The recent, exponential growth of bitcoin, Ether, and other cryptocurrencies has brought cryptocurrencies firmly into the public eye. Some have created crypto-products or tokens to raise funds in a veritable cash grab with little foresight, planning, or disclosure. Others – by the tens and hundreds of thousands – are signing up to purchase crypto-assets. Often these purchasers have no understanding of the underlying technology or the risks involved, proving that, as Mark Twain opined, “common sense is very uncommon.”
As the PSP segment in the payments value chain is maturing, retail prices for online payments are steadily dropping, while the level of service offered to merchants is only increasing. Consequently, players aim to gain scale and increase capabilities through strategic acquisitions. This report describes the global PSP space today and defines the capabilities offered by the different participants in the ecosystem.
Cryptocurrencies – not just bitcoin, but any of the hundreds of different currencies that have been created using blockchain technology – have caught the imagination of the public. There are, seemingly, daily articles that predict either the demise of all traditional currencies in favor of cryptocurrencies, and just as many articles predicting the demise of cryptocurrencies.
In the past 18 months a great many column inches have been given over to distributed ledger technology, more commonly known as blockchain and its power to disrupt industries, particularly in the financial sector.
Blockchain and identity management are not only a natural fit, but will also be an increasingly important part for online businesses in the future. AI and Blockchain will play crucial roles in customer onboarding and provide better conversion for businesses and more security for all parties involved.
FinTech Weekly talked to online identification provider IDnow about why identity management will be one of the most interesting areas to watch in 2018. Further, we discussed their highly interesting business, how opening bank accounts online can be safer than in a bank, and how even customers of 102 years old can use online identification.
FinTech Weekly interviewed Alexander Weber, Head of International Markets at mobile bank N26. We briefly talked about their market expansion to the UK and US, building the fintech hub through partnerships with incumbents and fintechs and why N26 does not fear the tech giants in banking.
Blockchain is for sure a disruptive technology, and there are some trends you should consider for the next year.
“The 90s had dotcom mania. Here comes crypto mania!”
While Bitcoin is conquering new highs in the 20,000 range, and global public attention is glued to the charts of altcoins of all types, opinions have split: from baby boomer’s claiming cryptocurrency a gigantic bubble, to millennials hoping to hedge against political and economic fluctuations.
Blockchain is driving a paradigm shift in how we deal with data, rewriting the rulebook around approaches to data management, transparency and ownership. While digital finance is cutting the cost of serving the underbanked to drive financial inclusion, blockchain could offer a way of widening access to even greater numbers of consumers excluded from mainstream financial services.
Private Equity (PE) houses completed a record number of investments in FinTech portfolio companies in 2015 according to Pitchbook, marking a 79% increase on the 53 FinTech deals completed by PE firms three years earlier. Since 2015, PE firms have continued to invest in FinTech with the likes of BlackFin Capital Partners and Finstar Financial Group setting the benchmark by investing considerable amounts in the FinTech start-up market. Despite the recent decline in PE investment generally and the economic uncertainty following the Brexit vote, the FinTech start-up industry may be poised to continue its lucrative rise.
An increased scrutiny of initial coin offerings (ICOs) shows that a professionalization of the ICO process is urgently needed.
Digital fluency and a thirst for convenience are making the UK’s borrowers more capricious and cost-sensitive than ever. Interest rate rises, and new regulations will add fuel to this fire next year, and lenders that can’t keep up will get burned in 2018.
Imagine taking a regular smartphone and turning it into a payment acceptance device with a simple app download. That’s the utopian dream many companies are chasing today and it could bring huge benefits to the payments ecosystem, merchants and consumers as card and mobile payments continue to grow.
Over the past few years there has been a growing proliferation of cryptocurrencies. More recently, companies which may have limited access to fundraising through traditional methods are turning to cryptocurrencies, and initial coin offering (“ICO”), as a means to raise funds.