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Global FinTech News - 31st of December

Global FinTech News - 31st of December
By Holland FinTech  • Issue #79 • View online
Dear reader,
Another year has come to an end, with lots of interesting developments happening. At the level of fintech, the year was actually much more exciting, with the implementation of new Anti Money Laundering rules and PSD2 Strong Customer Authentication, the digital finance outreach by the European Commission and even a Fintech action plan, by the Dutch government, all marked the very dynamic regulatory environment in Europe, just like abroad.
In order to keep you informed, even in this more quiet period, we provide you with fintech reading materials, organized per relevant categories. But before that, let’s take a moment to celebrate the upcoming New Year. We send you the best regards, most thoughtful wishes, lots of joy and happiness! And if you’re a curious and eager member from our network ready to find out what we have in store for the upcoming year, keep yourself informed with our Vision and Program for 2021.
From the Holland FinTech Team, we wish you a Happy New Year!

Highlights from last weeks news related to fintech
New regulations, partnerships and technology developments. There is just so much going on in Fintech. Here is our selection of news, relevant for the industry.
  • China’s central bank reported earlier this week that Alibaba’s fintech affiliate Ant Group is drafting a plan to set up a financial holding firm
  • Bitcoin cryptocurrency announced that it has gained more than 5% to hit $28,572 earlier this week
  • The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has announced the launch of iAM Smart, a Digital ID service
  • Ledger, a crypto wallet provider, has experienced a cybersecurity attack, warning users about potential phishing scams
  • The German government cabinet passed new legislation, which will enable all-electronic securities to be recorded using blockchain technology
  • AltFi’s year in review article takes a look back at the stories which set the pace over the last year, such as partnerships and collaborations, new financial apps, open banking solutions, SMEs, funding rounds, fintech regulatory initiatives, neobanks and more
Read more about this funding news HERE.
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The largest funding rounds we found from across the world
Where does the money flow? It is usually a good indicator for what is hot and what is not. To give you a view on global fintech investments, we have selected the largest and most relevant investment deals. Remember, this is just the tip of the iceberg of what we found, in the week going from 23 December until 30 December.
  • Judo Bank (Melbourne, Australia), a challenger bank, has reportedly reached a $1.6bn valuation after the close of a $140m (€114.10m) funding round
  • Very Good Security (San Francisco, CA, US), a data security company, has raised $60 million (€48.89m) in Series C funding
  • Neblio Technologies (Mumbai, India), a company which operates cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX, has raised $13.53 million (€11.02m) in a Series B funding
  • Battleface (Columbus, Ohio, US), an InsurTech that specializes in travel insurance, recently announced it secured $12 million (€9.78m) through its Series A funding round
  • Finja (Lahore, Pakistan), a fintech platform, has raised $9 million (€7.33m) in a Series A1 round
  • RapiPay (New Delhi, India), a fintech platform, has raised more $9M (€7.33m) in its Series A funding round from several investors
  • LifeRaft (San Francisco, CA, US), an InsurTech which offers a digital platform for health insurance, has reportedly collected $3.5m (€2.85m) in a seed funding round
  • Tradefeedr (London, UK), a data science startup, raised $3 million (€2.44m) from IPGL
  • Topl LLC (Houston, TX, US), a distributed ledger blockchain-as-a-service ecosystem for supply chain tracking and management, announced $3 million (€2.44m) in seed funding
  • Other fundings which caught our eye for this week include: FalconX (San Mateo, CA, US) - undisclosed sum, SEBA Bank (Zug,Switzerland) - undisclosed sum
Read more about this funding news HERE.
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A selection of recent research reports and papers worth reading
Much research is conducted across the world, providing data and insights about market developments at large. Below you can find the research reports and white papers we discovered and selected for you this week.
  • “Danish Fintech Startups” (astorya.io) - this overview presents a comprehensive mapping of the most prominent Danish fintech startups, classified on eight sectors of the industry
  • “Financial Regulation: Horizon Report” (Linklaters) - this report covers the sweep of regulatory change affecting the financial services, with a focus on what’s coming next
  • “Startup Continent: The Most Well-Funded Tech Startups In Europe” (CB Insights) - this analysis identifies the most well-funded VC-backed tech startup in each country in Europe
  • “Global Monitoring Report on Non-Bank Financial Intermediation 2020” (FSB) - this report shows an assessment on the global trends and risks in non-bank financial intermediation (NBFI), covering 29 jurisdictions that account for 80% of global GDP
  • “The Future of ESGTech 2020” (Finextra) - this analysis shows how the user experience of reported data can be transformed to improve knowledge of risks and opportunities and what role technologies such as AI and blockchain can play
  • “The 10 biggest fintech rounds of 2020” (Sifted) - this analysis shows that overall, in 2020, European fintechs raised more capital than any other industry, raising $9.4bn between January and early December
  • “101 Top InsurTech Companies and Startups in the UK” (Welp Magazine) - this article showcases some of the most popular players operating in the InsurTech space
Read more about the research sources and download pdf’s HERE.
