Royal Mint freezes plans for a gold digital currency on the blockchain October 25, 2018 The Royal Mint has suspended plans to launch a gold digital token, after the government blocked its attempt to list the asset on a cryptocurrency exchange. Royal Mint Gold (RMG) was first floated as a project to place digital tokens, similar to a gold-backed cryptocurrency, worth up to £1bn on a US-based trading platform run by CME in 2016. [...]
London fintech startups poised to expand in established European hub October 23, 2018 The UK's fintech industry, the country's most funded technology sector, is poised to expand internationally as UK hubs begin to sprout up in destinations such as Amsterdam. Three UK payments fintechs have jointly chosen the Netherlands as their European base, City A.M. has learned, seeking to reinforce their offering for European customers amid regulatory uncertainty. [...]
Industry heavyweights from Barclays, RBS and Coutts back new personal investment robo-adviser Pia October 22, 2018 Big-name former executives from institutions such as Barclays, HSBC and Coutts are behind a new startup aiming to help consumers navigate the world of investing. Pia, an online "personal investment assistant" scheduled to begin its launch in summer, counts advisory board members such as T Rowe Price Global Investment Services' former chief executive Todd Ruppert, [...]
Fintech startup Worldremit poaches former Paddy Power chief as its next boss October 22, 2018 London money transfer fintech startup Worldremit has today revealed former Paddy Power Betfair chief Breon Corcoran will be its newest chief executive. Corcoran joins the fintech as it hurtles towards so-called unicorn status – a company worth over $1bn (£764.6m) – after successfully managing the merger of betting firms Paddy Power and Betfair in 2016. Worldremit's current founder and chief [...]
BBVA and Anthemis launch London venture builder for fintech startups October 18, 2018 Spanish banking group BBVA and fintech-focused venture capital firm Anthemis have teamed up to launch a joint venture builder for London fintech startups, beginning with the development of a startup studio. The partnership hopes to find top London startups that can create the next big technologically-innovative products in financial services, deploying capital and resources to [...]
Digital banking challenger Monese launches business accounts October 18, 2018 Digital banking app Monese will today announce its expansion into the world of business banking, as it launches accounts for young companies and entrepreneurs across the UK and Europe. The accounts will be released to UK-registered businesses first, available in 11 languages in a bid to tap the UK's growing multicultural industry base. The firm told City [...]
How would you like to pay for that, madam? October 17, 2018 | City Talk The global payments industry is dramatically improving due to technology. Mobile has changed everything. Payments are getting faster and smarter. Competition is intense. And payments are revolutionsing markets in the developing world even faster than in the developed world. In just the next seven years, the McKinsey Global Institute estimates that widespread adoption and use [...]
Digital bank Oaknorth hires ex-Bank of England director October 16, 2018 Challenger bank Oaknorth has hired former Bank of England director Martin Stewart to join its advisory board. Working with the fintech as an independent adviser, Stewart was previously the director of banks, building societies and credit unions at the Bank of England. Oaknorth said it hopes that by bringing Stewart on board, it can better serve [...]
Western Union launches Transferwise rival service in UK October 10, 2018 Western Union is gearing up to face innovation head-on as it launches a digital bank account transfer service in the UK, competing with major fintech startups such as Transferwise for command of the market. UK consumers will now be able to send up to £50,000 from the Western Union app or website directly into other bank accounts around [...]
Fintech M&A deals swell to $40bn in first half of 2018 October 8, 2018 The fintech sector carried over 140 M&A transactions in the first half of 2018, at a total value of nearly $40bn (£30.48bn) – an increase of more than 26 per cent on the same period last year. The Fintech M&A market report, compiled by Hampleton Partners, says the surge in transaction values can be attributed [...]