Singapore banks to allow cellphone numbers for transfers — Nikkei Asian Review — “Customers will be able to send money instantly by supplying recipients’ mobile numbers linked to their bank accounts… The ABS aims to expand the service to include transactions between retail customers and businesses next year.”
Archive: The Neobanker
Scotiabank adds multi-loyalty programs to mobile banking apps
Customers of Canada’s Scotiabank can now add, access and track their loyalty cards from 18 different programs using the bank’s mobile banking and My Mobile Wallet apps, which have been integrated with “multi-loyalty program functionality” supplied by loyalty network Points... More
Starling Bank passports to Europe, first stop Ireland
Starling Bank passports to Europe, first stop Ireland — Techcrunch — “After a staggered launch of its current account kicked off in March, the digital-only bank is announcing imminent expansion to Europe, starting with the Republic of Ireland where it has attained a so-called ‘banking passport’.”
‘Connected finance’ app Curve hits £50m spend ahead of UK launch
‘Connected finance’ app Curve hits £50m spend ahead of UK launch — Curve — “London fintech startup Curve has passed 50,000 sign-ups and £50m spend in beta mode… Driven by demand and ‘exceptionally high’ satisfaction among beta users, Curve will now launch for consumers later this year.”
Meet the Chinese finance giant that’s secretly an AI company
Meet the Chinese finance giant that’s secretly an AI company — MIT Technology Review — “The smartphone payments business Ant Financial is using computer vision, natural language processing, and mountains of data to reimagine banking, insurance, and more… The company — which already operates a hugely successful smartphone payments business in China — aims to upend many areas of personal finance using machine learning and AI.”
Emirates Islamic is first Islamic bank to integrate blockchain technology into cheques
Emirates Islamic is first Islamic bank to integrate blockchain technology into cheques — Emirates Islamic — “Emirates Islamic will issue new cheque books carrying a unique QR (Quick Response) code on every leaf, along with a string of 20 random characters… In the next phase of the Cheque Chain project, the bank will have each cheque leaf registered on the Bank’s blockchain platform enabling it to validate the authenticity of the cheque at source.”
Carrefour Banque offers instant activation of new C-zam account with Gemalto Digital PIN
Carrefour Banque offers instant activation of new C-zam account with Gemalto Digital PIN — Gemalto — PARTNER NEWS — “‘C-zam offers Carrefour customers the opportunity to buy in store a bank account and a banking card that can be activated on line,’ said Frédéric Mazurier, CEO of Market Pay. ‘With the support of Gemalto, we are innovating to evolve the French banking market by offering a new service in terms of accessibility, availability and usability.'”
Banco Bradesco customers get mobile-only banking
Customers of Brazil’s Banco Bradesco can now open new accounts, send money, split payments with friends, keep track of their spending and manage their finances directly on their mobile phones using a new digital platform that the bank has launched with the aim of introducing a “more intuitive and transparent experience to younger, hyper-connected customers”... More
Bank of America enhances customer choice: Provides secure and reliable access to data
Bank of America enhances customer choice: Provides secure and reliable access to data — Bank of America — “Bank of America is making updates to its Security Center and working with multiple financial data aggregators to provide customers the ability to simply and securely connect data from their Bank of America accounts to third-party financial management applications.”
Danish fintech startup Clearhaus buys 33% of a Danish bank – eyeing new business model and expansion
Danish fintech startup Clearhaus buys 33% of a Danish bank – eyeing new business model and expansion — Clearhaus — “Clearhaus has recently acquired 33% (worth 10 mil EUR) of the Copenhagen Cooperative Bank… Our interest is in closing the gap between traditional banking and acquiring. Clients will be able to see where they stand banking-wise without delay based on their transaction activity. We want to issue cards as well.”
BBVA makes eight APIs available to kickstart open banking program
Spanish bank BBVA has launched its open banking program by making eight of its APIs commercially available for the first time, meaning that third-party companies including startups and developers will be able to build new products and services by accessing and integrating customers’ banking data into their applications. More
Introducing Paytm Payments Bank
Introducing Paytm Payments Bank — Paytm — “We are proud to bring you Paytm Payments Bank — India’s first bank with zero charges on online transactions, no minimum balance requirement and free virtual debit card… Our ambition is to become India’s most trusted and consumer-friendly bank.”
BBVA integrates its financial services into social and messaging networks
BBVA integrates its financial services into social and messaging networks — BBVA — “BBVA customers can now interact in Spain with the bank via social networks and instant messaging services. BBVA has developed two new tools, Chatbot and BBVA Cashup, which allow customers to access financial information via Facebook and Telegram, and also to make payments via Bizum from Whatsapp or any messaging service.”
Paytm raises $1.4 billion from SoftBank to expand user base
Paytm raises $1.4 billion from SoftBank to expand user base — Bloomberg — “The funding into One97 Communications, which operates the Paytm brand, will help the startup expand its user base of 220 million and build a large offering of financial services products… Alibaba and its payments affiliate Ant Financial held a 40 percent stake in One97 before this investment.”
Disconnected experiences put customer loyalty at risk
Disconnected experiences put customer loyalty at risk — MuleSoft — “Nearly half of UK consumers (48 per cent) would be happy for banks to share their banking transaction history with a trusted third-party if it gave them a more personalised banking experience… Nearly a third (30 per cent) of UK respondents would consider using Amazon, Google, Facebook or Apple for banking services if it was offered, rather than using their standard bank.”
Capital One forays into digital ID, aiming to leverage KYC know-how
Capital One forays into digital ID, aiming to leverage KYC know-how — American Banker — “Capital One is one of the first in the US to test if businesses will pay banks to check users’ identities, and if consumers will sign into websites through their banks the way they use social media accounts.”
One in four banks find it difficult to verify the identity of online banking customers
One in four banks find it difficult to verify the identity of online banking customers — Kaspersky Lab — “According to the research, in 2016, 30% of banks have had security incidents affecting banking services delivered via the internet — with phishing against customers, and using customer credentials for fraudulent activities, as the top contributing factor leading to the attacks.”
UK consumers want at least three security steps to secure bank accounts
Six in ten UK consumers (60%) think that having fewer than three security steps including passwords, card readers or letters from a memorable word is “insufficient” to secure their bank account, research released by Equifax and YouGov reveals... More
Orange to launch mobile-only bank with NFC payments and AI
Mobile network operator Orange is to launch a mobile-only bank in France in July this year that will offer customers NFC mobile payments, P2P mobile transfers using SMS and an artificial intelligence-based virtual assistant that will eventually be able to complete tasks including making transfers and putting funds in savings. More
UK consumers want more biometric security options for online banking
More than half of UK consumers (56%) would prefer to use a biometric security method over traditional options like passwords to log into their financial accounts online, research released by Equifax reveals. 33% would prefer to use fingerprint recognition, 31% would like to use iris scanners, 7% facial recognition and 3% voice recognition. More