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Background information and insights from opinion leaders and experts
We are keeping track of what opinion leaders across the world have to say about everything that is happening in and around financial services and technology. Below, you can find the views that stood out this week.
  • “FinCEN’s New Proposed Rule Rushes The Inevitable” via Forbes - according to Yaya Fanusie, an Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has in plan new regulations for digital currency transactions
  • “The Decline of Checks: How Digital Payment Innovation is Turning Checks into a Dead Technology” via Finextra - Sava Ruljic, Director, Treasury AscendantFX, explains the future of checks for the North American users, and the rapid decline of this old fashion payment method
  • “Starling provides “road map” for future in-app integrations” via Bobsguide.com - Aoife Morgan, writer at Bobsguide.com, pinpoints the case of Starling Bank’s newest collaboration with iZettle, a product offered by PayPal, as part of its new strategy for deeper integrations
  • “Global investors flee from Chinese tech stocks after the government crackdown on Ant and Alibaba” via TechCrunch - Alex Wilhelm, Senior Editor at TechCrunch, and Jonathan Shieber, editor at TechCrunch, present the aftermath of the Alibaba and Ant Group case, which left global investors avoiding Chinese tech stocks
  • “Banks and bad actors: the race to digitally adapt” via FinTech Futures - Monica Spigner, executive vice president at Teleperformance, shows why the second wave of Covid-19 will force banking leaders to focus on customer experience and fraud.
  • “Fintech predictions for 2021: Seven experts have their say” via Verdict - Ellen Daniel, a senior reporter for Verdict, highlights seven opinions from fintech experts on what’s to come in 2021
  • “Is It Time For Apple To Allow Others Access To The iPhone NFC Chip?” via PYMNTS - Karen Webster, CEO of Market Platform Dynamics, shows in this analysis the shift in consumer behavior towards digital methods of working, shopping, and banking
  • “RegTech: An Opportunity to Boost Australia and UK Trade Relations?” via The Fintech Times - this study presents the advantages of the UK and Ireland as a market for regulatory technology firms with solutions that help regulated firms meet their obligations
  • “How processors can increase PCI compliance revenue and reduce attrition by offering a managed compliance and security service” via Sysnet - this paper presents how processors can reduce their reliance on PCI non-compliance fee revenue, while setting the stage to deliver enhanced security capabilities
Read more about these analyses & opinion pieces HERE.
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Connect with the fintech ecosystem at some of the upcoming events
Our Holland FinTech Online Meetups allow the international fintech ecosystem to gather together and for the companies in our network to stay at the forefront of innovation. If you are looking for exposure, new customers, investors, team members or cool startups, you will surely meet them here! For this month, we will have industry expert speakers from: AMDAX Group, Stock Republic, The Software House and OmegaLab.
Register HERE.
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Holland FinTech Flash Friday: Staying Ahead of the FinTech News - 8th January
Holland FinTech’s Founder & CEO, Don Ginsel, presents Flash Friday – a weekly live show that brings you the latest fintech news and developments! For this edition, we will be joined by a special guest speaker from Kearney.
Register HERE.
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Cybersecurity Summit - 12th-13th January
ISMG global events are a must-attend for any IT or security executive tasked with protecting an organization from today’s evolving information security threats.
Register HERE.
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Asian Financial Forum Online - 18th-19th January
AFF is Asia’s premier platform for global leaders in government, finance and business to exchange insights, intelligence as well as business and investment opportuntieis.
Register HERE.
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Sustainable Financial Innovation Centre Annual Conference - 21st January
The Sustainable Financial Innovation Centre (SFiC) at the University of Birmingham brings together colleagues from the full spectrum of disciplinary perspectives on FinTech and sustainable finance.
Register HERE.
www.birmingham.ac.uk  •  Share
Open Banking MENA Digi-Conference - 25th January
The banking sector has been impacted in its earnings due to the global pandemic. Coupled with increased competition from financial technology companies who are increasingly expanding products and financial services to banking customers in ways traditional banks are not able to due to regulations.
Register HERE.
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