November 10, 2020 FinTech Monitor

BFC FinTech Monitor 30th October – 10th November

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Stay up-to-date on all the all the latest FinTech news and information from around the world in the BFC FinTech Monitor.

Around the World

  • According to CB Insights analysts, the volume of investment financing for FinTech companies grew to USD 10.63 billion in the 3rd quarter of this year. This is the largest volume since mid-2018.
  • Global Market Insight presented a study on the development of digital banking services, revealing that the global volume of digital payments exceeded USD 700 trillion; financial institutions are increasing investments in digital banking as well as their cooperation with FinTech companies; and payments made via internet banking are becoming one of the most popular methods in Europe.
  • Mastercard has invited 10 FinTech companies from around the world to participate in the six-month Start Path program. The program will connect them with numerous financial institutions and merchants worldwide as well as technology and digital players that can help scale their businesses. Mastercard has also unveiled a new tool to identify cyber threats based on the artificial intelligence system Cyber ​​Secure.
  • Boston Consulting Group has assessed the impact of COVID-19 on the future of the payments market. Its most optimistic estimates have CAGR at 4.4% through 2024 and then rising to 5.6% through 2029.
  • Varo Money, a company offering government-insured deposits, has become the first FinTech startup to be included in the US deposit insurance system. According to the Financial Times, this could be a turning point in the competition between FinTechs and traditional financial institutions.
  • Chinese regulators have postponed the record-breaking USD 37 billion IPO of Ant Group (a subsidiary of Alibaba).
  • International technology company IDEMIA will launch a converged card in the United States in partnership with Mastercard. The new card combines a digital ID (driver’s license or other ID) and a payment function to allow users to purchase goods and receive government benefits. Such cards is expected to promote financial inclusion.

Russia

  • Forbes Congress will hold the large-scale Pulse of Digitalization digital development forum on December 1, 2020. Participants will include representatives from financial institutions as well as telecommunication, media, IT and manufacturing companies. The event will take place in both online and offline formats. Register here.
  • Sberbank, together with Mastercard, has launched its own contactless payment solution – SberPay, which allows users to link a Mastercard within the Sberbank Online mobile app. Sberbank has also launched the SberServices platform, which allows users to search a number of items and make safe, official transactions.
  • Russian banks have been actively introducing anonymous digital cards that store no more than RUB 15,000.
  • According to a recent study by the NAFI Analytical Center, one third of Russians still prefer to pay in cash and ignore digital technologies that boost financial management and remote banking services.
  • Opening accounts for individuals via video communication may soon become a reality in Russia as the technology to do so is now being tested in the regulatory sandbox of the Central Bank of Russia.

Ukraine

  • Privatbank will be the first in Ukraine to issue cards of the international payment system UnionPay International, which is accepted in more than 170 countries.
  • FinTech startup Sportbank will begin issuing Taskcombank cards in December 2020. It is important to note that Sportbank does not plan on suspending cooperation with Oksi Bank.
  • Contactless payment instruments are becoming more popular in Ukraine, with more than 50% of non-cash transactions in retail chains now being made using a contactless method.
  • Ukraine’s financial regulating authority began allowing financial institutions and non-financial companies to remotely verify consumers earlier this year, although not all players in the market have implemented the required steps to do so.

Belarus

  • Beginning January 1, 2021, companies and entrepreneurs will be able to use electronic money in their business for purposes that are not prohibited by law. At the same time, Belarusian financial institutions will also be able to exchange electronic money from one system to another.

Kazakhstan

  • The Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) is now accepting applications for its InsurTech development competition. Winners will be offered a partnership with Centras, one of the largest financial and investment holdings in Kazakhstan.
  • A technical failure occurred in the Kaspi.kz app at the end of October 2020. Radio Liberty examines why here.

Uzbekistan

  • Two more electronic money systems have begun operations in Uzbekistan – Wooppay (issuer: Kapitalbank) and alif.mobi (issuer: Aloqabank).
  • Apelsin, a digital branch of Kapitalbank, has launched a contactless payment method in a test mode. The service will eventually be made available to holders of HUMO cards, including virtual HUMO cards.

Azerbaijan

  • The International Bank of Azerbaijan has joined the IPS instant payment system, allowing Azerbaijani citizens and companies to make 24/7 instant payment transactions using simplified identifiers (e.g. FIN-code, TIN, mobile phone number, e-mail).

Prepared by BFC