this week. The funds come from an undisclosed investor and bring the Virginia-based company’s total funding to almost $20 million since it was founded in 2013.
PayPal Doubles Down on P2P with Skype
PayPal is on a tear in terms of taking on new partners and is looking to significantly boost its P2P payments volume, which grew 103 percent in the second quarter, reaching $8 billion in Venmo transactions. The company announced in a blog post on Aug. 2 that any of the more than 1 billion people who’ve downloaded the Skype mobile app will be able use it to send money across borders.
Klarna unveils free P2P payment service, Wavy
Klarna has unveiled Wavy, a new, free P2P payments service. Available in iOS and Android as well as online, the free app enables users in more than 30 European markets to transfer euros between friends and family.
Three Under-Tapped Markets and Use Cases for Prepaid Cards
Prepaid issuers should look to certain banked consumers, P2P and mobile wallet users to gain top-of-wallet status with a whole new set of customers.
Urban FT buys iParse to speed mobile app onboarding for FIs
Mobile banking technology firm Urban FT has completed its acquisition of iParse LLC
PFS deal to provide Moneymailme users with prepaid cards
Users of Moneymailme will have the option of using physical and virtual prepaid cards to make purchases with the funds in their e-wallets. The new feature, announced June 28 at the Money 20/20 Europe conference, is the result of a partnership between the London-based social money transfer provider Moneymailme and Prepaid Financial Services, a U.K.-based payments technology provider.
P2P Is Gaining Steam, but Security Concerns Remain
Consumers prefer to use P2P payments for retail purchases, paying back relatives and friends, and settling bills—but not so much for contributing to group gifts or paying housing costs, according to a new report from NerdWallet. It also found that that while only 35 percent of U.S. consumers use such P2P products as Venmo, PayPal and Square Cash, 63 percent are interested in the payment technology.
Venmo tests physical debit card
Venmo is planning to introduce a physical debit card to supplement its payments app.
Top fintech stories this week – 16 June 2017
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place!
Zelle P2P payments network onboards new members
More banks and credit unions have joined Zelle Network, a new peer-to-peer payments platform in the US.
Redwood Credit Union launches mobile P2P payment service
California-based Redwood Credit Union (RCU) has launched a new mobile peer-to-peer payment solution, RCUPay. “RCU ends the IOU,” the credit union states.
Apple squares up to rivals with Pay Cash feature
Apple has unveiled Pay Cash as it looks to fight it out with PayPal, Square and Venmo in the overcrowded peer-to-peer (P2P) payments market. In a range of updates to its mobile operating system, iOS 11, new features to the iPhone and iPad are coming this autumn. Apple Pay users will be able to make […]
Fintech funding round-up: 2 June 2017
The money’s rolling in for fintech – as this round-up follows hot on the heels from 30 May. This latest report features Zopa, RateSetter and Niyogin Fintech. The plans of peer-to-peer (P2P) lender Zopa to launch a new digital-only bank in the UK are going well as it has completed a £32 million funding round […]
P2P rising: new study points to a market on the verge of major growth
P2P payments are proving a big hit with younger consumers.
Money Transfer Goes Social: What the Facebook Land Grab Means
With MoneyGram and Western Union betting that Facebook-loving consumers will use “sendbots,” the old guard of remittance providers may have an edge on startups.
Zelle makes its presence known in P2P payments arena
The recent performance of Zelle Network, the peer-to-peer (P2P) payments platform with the funny name, is no laughing matter for competing P2P providers.
Western Union App Integrates Apple Pay
Facing increased competition from mobile P2P services, money transfer giant Western Union has made a move to bolster its own mobile offerings. U.S.-based users of Western Union’s mobile app now can use Apple Pay to send money from within the app domestically, or to more than 200 countries and territories.
Traity collaborates with Suncorp to launch a micro-insurance platform
Kevin, Traity’s new chatbot, provides micro-insurance for P2P transactions online. Created in collaboration with Australia’s financial services conglomerate, Suncorp, Kevin protects buyers on online marketplaces such as Gumtree, Facebook and Craigslist.
PayPal’s New Pal Is its First Payments Bot
PayPal has a new pal—namely its first bot that enables Slack users to move and manage their money in a conversational and casual style. The PayPal bot is available to 5 million Slack users in Australia, Canada, the U.K. and the U.S.
Financial innovation – a lifeline for SME funding
Financial innovation is unlocking additional funding for small businesses that have been declined by their bank. Katrin Herrling, co-founder and CEO of Funding Xchange, explores.
Blockchain incubator Adel unveils P2P retail banking network
Blockchain incubator Adel has unveiled its project framework for people to create a peer-to-peer (P2P) network in retail banking. The firm says it will work in the “same way as Airbnb and Uber revolutionised the hospitality and taxi industries”. “Anyone with a car can be a taxi. Anyone with accommodations can be a hotel. Anyone […]
Lending start-up Taplend launches in UK
Fintech start-up Taplend has launched in the UK offering a combination of peer-to-peer (P2P) and payday lending. Viktor Ihnatiuk, CEO and co-founder of Taplend, says: “This was a very long, hard and interesting year. We made three iterations of the product, tried to enter the US market twice and failed. We didn’t give up, switched […]
P2P lender Folk2Folk gains full FCA authorisation
A UK-based peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform, Folk2Folk, has received full authorisation from Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
LandlordInvest now fully authorised by FCA
LandlordInvest, a peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform for buy-to-let and bridging loans, has gained full authorisation from the UK regulator, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
ING cans Twyp mobile payments app in the Netherlands, but keeps it going in Spain
ING is pulling a plug on its peer-to-peer (P2P) mobile payments app, Twyp, in the Netherlands due to the lack of customer uptake. However, the app will continue to function in Spain.
Fintech funding round-up: 24 November 2016
Let’s put the fun in funding by keeping it mercifully brief. Money seekers are PayKey, Euklid and Flender.
Apple gets Siri-ous with patent payment plans
Apple could be adding Siri’s functionality into its iMessage service for P2P payment transactions, according to a recent patent published by the US Patent and Trademark Office. The patent says that “one or more of the participant users can select to utilise a virtual assistant to assist the participant users with tasks during the communication […]
Lender firm Zopa to launch new digital bank
The “world’s first” peer-to-peer lender Zopa plans to launch a new digital-only bank in the UK. The application for a banking licence will be made to the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The firm says the regulatory application process should take about 15-24 months. Jaidev Janardana, CEO of Zopa, says […]
